[HISTORY: Adopted by the Board of Trustees of the Village of Airmont
as indicated in article histories. Amendments noted where applicable.]
[Adopted 3-29-1993 by L.L.
No. 29-1993]
This article shall be known and may be cited hereinafter as the "Records
Management Law of the Village of Airmont."
It is the intent of this article to provide for a uniform procedure
for maintaining and disposing of public records of the Village of Airmont.
There shall be a records management program established under the aegis
of the Village Clerk's Department and headed by the Village Clerk as Records
Management Officer (RMO). The Officer will be responsible for administering
the noncurrent and archival public records and storage areas for the Village
of Airmont in accordance with local, state and federal laws and guidelines.
The Village Clerk shall have the option to appoint a designee to perform this
function with the prior approval of the Mayor.
The Officer shall have all the necessary powers to carry out the efficient
administration, determination of value, use preservation, storage and disposition
of the noncurrent and archival public records kept, filed or received by the
officers and departments of the Village of Airmont.
A.Â
The Records Management Officer shall continually survey
and examine public records to recommend their classification so as to determine
the most suitable methods to be used for the maintaining, storing and servicing
of archival material:
(1)Â
Obsolete and unnecessary records according to New York
State Records Retention and Disposition Schedules thereby subject to disposition;
or
(2)Â
Information containing administrative, legal, fiscal,
research historical or educational value which warrant their permanent retention;
or
(3)Â
Records not subject to disposition according to state
law.
B.Â
The Records Management Officer shall establish guidelines
for proper records management in any department or agency of the Village of
Airmont in accordance with local, state and federal laws and guidelines.
C.Â
The Records Management Officer shall report annually
to the Mayor and the Board of Trustees on the powers and duties herein mentioned
including, but not limited to, the cost/benefit ratio of programs effectuated
by the department.
D.Â
The Officer shall operate a Records Management Center
for the storage, processing and servicing of all noncurrent and archival records
for all Village of Airmont departments and agencies.
E.Â
The Officer shall establish a Village of Airmont Archives
and perform the following functions:
(1)Â
Advise and assist Village of Airmont departments in reviewing
and selecting material to be transferred to the Village of Airmont Archives
for preservation.
(2)Â
Continually survey and examine public records to determine
the most suitable methods to be used for the creating, maintaining, storing,
and servicing of archival materials.
(3)Â
Establish and maintain an adequate repository for the
proper storage, conservation, processing, and servicing of archival records.
(4)Â
Promulgate rules governing public access to and use of
records in the archives, subject to the approval of the Records Advisory Board.
(5)Â
Develop a confidentiality policy for archival records
designated confidential, providing such policy does not conflict with any
federal or state statutes.
(6)Â
Provide information services to other Village of Airmont
offices.
(7)Â
Collect archival materials which are not official Village
of Airmont records but which have associational value to the Village of Airmont
or a close relationship to the existing archival collection. Such collecting
shall be subject to archive space, staff, and cost limitations, and to the
potential endangerment of such materials if they are not collected by the
Archives.
(8)Â
Develop a procedure whereby historically important records
are to be identified at the point of generation.
There shall be a Records Advisory Board designated to work closely with
and provide advice to the Records Management Officer. The Board shall consist
of the Mayor or a Trustee as designated by the Mayor, the Village Attorney
or an Assistant Village Attorney as designated by the Village Attorney, the
local Historian, the Village's financial consultant, the Clerk to the Planning
Board, the Clerk to the Zoning Board of Appeals, and an interested citizen
as appointed by the Mayor and approved by the Board of Trustees. The Board
shall meet periodically and have the following duties:
A.Â
Provide advice to the Records Management Officer on the
development of the Records Management Program;
B.Â
Review the performance of the program on an ongoing basis
and propose changes and improvements;
C.Â
Review retention periods proposed by the Records Management
Office for records not covered by state archive's schedules;
D.Â
Provide advice on the appraisal of records for archival
value and to be the final sign-off entity as to what is or is not archival.
A.Â
A Village of Airmont department is the legal custodian
of its records and shall retain custody of records deposited in the Records
Center. Records transferred to or acquired by the Archives shall be under
the custody and control of the Archives rather than the department which created
or held them immediately prior to being transferred to the Archives.
B.Â
Records shall be transferred to the Archives upon the
recommendation of the RMO, with the approval of the head of the department
which has custody of the records and the approval of the Records Advisory
Board.
C.Â
Records may be permanently removed from the Archives
at the request of the RMO or the head of the department which had custody
of the records immediately prior to the transfer of those records to the Archives,
subject to the approval of the Records Advisory Board.
The Legal Department may take steps to recover local government records
which have been alienated from proper custody, and may, when necessary, institute
actions of replevin.
No records shall be destroyed or otherwise disposed of by a department
of the Village of Airmont unless approval has been obtained from the Records
Management Officer. No records shall be destroyed or otherwise disposed of
by the Records Management Officer without the express written consent of the
department head having authority.
As used in this article, the following terms shall have the meanings
indicated:
Those official records which have been determined by the Officer
and Advisory Committee to have sufficient historical or other value to warrant
their continued preservation by the local government.
Any documents, books, papers, photographs, sound recordings, microforms,
or any other materials, regardless of physical form or characteristics, made
or received pursuant to law or ordinance or in connection with the transaction
of official Village of Airmont business.
An establishment maintained by the Village of Airmont primarily for
the storage, servicing, security, and processing of records which must be
preserved for varying periods of time and need not be retained in office equipment
or space.
The removal by the Village of Airmont, in accordance with approved records
control schedules, of records no longer necessary for the conduct of business
by such agency through removal methods which may include:
The transfer of records from one Village of Airmont agency to any other
Village of Airmont agency.
The planning, controlling, directing, organizing, training, promotion
and other managerial use and records disposition, including records preservation,
records disposal and records centers or other storage facilities.
Making information in records available to any Village of Airmont
agency for official use or to the public.
[Adopted at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General Provisions,
Art. I)]
A.Â
The People's right to know the process of government
decisionmaking and the documents and statistics leading to determinations
is basic to our society. Access to such information should not be thwarted
by shrouding it with the cloak of secrecy or confidentiality.
B.Â
This article provide information concerning the procedures
by which records may be obtained.
C.Â
Personnel shall furnish to the public the information
and records required by the Freedom of Information Law (§ 85 et
seq. of the Public Officers Law) as well as records otherwise available by
law.
D.Â
Any conflicts among laws governing public access to records
shall be construed in favor of the widest possible availability of public
records.
A.Â
The Board of Trustees of the Village of Airmont is responsible
for ensuring compliance with the regulations herein, and the Board of Trustees
shall appoint a Records Access Officer to assist said Board in the administration
of this article.
B.Â
The Records Access Officer shall be responsible for ensuring
appropriate agency response to public requests for access to records. The
designation of a Records Access Officer shall not be construed to prohibit
officials who have in the past been authorized to make records or information
available to the public from continuing to do so.
Records shall be available for public inspection and copying at the
Village Offices, 321 Route 59, Airmont, New York 10982.
Requests for public access to records shall be accepted and records
produced during all hours regularly open for business.
A.Â
A written request may be required, but oral requests
may be accepted when records are readily available.
B.Â
A response shall be given regarding any request reasonably
describing the record or records sought within five business days of receipt
of the request.
C.Â
A request shall reasonably describe the record or records
sought. Whenever possible, a person requesting records should supply information
regarding dates, file designations or other information that may help to describe
the records sought.
D.Â
If the Records Access Officer does not provide or deny
access to the records sought within five business days of receipt of a request,
he or she shall furnish a written acknowledgment of receipt of the request
and a statement of the approximate date when the request will be granted or
denied. If access to records is neither granted nor denied within 10 business
days after the date of acknowledgment of receipt of a request, the request
may be construed as a denial of access that may be appealed.
A.Â
The Records Access Officer shall maintain a reasonably
detailed current list by subject matter of all records in his or her possession,
whether or not records are available pursuant to Subdivision 2 of § 87
of the Public Officers Law.
B.Â
The subject matter list shall be sufficiently detailed
to permit identification of the category of the record sought.
C.Â
The subject matter list shall be updated not less than
twice per year. The most recent update shall appear on the first page of the
subject matter list.
A.Â
Denial of access to records shall be in writing stating
the reason therefor and advising the requester of the right to appeal to the
individual or body established to hear appeals.
B.Â
If requested records are not provided promptly, as required in § 46-14D of this article, such failure shall also be deemed a denial of access.
C.Â
The Board of Trustees of the Village of Airmont shall
hear appeals for denial of access to records under the Freedom of Information
Law (§ 85 et seq. of the Public Officers Law).
D.Â
The time for deciding an appeal by the body designated
to hear appeals shall commence upon receipt of a written appeal identifying:
(1)Â
The date of the appeal.
(2)Â
The date and location of the request for records.
(3)Â
The records to which the requester was denied access.
(4)Â
Whether the denial of access was in writing or due to failure to provide records promptly as required by § 46-14D.
(5)Â
The name and return address of the requester.
E.Â
The body designated to hear appeals shall inform the
requester of its decision, in writing, within 10 business days of receipt
of an appeal.
F.Â
The body designated to hear appeals shall transmit to
the Committee on Open Government copies of all appeals upon receipt of appeals.
Such copies shall be addressed to the Committee on Open Government, Department
of State, 162 Washington Avenue, Albany, New York 12231.
G.Â
The body designated to hear appeals shall inform the appellant and the Committee on Open Government of its determination, in writing, within 10 business days of receipt of an appeal. The determination shall be transmitted to the Committee on Public Access to Records in the same manner as set forth in Subsection F of this section.
A notice containing the title or name and business address of the Records
Access Officer and appeals body and the location where records can be seen
or copied shall be posted in a conspicuous location wherever records are kept
and/or published in a local newspaper of general circulation.