Public records of the school district may be viewed by the public during regular business hours of the administration office of the district. These hours are 7:30 AM and 4:00 PM Monday through Friday, except for holidays (including school holidays).
Persons wishing to view the school district’s public records will contact the communications office and make arrangements for viewing. The communications office will make arrangements for viewing the records as soon as practicable, depending on the nature of the request.
Persons may request copies of public records by telephone or in writing, including electronically. The school district may require pre-payment of the costs prior to copying and mailing.
Persons wanting copies may be assessed a reasonable fee for the copy and for the time needed by the employee to review and collect the requested information. The district will make every effort to provide the public records requested at no cost other than copying costs for a record which takes less than 30 minutes to produce. For requests that take more than 30 minutes to produce, expenses will include the actual cost per hour of the employee’s time.
Costs for legal services utilized for the redaction or review of legally protected confidential information may also be assessed to the individual requesting the records. Printing of materials for the public at the expense of the school district will only occur when the event is sponsored by the school district.
In making a determination for charges for a series of requests from one person or organization within a 30-day period, or a series of requests from persons in a single organization, the charges may be aggregated. For any other materials, cost will be assessed based on the individual request.
Pursuant to Iowa law, the board has determined certain records need to be confidential as their disclosure could jeopardize the safety of persons or property and include, but are not limited to, the following:
- Security and emergency plans and procedures;
- Emergency preparedness procedures and response protocols;
- Evacuation procedures;
- Security codes and passwords, and
- Information contained in records that if disclosed would significantly increase the vulnerability of critical physical systems or infrastructure.
It is the responsibility of the communications office to respond in a timely manner to requests for viewing and receiving public information of the school district.
Adopted: 3/00
Reviewed: 4/14; 6/15
Revised: 3/13; 7/19; 7/22; 10/22
Related Policy: 505.6; 505.6-R; 505.6-E2-E7
Legal Reference (Code of Iowa): §§ 21.4; 22.7; 291.6
IASB Reference: 901
Mandatory Policy