WSR 19-06-025
PROPOSED RULES
EASTERN WASHINGTON
STATE HISTORICAL SOCIETY
[Filed February 28, 2019, 10:31 a.m.]
Original Notice.
Preproposal statement of inquiry was filed as WSR 19-01-006.
Title of Rule and Other Identifying Information: WAC 256-20-070 Costs of providing copies of public records.
Hearing Location(s): On April 17, 2019, at 3:00 p.m., at the Gilkey Community Room, Northwest Museum of Arts and Culture, 2316 West 1st Avenue, Spokane, WA 99201.
Date of Intended Adoption: April 17, 2019.
Submit Written Comments to: Kate Rau, 2316 West 1st Avenue, Spokane, WA 99201, email kate.rau@northwestmuseum.org, fax 509-363-5303, by April 10, 2019.
Assistance for Persons with Disabilities: Contact Kate Rau, phone 509-363-5336, fax 509-363-5303, email kate.rau@northwestmuseum.org, by April 10, 2019.
Purpose of the Proposal and Its Anticipated Effects, Including Any Changes in Existing Rules: (1) To comply with EHB 1595 and RCW 42.56.120, it is necessary to update this code; (2) it is unduly burdensome for the Eastern Washington State Historical Society (EWSHS) to calculate actual costs for copying records to fulfill public records requests; and (3) pursuant to RCW 42.56.129, these changes will allow EWSHS to be reimbursed for the costs associated with fulfilling its duties under the Public Records Act.
Reasons Supporting Proposal: To comply with EHB 1595 and RCW 42.56.120.
Statutory Authority for Adoption: RCW 42.56.040, [42.56].120, 27.43.070.
Statute Being Implemented: RCW 42.56.040.
Rule is not necessitated by federal law, federal or state court decision.
Name of Proponent: EWSHS, governmental.
Name of Agency Personnel Responsible for Drafting: Kate Rau, 2316 West 1st Avenue, Spokane, WA 99201, 509-363-5336; Implementation and Enforcement: Wesley Jessup, 2316 West 1st Avenue, Spokane, WA 99201, 509-363-5336.
A school district fiscal impact statement is not required under RCW 28A.305.135.
A cost-benefit analysis is not required under RCW 34.05.328. Pursuant to RCW 34.05.328 (5)(a)(i), this agency is not an agency mandated to comply with RCW 34.05.328. Further, the agency does not voluntarily make that section applicable to the adoption of this rule pursuant to subsection (5)(a)(ii), and to date, the joint administrative rules review committee has not made the section applicable to the adoption of this rule.
This rule proposal, or portions of the proposal, is exempt from requirements of the Regulatory Fairness Act because the proposal:
Is exempt under RCW 19.85.025(3) as the rule content is explicitly and specifically dictated by statute.
February 28, 2019
Kate Rau
Executive Assistant
AMENDATORY SECTION(Amending WSR 17-07-057, filed 3/11/17, effective 4/11/17)
WAC 256-20-070Costs of providing copies of public records.
(((1)))The following copy fees and payment procedures apply to public records requests made after the effective date of this rule:
(1) Pursuant to RCW 42.56.120 (2)(b), the eastern Washington state historical society is not calculating all actual costs for copying records because to do so would be unduly burdensome for the following reasons:
(a) The eastern Washington state historical society does not have the resources to conduct a study to determine all its actual copying costs;
(b) It is difficult to calculate all costs directly incident to copying records; and
(c) To conduct such a study would interfere with other essential eastern Washington state historical society functions.
(2)Costs for ((inspection))copies. There is no fee for inspecting public records((.
(2) Costs for standard copies. A requestor may obtain standard black and white photocopies, 8.5" x 11" for fifteen cents per page.
(3) Costs of nonstandard copies. Nonstandard copies include nonstandard black and white copies, color copies, engineering drawings, and photographs. An eastern Washington state historical society requestor will be charged the actual costs for nonstandard photocopies.
(4) Use of outside vendor. Eastern Washington state historical society is not required to copy records at its own facilities. Eastern Washington state historical society can send the project to a commercial copying center and bill the requestor for the amount charged by the vendor.
(5) Costs for electronic records. The cost of electronic copies of records shall be the cost of the disk or storage device. There will be no charge for emailing electronic records to a requestor, unless another cost applies such as a scanning fee.
(6) Costs of mailing. The eastern Washington state historical society may also charge actual costs of mailing, including the cost of the shipping container.
(7))). The eastern Washington state historical society will charge for copies of public records pursuant to the default fees in RCW 42.56.120 (2)(b) and (c). The eastern Washington state historical society will charge for customized services pursuant to RCW 42.56.120(3). Under RCW 42.56.130, the eastern Washington state historical society may charge other copying fees authorized by statutes outside of chapter 42.56 RCW. The eastern Washington state historical society may enter into an alternative fee agreement with a requestor under RCW 42.56.120(4). The charges for copying methods used by the eastern Washington state historical society are summarized in the fee schedule available on the eastern Washington state historical society's web site at www.northwestmuseum.org.
(3) Requestors are required to pay for copies in advance of receiving records. Fee waivers are an exception and are available for some small requests under the following conditions:
(a) It is within the discretion of the public records officer to waive copying fees when:
(i) All of the records responsive to an entire request are paper copies only and are twenty-five or fewer pages; or
(ii) All of the records responsive to an entire request are electronic and can be provided in a single email with attachments of a size totaling no more than the equivalent of one hundred pages. If that email for any reason is not deliverable, records will be produced in accordance with this rule.
(b) Fee waivers are not applicable to records requested in installments.
(4)Payment. Payment may be made by cash, check, or money order to the eastern Washington state historical society. Before beginning to make the copies, the public records officer or designee may require a deposit of up to ten percent of the estimated costs of copying all the records selected by the requestor. The public records officer or designee may also require the payment of the remainder of the copying costs before providing all the records, or the payment of the costs of copying an installment before providing that installment. The eastern Washington state historical society will not charge sales tax when it makes copies of public records.
(5) The eastern Washington state historical society will close a request when a requestor fails by the payment date to pay in the manner prescribed for records, an installment of records, or a required deposit.