ADOPTED - MARCH 25, 2008

Agenda Item No. 2

Introduced by the County Services Committee of the:

INGHAM COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS

RESOLUTION ESTABLISHING A FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA) POLICY FOR INGHAM COUNTY

RESOLUTION #08-071

WHEREAS, from time to time Ingham County Departments will receive Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests; and

WHEREAS, these FOIA requests must be adhered to in accordance with the Freedom of Information Act MCL 15.231 et seq.; and

WHEREAS, it is necessary to adopt a policy to ensure that the FOIA’s are addressed in an efficient and consistent manner.

THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED, the Ingham County Board of Commissioners hereby adopts the following Freedom of Information Act Policy:

1)  The Board Coordinator is the FOIA Coordinator for Ingham County per the designation by the Board Chairperson.  

2)  Each department that receives a written request that cites FOIA will provide the requested information, unless otherwise exempt, and shall ensure the Board Coordinator receives a copy of the FOIA request and the response letter, unless the Department Head/elected official determines it is routine information not involved or potentially involved in litigation.

3)  In accordance with the Freedom of Information Act MCL 15.231 et seq., the department receiving the written request must respond to the request not more than five (5) business days after the request has been received and provide the fees for services as adopted in this Resolution (see Attachment A-1 & A-2) and Resolution #07-118 (Resolution Updating Various Fees for County Services).

4)   An Ingham County employee who receives a written request that cites FOIA should immediately submit the request to their Department Head (or department Elected Official).

5)   The County Attorney’s Office is available for assistance as to the legality or other questions  relative to the request, including possible extension of time to submit the requested  information, and if needed, should receive the written request immediately.

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that the Ingham County Board of Commissioners hereby authorizes the adoption of this Freedom of Information Act Policy which will be effective immediately and will supercede any previous resolutions setting formulas for the cost of FOIA requests. 

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that the County Clerk will forward a copy of this resolution to each County Department.   

COUNTY SERVICES:  Yeas:  Nolan, De Leon, Copedge, Soule, Grebner, Severino

Nays:  None          Absent:  None        Approved 3/18/08

                                    Attachment A-1

DETERMINATION OF COST FOR

REQUESTS MADE UNDER THE FOIA STATUTE

1. These are requests for non-certified copies of County records and documents for which the costs have not been established be the State statute, by order of the Court, or by the County Board of Commissioners, and which are made under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA). The cost for complying with each request will be calculated as follows:

1)   The cost of documented time spent in research, retrieval, and copying the first page of the requested information shall be calculated by multiplying the hourly rate of the lowest paid employee capable of furnishing the information times the actual number of minutes spent performing these tasks.

2) For multiple page documents which must be assembled, collated, or stapled, the cost shall be calculated by multiplying the hourly rate of the lowest paid employee capable of furnishing the information times the actual amount of time required to perform these tasks.

3) The copy cost of each page shall be calculated by multiplying the number of pages by the per page copy cost of utilizing the most representative copying machine in use in the County.

4) The cost of postage and mailing expenses shall be calculated by adding the actual cost of postage plus the cost of the time required to prepare the document for mailing. The cost of the time required shall be calculated by multiplying the hourly rate of the lowest paid employee capable of furnishing the information times the actual number of minutes required to prepare the document for mailing.

2. The employee’s hourly rate and the cost of copying machine will be based on actual cost. The County Official or Department Head actually responsible for providing the information shall determine the lowest paid employee capable of furnishing the information. The employee performing the actual service will be responsible for determining the actual number of minutes spent responding to each request.

3. The attached form (Attachment A-2) is hereby adopted for use by all County departments in calculating costs associated with responding to the requests.                   

Attachment A-2

FREEDOM OF INFORMATION PHOTOCOPYING REQUEST

Date Requested:                              

Information Requested by:   

Information Provided by:                  

Date Provided:                               

                                                      CALCULATION OF COST

Research/Retrieval/Copying cost: $ (hourly rate of

employee divided by 60) x minutes (time spent in the

research, retrieval and copying of requested information)                 $

Each Page:  (# of pages) x $ *copy cost      $

Actual Postage @ $  + $  or other

material + $ (hourly rate of employee divided by 60)

x minutes (actual number of minutes required to

prepare the document for mailing)                                                   $

TOTAL                                                                                                      $

NOTE:

*If the total cost of the transaction is less than $1.00, the fee will be waived.

*The cost for time is calculated upon the hourly rate of the lowest paid employee capable of furnishing the information, as per the Freedom of Information Statute.

*$.15 copy cost is 2008 rate per Resolution #07-118.