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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2025-43 A Resolution of the Vail Town Council Adopting an Updated Public Records Policy for the Town1 9/11/2025 C:\USERS\UFC-PROD\APPDATA\LOCAL\TEMP\BCL TECHNOLOGIES\EASYPDF 8\@BCL@B42B4026\@BCL@B42B4026.DOCX RESOLUTION NO. 43 SERIES 2025 A RESOLUTION OF THE VAIL TOWN COUNCIL ADOPTING AN UPDATED PUBLIC RECORDS POLICY FOR THE TOWN WHEREAS, the Town wishes to update its Public Records Policy. NOW THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE TOWN COUNCIL OF THE TOWN OF VAIL: Section 1. The Town Council hereby adopts the Public Records Policy in the form attached hereto. INTRODUCED, READ, APPROVED AND ADOPTED THIS 16 th day of September, 2025. ______________________________ Travis Coggin, Mayor ATTEST: ____________________________ Stephanie Kauffman, Town Clerk 9/11/2025 C:\USERS\UFC-PROD\APPDATA\LOCAL\TEMP\BCL TECHNOLOGIES\EASYPDF 8\@BCL@0C2D0827\@BCL@0C2D0827.DOCX TOWN OF VAIL PUBLIC RECORDS POLICY I. PURPOSE Pursuant to the Colorado Open Records Act, C.R.S. § 24-72-200.1, et seq. ("CORA"), all public records shall be open for inspection by any person at reasonable times, except as otherwise provided by law. The Town of Vail (the "Town") wishes to implement the following policy to ensure uniform compliance with all aspects of CORA. This policy applies to all Town staff and departments. II. DEFINITIONS For purposes of this Policy, the following terms shall have the following meanings: Correspondence: A communication that is sent to or received by one or more specifically identified individuals, and that is or can be produced in written form, including without limitation communications sent via U.S. mail, private courier, or electronic mail. Electronic Mail ("E-mail"): An electronic message that is transmitted between two or more computers or electronic terminals, whether or not the message is converted to hard copy format after receipt and whether or not the message is viewed upon transmission or stored for later retrieval. E-mail includes electronic messages that are transmitted through a local, regional or global computer network. Official Custodian: The individual who shall be responsible for the maintenance, care and keeping of public records, regardless of whether the records are in their actual personal custody and control. The Town Council hereby has designated the Vail Town Clerk as the Official Custodian. Person in Interest: The person who is the subject of a record or any representative designated by said person; except that, if the subject of the record is under legal disability, "person in interest" means and includes their parent or duly appointed legal representative. Work Product: All advisory or deliberative materials assembled for the benefit of elected officials, which materials express an opinion or are deliberative in nature, and are communicated for the purpose of assisting such elected officials in reaching a decision within the scope of their authority. Such materials include without limitation: notes and memoranda that relate to or serve as background information for such decisions; and preliminary drafts and discussion copies of documents that express a decision by an elected official. "Work product" also includes a request by a Town official for the preparation of such opinion or deliberative materials. For example, if the Town Manager requests in writing that staff prepare material to assist the Town Council in a decision-making process, the written request shall also be considered "work product". III. PROTECTED RECORDS A. CORA provides that all public records shall be open for inspection by any person at reasonable times, subject to specific exemptions. An Official Custodian may not disclose 2 9/11/2025 C:\USERS\UFC-PROD\APPDATA\LOCAL\TEMP\BCL TECHNOLOGIES\EASYPDF 8\@BCL@0C2D0827\@BCL@0C2D0827.DOCX information that otherwise falls under an exception to disclosure under CORA. Those records include without limitation the following: 1. Personnel files; 2. Ongoing investigations by law enforcement authorities; 3. Victim/witness information; 4. Social security numbers; 5. Juvenile criminal records; 6. Work product; 7. Deliberative process records; 8. Attorney-client privileged records; 9. Individual medical, mental health, sociological and scholastic achievement data; 10. Letters of reference; 11. Trade secrets; 12. Confidential commercial or financial data; 13. Names, addresses, telephone numbers, and personal financial information of past or present users of public utilities, public facilities, or recreational or cultural services for the Town; 14. Electronic mail addresses, telephone numbers, or home addresses provided by a person to an elected official, agency or Town staff for the purposes of future electronic communications; 15. Records of sexual harassment complaints and investigations; 16. Library records and contributions; and 17. Addresses and telephone numbers of public school students. B. Notwithstanding the foregoing, records that are exempt from the CORA might still be accessible via other forms of inspection, such as a subpoena. IV. RETENTION OF DOCUMENTS All public records shall be retained in accordance with the guidelines established by the Colorado State Archives. At the request of the Town Attorney, the Official Custodian may retain certain records after the retention period expires. 3 9/11/2025 C:\USERS\UFC-PROD\APPDATA\LOCAL\TEMP\BCL TECHNOLOGIES\EASYPDF 8\@BCL@0C2D0827\@BCL@0C2D0827.DOCX V. INSPECTION A. General. Public records shall be open for inspection by any person at reasonable times, subject to the exceptions found in CORA. All public records shall be inspected at Town Hall or shall be provided by the Official Custodian in an electronic format by e-mail. B. Request Required. 1. A request to inspect public records must be written, and sufficiently specific in scope to enable the Official Custodian to identify the information desired. Requests for inspection of e-mail shall include the sender's name, the recipient's name and the approximate date of transmission. A request may be submitted in person or by e-mail. If a request is sent via e-mail to anyone other than the Official Custodian, the statutory time for response to the request will not begin. The Town will endeavor to refer the requester to the Official Custodian to submit their request. 2. The Town shall not require a requester to provide any form of identification unless: (a) the information is designated as confidential pursuant to C.R.S. § 24-72-204(3.5) when the requester has made the appropriate request for confidentiality based upon exposure to criminal harassment or bodily harm; or (b) when the information is designated confidential and only accessible to the person in interest. C.R.S. § 24-72-203(1)(a). 3. If the Official Custodian receives a request to inspect public records that is ambiguous or lacks sufficient specificity to enable the Official Custodian to locate the records, the Official Custodian shall, within three working days, notify the requesting party in writing of the deficiencies in the request. Any clarified request shall be considered a new request for purposes of this Policy and the CORA. 4. The Official Custodian is not required by CORA to construct or create a record that does not exist. Nor is the Town required to manipulate, analyze information, or conduct research or answer specifical questions in response to a CORA request. C. Review and Response. The Town will make every reasonable effort, consistent with available resources, to respond within 3 business days pursuant to C.R.S. 24-72-203(3)(b). The 3-business day response time begins the first working day following receipt of the request. Upon receipt of a request for inspection of public records, the Official Custodian shall review the request and determine whether the requested records are voluminous, in active use, or otherwise not readily available. If so determined, the Custodian of Records within 3 business days shall notify the requesting party in writing that the documents will be produced for inspection within seven additional business days, pursuant to C.R.S. § 24-72-203(3). Notwithstanding the foregoing, if it is physically impossible for the Official Custodian to comply with a request for public records within the time periods established by CORA, the Official Custodian shall comply with the request as soon as physically possible. If the records are readily available, the Official Custodian shall notify the requesting party. Each notice shall include the required deposit, if applicable, and the total amount of fees that must be paid prior to production or transmission of the records. D. Transmission or Production. As directed in the written request for records, the Official Custodian will transmit the requested records by e-mail, regular mail, courier service or 4 9/11/2025 C:\USERS\UFC-PROD\APPDATA\LOCAL\TEMP\BCL TECHNOLOGIES\EASYPDF 8\@BCL@0C2D0827\@BCL@0C2D0827.DOCX facsimile. Unless otherwise requested by the requester, if a public record is stored in a digital format that is searchable, the Town will provide a digital copy and will provide such document by e-mail or other mutually agreed upon methods if the size of the document makes it difficult to send. If no direction is provided in the request, the Official Custodian will make the records available for inspection at Town Hall by appointment. In no case shall records be transmitted or produced until all fees under Section VI have been received by the Town. Once all fees are paid, the Official Custodian shall transmit or produce the records within three business days, unless a longer time is provided by Section C above. E. Town Attorney. Any of the notices required herein may be issued by the Town Attorney in lieu of the Official Custodian. By written notice, the Town Attorney may further require that any requesting party contact the Town Attorney rather than the Official Custodian. VI. FEES A. Copies, Printouts or Photographs. Pursuant to C.R.S. § 24-72-205(5)(a), the Town shall charge a fee not to exceed 25 cents per standard page for any copy of a public record, or a fee not to exceed the actual cost of providing a copy, printout or photograph of a public record which is in a format other than a standard page. For purposes of this Policy, a black and white copy made on a single sheet of letter or legal sized white paper shall constitute a "standard page." The Town shall not charge a fee for each page of a digital copy. B. Research and Retrieval Fees. Pursuant to C.R.S. § 24-72-205(6)(a), the first hour of research and retrieval shall be free. After the first hour, the Town shall charge a research and retrieval fee in accordance with the maximum hourly fee specified by the Direct of Research of the Legislative Council Staff pursuant to C.R.S. § 24-72-205(6)(b) website. A deposit of equal to 50% of the estimated costs of responding to a records request shall be submitted to the Town prior to any search being commenced. C. Postage/Courier Fees. If the Official Custodian transmits records by regular mail or courier service, the requesting party shall be responsible for the cost of postage or courier fees.