Procedures for Copying and Inspection of Public Records

Procedures for Copying and Inspection of Public Records With the exception of records exempted by law, the Board complies with requests for information under the Mississippi Public Records Act of 1983, Mississippi Code Annotated §25- 61-1, et seq. according to the following policies: A. Requests for information under the Mississippi Public Records Act of 1983 should be marked “Request for Public Records” and must be submitted in writing by U.S. mail to the MSBRPG Executive Director/Board Administrator, Mississippi State Board of Registered Professional Geologists, P.O. Box 22742, Jackson, MS 39225-2742. B. Requests should describe in reasonable detail the records sought, and, if possible, should include a description of the type of records, names, dates, etc. that may aid in locating the requested records. Upon receipt of a request, the MSBRPG Executive Director/Board Administrator shall determine whether the records sought are exempt from production under the Page 12 Mississippi Public Records Act, and shall either produce or deny production of the records sought within seven (7) working days of the receipt of the request. If the MSBRPG’S Executive Director/Board Administrator determines that the records requested are exempt or privileged under the law, he or she shall deny the request and shall send the person making the request a statement of specific reasons for the denial. Such denials shall be kept on file for inspection by any person for three years. Where necessary and feasible, exempt material will be redacted from non-exempt material. The MSBRPG will charge reasonable fees for the redaction of any exempted material, not to exceed the agency’s actual cost to do so. C. Records shall be copied by Board personnel only. The requesting party bears the cost of all reproduction which is established as the actual cost incurred by the Board to meet the request. These costs include the cost of labor plus fringe required to conduct searches and copying. The requesting party must prepay costs for reproduction and postage. No copies will be made until full prepayment is made. The MSBRPG’s Executive Director/Board Administrator shall promptly notify the person making the request of the estimated fees if the estimate exceeds the funds accompanying the request. The preceding noted fees will apply even if the search is unproductive. D. Fees for Public Records Requests Cost per page (does not include research- document search-redaction costs) .....................................................................$0.35 Mailing of materials First Class Mail (includes postage and mailing materials)............................................................................ Actual costs Cost of researching, searching, reviewing, redaction, and/or copying and mailing ..............................Labor plus fringe of lowest paid employee