WAC 388-01-060. How may an individual request a public record?

(1) An individual may request a public record verbally or in writing from the DSHS public records officer using the following contact information: DSHS public records officer Office of information governance P.O. Box 45135 Olympia WA 98504-5135 Telephone: (360) 902-8484 Fax: (360) 902-7855 Email: DSHSPublicDisclosure@dshs.wa.gov. DSHS prefers that all public record requests be in writing on the "request for DSHS records" form, DSHS 17-041. Individuals may locate this form on the DSHS website at https://www.dshs.wa.gov/office-of-the-secretary/forms or request it from the DSHS public records officer. (2) If an individual does not use the DSHS form, the written public record request should include the following information: (a) The requester's name, organization, mailing address, telephone number, fax number, and email address; (b) The date of the request; (c) A detailed description of the identifiable public record being requested; (d) The email or mailing address where DSHS should send copies of the records, or if the requester wants to inspect the record at DSHS; and (e) The requester's signature. (3) An individual may fill out a record request at a DSHS office or send it by regular mail, email, or fax to the public records officer. (4) Requests by third parties for confidential client records must be accompanied by a valid authorization as set forth in WAC 388-01-150 . (5) DSHS may ask an individual requesting a public record for personal identification when the law makes a record disclosable to a specific person. (6) DSHS may deny a "bot" request, which is one of multiple requests from a requester within a 24-hour period, if responding to multiple requests would cause excessive interference with other essential DSHS functions.