FOIA

Requests must be submitted in writing to the D34 FOIA Officer. There is no required form to use. The written request should include the requestor's name, address, the date, and a daytime phone number so that the district can contact the requestor with any questions. Please be as specific as possible regarding the public records being sought in order to help expedite the search process. Note on the request if the information is for commercial purposes.

Information will be sent electronically whenever possible unless a specific request is made for paper copies to be picked up at the district office.

• Day one of the five day timeline is the first business day after the district receives the request. 
• A "business day" or "working day" is a regular day of the week (Monday through Friday) when public offices and most businesses are open. 
• Saturdays, Sundays, and state holidays are not business days and cannot be counted in the 5 business day time period.

• The requested information is stored at a different location;
• The request requires the collection of a substantial number of documents;
• The request requires an extensive search;
• The requested records have not been located and require additional effort to find;
• The requested records need to be reviewed by staff who can determine whether they are exempt from FOIA;
• The requested records cannot be produced without unduly burdening the district or interfering with its operations; or
• The request requires the district to consult with another public body that has substantial interest in the subject matter of the request.

If the requested records are 50 pages, or less, in length, the pages will be produced at no charge. The requester will be charged $0.15 per page for each additional page over 50 for black and white copies. The fee for color copies (all pages) is the actual cost. 

The FOIA law has a presumption that all information is public but there are several exceptions to public disclosure that include, but are not limited to:

• Private information is exempt from disclosure under FOIA. FOIA defines "private information" as "unique identifiers, including a person's social security number, driver's license number, employee identification number, biometric identifiers, personal financial information, passwords or other access codes, medical records, home or personal telephone numbers, and person e-mail addresses." Under FOIA "private information also includes home addresses and person license plate numbers, except as otherwise provided by law or when compiled without possibility of attribution to any person."
• Personal information that, if disclosed, would constitute a clearly unwarranted invasion of personal privacy, unless the person who is the subject of the information consents to the disclosure in writing. Under FOIA, the "unwarranted invasion of personal privacy" means the "disclosure of information that is highly personal or objectionable to a reasonable person and in which the subject's right to privacy outweighs any legitimate public interest in obtaining the information." Disclosing information that relates to the public duties of public employees is not considered an invasion of personal privacy.
• Information that, if disclosed, might endanger anyone's life or physical safety.
• Preliminary drafts or notes in which opinions are expressed or policies are formulated, unless the record is publicly cited and identified by the superintendent or school board.
• Business trade secrets or commercial or financial information that is proprietary, privileged or confidential and disclosure would cause competitive harm to the person or business.
• Proposals and bids for any contract, until a final selection is made.
• Requests that are "unduly burdensome." A request may be considered unduly burdensome if there is no way to narrow the request, and the burden on the public body to produce the information outweighs the public interest in the information. However, before relying on this exemption, the public body must first give the requestor an opportunity to reduce the request to a manageable size. If it is still unduly burdensome, the public body must explain in writing the reasons why the request is unduly burdensome and the extent to which compliance will burden the operations of the public body.  Such a response is considered a denial.

As a general rule, the district cannot be required to create records to respond to a request for information that it doesn't ordinarily maintain in record form.  Additionally, the district is under no duty to recreate records that it no longer possesses, so long as those records were not disposed of to avoid compliance with the law.

If the district determines that a denial of the request is justified, the requestor will be informed in writing, and reference to the specific legal reason under FOIA justifying non-disclosure will be provided. The requestor has the right to seek review of the issue by the Public Access Counselor (PAS) in the Attorney General's office, as well as the right to seek judicial review by filing a court case.

A Request for Review is a letter that a requestor may submit to the PAC if they believe that the district has not followed FOIA. This letter is a formal way of asking the PAC to take a look at the request and the district's response (or lack thereof) and determine if a FOIA violation has occurred. The request must be in writing, must be signed by the requestor, and must include a copy of the FOIA request for access to records and any responses from the district. It must be submitted within 60 calendar days of the district's final response (or date upon which the response was due).