How to Request and Get Access to Government Records
The Open Public Records Act provides procedures for the public (the "requester') to review or copy government records. This Records Note provides a summary of these procedures and guidance for requesting records.
To access government records, a requester must determine which records he or she wishes to see or copy, and then determine which public agency holds them. OPRA applies to requests for records, not request for isolated facts. The requester should ask the custodian of records for help in identifying what public record is likely to contain the information or facts being sought.
In order to be considered a valid request under OPRA, the request must identify the specific record(s) desired, the request must be submitted to the records custodian of the public agency that has the record, and that agency's records request form must be used to ask for the record.
Requesters should contact the agency in advance to determine the identity of the custodian. That will help eliminate delays in fulfilling a request. In a municipal government, the custodian will be the municipal clerk, or, at other levels of government, someone in that agency who has been appointed to that job. In many municipal governments, records routinely available through an office, like the police department or tax collector, can still be obtained directly from those offices.
To print the OPRA Application, click on the link below
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