HomeMy WebLinkAboutResolution No. 2026-05 - Adopting a Public Records PolicyRESOLUTION NO. 2026-05
A RESOLUTION OF THE PASCO PUBLIC FACILITIES DISTRICT
BOARD, ADOPTING A PUBLIC RECORDS POLICY.
WHEREAS, the Pasco Public Facilities District ("PPFD") is an "agency" as defined in
Washington's Public Records Act (chapter 42.56 RCW, the "PRA"); and
WHEREAS, the PPFD Board desires to adopt a policy describing the PPFD's rules and
processes for receiving, processing, and responding to requests for public records; and
WHEREAS, RCW 42.56.070(3) requires agencies to maintain and make available for
public inspection and copying a current index providing identifying information as to specific
categories of records issued, adopted, or promulgated after January 1, 1973; and
WHEREAS, RCW 42.56.070(4) provides that if maintaining such an index would be unduly
burdensome or would interfere with agency operations, the agency may instead issue and publish a
formal order or resolution specifying the reason for such determination; and
WHEREAS, the PPFD is committed to providing the public with full access to the PPFD's
records in compliance with the PRA; and
WHEREAS, PPFD generates, receives, and maintains a variety of records in multiple
formats and locations, and has no employees or a standalone records department; and
WHEREAS, pursuant to an interlocal agreement between the PPFD and the City of Pasco
dated February 2, 2026, the Pasco City Clerk serves as the PPFD's public records officer; and
WHEREAS, compiling and maintaining a complete and current index of all public records would
require the hiring of employees or contractors to support the creation of an index and its ongoing accuracy,
diverting necessary resources from PPFD priorities and resulting in a substantial disruption to
operations;
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS OF
THE PASCO PUBLIC FACILITIES DISTRICT as follows:
Section 1. The PPFD Board of Directors hereby adopts the Public Records Policy
attached as Exhibit A to this Resolution.
Section 2. Pursuant to RCW 42.56.070(4), the PPFD Board of Directors finds that
maintaining a current index of all public records as contemplated by RCW 42.56.070(3) would be
unduly burdensome, would interfere with PPFD operations, and would require a disproportionate
allocation of staff and financial resources.
Section 3. PPFD shall not maintain a current index of all public records under RCW
42.56.070(3). PPFD will continue to make available for public inspection and copying all public
Resolution 2026-05 -I
records as required by the PRA and in accordance with the PPFD's Public Records Policy.
Section 4. The PPFD's Executive Director is authorized and directed to publish this
Resolution in accordance with RCW 42.56.070(4), and publish the PPFD's Public Records
Policy in accordance with RCW 42.56.040.
Section 5. The PPFD's Executive Director is authorized to make administrative
updates to the Public Records Policy, provided that the Executive Director shall provide an
update to the Board at the Board meeting following any updates to the Public Records Policy.
Section 6. This Resolution shall take effect immediately.
PASSED by the Pasco Public Facilities District Board of Directors, of Pasco, Washington,
this __lk_ day of :'l:,&..I\..R.... , 2026.
PASCO PUBLIC FACILITIES DISTRICT
ard President
ATTEST:
Caroline Bowdish, ecretary/Treasurer
Pasco Public Facilities District
Resolution 2026-05 -2
APPROVED AS TO FORM:
Tyler Whi , able Huston LLP
Legal Counsel for PPFD
Exhibit A
[Policy on Next Page]
Exhibit A
Pasco Public Facilities District
Public Records Policy
Public Records Policy
POL-002, Rev. 0
Document Control No. POL-002 Date of Initial Adoption: June 23, 2026
Document Type: Board Policy Date Last Revised: June 23, 2026
1. Purpose and Scope. The purpose of this Public Records Policy ("Policy") is to
establish procedures for the Pasco Public Facilities District's ("PPFD") compliance
with chapter 42.56 RCW, the Public Records Act ("PRA"). This Policy is not intended
to expand or restrict the rights of disclosure or privacy as they exist under applicable
law. Despite the use of any mandatory terms such as "shall" or "will," nothing in this
Policy is intended to impose mandatory duties on the PPFD beyond those imposed
by applicable law. The PPFD reserves the right to apply and interpret this Policy as it
deems necessary, and to revise or change the Policy at anytime. This Policy is
intended to comply with, and must be interpreted and implemented consistent
with, the PRA, as may be amended from time to time.
2. Agency Description; Public Records Officer; Contact Information.
a. Agency Description. The Pasco Public Facilities District is a Washington
municipal corporation formed under chapter 35.57 RCW. The PPFD Board of
Directors meets at the Pasco Aquatic Center, located at 5204 Road 108,
Pasco, WA 99301. PPFD's central records office is located at the Pasco City
Hall, located at 525 North 3rd Avenue, Pasco, WA 99301.
b. Public Records Officer. The PPFD has designated the Pasco City Clerk as the
PPFD's Public Records Officer pursuant to RCW 42.56.580. Any person
wishing to request access to public records or seeking assistance in making
such a request should contact the PPFD's Public Records Officer.
c. Pasco Public Records Portal. Requesters are encouraged to submit records
requests through the City of Pasco's public records request portal, which can
be found at: https://www.pasco-wa.gov/193/Public-Records-Requests.
d. Contact Information. As an alternative to using the public records portal,
records requests may be submitted to the Public Records Officer at:
Pasco Public Facilities District
Attn: Public Records Officer
525 North 3rd Avenue, Pasco, WA 99301
Phone: (509) 544-3096
Facsimile: (509) 543-5727
cityclerkprr@pasco-wa.gov
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POL-002, Rev. 0
Certain public records may be available on the PPFD's or City of Pasco's
websites. Requesters are encouraged to view records available on those
websites prior to submitting a public records request.
3. Availability of Public Records.
a. Hours for Inspection of Records. Public records are available for inspection
and copying during normal business hours of the PPFD and the City of Pasco,
excluding weekends and legal holidays. The Public Records Officer or
designee may oversee public review of PPFD records to ensure the integrity
and security of such records during inspection. No fees shall be charged for
the inspection of public records.
b. Organization of Records. The PPFD will maintain its records in a reasonably
organized manner consistent with available resources. Pursuant to RCW
42.56.070(4), PPFD has determined that the development and maintenance
of a current index of all public records as required by RCW 42.56.070(3) is
unduly burdensome and would interfere with PPFD operations. See Pasco
Public Facilities District Resolution No. 2026-05.
c. Retention of Records. The PPFD will follow applicable law, including chapter
40.14 RCW and the Washington State Archives' retention schedules, in the
retention and destruction of public records.
4. Making a Request for Public Records.
a. Identifiable Records. A public records request must be for identifiable
records. A request for all or substantially all records prepared, owned, used,
or retained by an agency is not a valid request for identifiable records.
b. Submitting a ReQuest. Requesters are strongly encouraged to use the public
records request form provided on the PPFD's website. Requests may be
made online, in person, by letter, or by e-mail addressed to the Public
Records Officer and should include the following information:
i. Name of requester;
ii. Mailing address, telephone number, and/or e-mail address;
iii. The date the request was submitted;
iv. The requester's company/organization (optional);
v. A description of the identifiable public records adequate for the Public
Records Officer or designee to locate the records;
vi. Whether the requester seeks to inspect the records, obtain copies, or
both.
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POL-002, Rev. 0
Requests submitted by mail and addressed to the Public Records Officer will
be deemed received on the date received by the Public Records Officer.
Requests submitted electronically to the Public Records Officer will be
deemed received on the date they are received, but requests received after
the close of business will be deemed received on the next business day.
If the requester wishes to have copies of the records instead of simply
inspecting them, fees may apply depending on the type and format of
responsive records.
Verbal requests are strongly discouraged, to avoid confusion over whether a
request has been made under the PRA and the scope of the request.
c. Unclear Requests. Requesters are encouraged to avoid using ambiguous
terms such as "all records relating to," "all records regarding," or "all records
pertaining to." Such terms may cause unnecessary delays in processing the
request and may require clarification. If all or a portion of a request is
unclear, the PPFD may seek clarification from the requester. If the requester
fails to clarify the request within 30 days, the PPFD may deem the unclear
portion of the request abandoned. The PPFD will respond to the portions of
the request that are clear.
5. Processing of Public Records Requests.
a. Order of Processing. The Public Records Officer or designee will process
requests in the order allowing the most requests to be processed in the most
efficient manner.
b. Initial Response. Within 5 business days of receiving a public records
request, the Public Records Officer or designee will respond by doing one or
more of the following:
i. Make the record(s) available, in whole or in part, for inspection or
copying;
ii. Provide an internet address and link to PPFD's website for the records
requested, if available;
iii. Acknowledge the request has been received and provide a reasonable
estimate of time required by the PPFD to respond to the request;
iv. Acknowledge the request and ask the requester to provide
clarification for a request that is unclear, and provide a reasonable
estimate of time necessary to respond to the request if it is not
clarified; or
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Public Records Policy
POL-002, Rev. 0
v. Deny the request, in whole or in part, and provide the legal basis for
the denial.
For purposes of computing time, the day on which the request is received
does not count as one of the 5 business days. Weekends and legal holidays
are excluded from the calculation of time.
c. Reasonable Estimate of Time. The Public Records Officer or designee may
provide a reasonable estimate of the time needed to respond to a request
based on factors including, but not limited to:
i. The need to clarify the request;
ii. The time needed to locate and assemble the records;
iii. The time needed to notify third parties affected by the request;
iv. The need to determine whether any requested records or information
are exempt from disclosure;
v. The volume of records requested;
vi. The volume of public records requests; and
vii. Other essential agency functions affecting the workload of the Public
Records Officer or other staff.
d. Large Requests; Installments. When a public records request is for a large
volume of records, the Public Records Officer may elect to provide records
on an installment basis if the Public Records Officer reasonably determines
that it would be practical to provide the records in that manner. If records are
provided on an installment basis, the PPFD may charge for each part of the
request as it is provided. If a requester fails to contact the Public Records
Officer or designee to arrange for the review of any installment within 30 days
after notice that the installment is available, the PPFD may stop searching for
the remaining records and close the request.
e. Default Formats for Electronic Records. Unless otherwise specified by the
requester, the PPFD's default methods of producing electronic records are as
follows:
i. Emails -produced in an Adobe PDF binder or, if requested by the
requester, a .PST file.
ii. PDFs -produced in their original PDF form
iii. All other standard electronic records (.doc, .docx, .xls, .xlsx, .csv, .jpg,
.gif, etc.) -produced in their native form
The PPFD may assess a customized service charge if it estimates that the
request would require the use of information technology expertise to prepare
data compilations, or provide customized electronic access services when
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POL-002, Rev. 0
such compilations and customized access services are not used by the
PPFD for other business purposes.
f. Completion of Request. When the inspection of the responsive records is
complete, and/or all responsive copies have been provided to the requester,
the Public Records Office or designee will notify the requester that the PPFD
has completed its search and has made all nonexempt records available for
inspection or release. The request will then be deemed closed.
g. No Duty to Create Records. The PPFD is not obligated to provide information
about records, create new records, or provide a record in a format different
from the original format of the record.
h. No Duty to Supplement Records. The PPFD is not obligated to hold active
records requests open in order to respond to requests for records that may
be created in the future. A new request must be made to obtain later-created
records. However, if, after the PPFD has informed the requester that it has
provided all available records, the PPFD becomes aware of additional
responsive records that existed at the time of the request, it will promptly
inform the requester of the additional records and provide them as soon as
reasonably possible.
6. Exemptions, Redactions, Third-Party Notice, and Special Processing Rules.
a. Records Exempt from Disclosure. The PPFD is not required to make available
for inspection or copying public records exempt under the PRA or other
applicable law.
If the PPFD believes that a record is exempt from disclosure and should be
withheld, the Public Records Officer or designee will provide the specific
exemption and a brief explanation of why the record or a portion of the record
is being withheld.
If only a portion of a record is exempt from disclosure, the Public Records
Officer will redact the exempt portions, provide the nonexempt portions, and
indicate to the requester why portions of the record are being redacted. The
Public Records Officer may consult with legal counsel prior to denying a
request or redacting information from a public record.
If the request is for a list of individuals, the requester may be required to
certify whether the list is for a commercial purpose. The PPFD will not
provide lists of individuals for commercial purposes unless specifically
authorized by law.
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b. Third-Party Notice. If a public record contains information affecting an
individual or organization other than the person who requested the public
record, the PPFD may notify that individual or organization to allow the third
party to seek relief pursuant to RCW 42.56.540. The notice may include a
copy of the request. Nothing in this Policy shall be construed to create any
right to such notice.
c. Bot Requests. The PPFD has no duty to accept certain automated or bot
requests. The PPFD may deny an automatically generated request, or a
request that the PPFD reasonably believes was automatically generated by a
computer program or script, that is one of multiple requests received from
the same requester within a 24-hour period, if the PPFD establishes that
responding to the multiple requests would be unduly burdensome or cause
excessive interference with other essential functions of the PPFD.
7. Costs of Providing Copies of Public Records.
Category
Copies
Scans
a. Actual Costs. The PPFD finds that calculating actual costs for providing
copies of public records for every request would be unduly burdensome.
Costs vary depending on the complexity, size, and level of legal review
required, number of redactions required, the format of the records, and
personnel working on the request. The added cost of conducting a study for
each request would interfere with the PPFD's ability to respond to requests in
a timely manner, and would unduly interfere with the PPFD's business
operations. Therefore, the PPFD adopts the following fee schedule pursuant
to RCW 42.56.120. The PPFD reserves the right to waive a de minimus
amount of fees.
b. Charges for Copies. Pursuant to RCW 42.56.120, the PPFD may charge one
or more of the following charges for copies:
Fee Schedule
Description Fee
Photocopies or printed copies $0.15 per page
Scanned records using PPFD equipment $0.10 per page
Attachments Records uploaded to email or cloud-based $0.05 per each 4
storage service, or other means of electronic electronic files or
delivery attachments
Transmittals Transmission of records via electronic format $0.10 per 1 GB
Digital Storage Digital storage media devices (flash drive, CD, Actual cost
DVD)
Mailing Costs Any container or envelope used to mail copies, Actual cost
and postage or delivery charges
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Third-Party A third party hired by the PPFD to copy or scan Actual cost
Costs
IT Expertise IT expertise to prepare data compilations, or Customized service
provide customized electronic access services charge (actual cost,
not used for other agency purposes with deposit of 10%
of estimated costs)
If more than one charge applies to copies responsive to a particular request,
then the above charges may be combined. The Public Records Officer may
elect to waive fees when the expense of billing exceeds the cost of copying
and postage or when otherwise appropriate.
c. Payment and Deposits. Payment may be made by cash, check, money order,
or other approved method to the PPFD. When necessary, payments should
be made payable to the Pasco Public Facilities District. Before beginning to
make copies, the Public Records Officer may require a deposit of up to 10%
of the estimated cost of copying the records selected by the requester. The
Public Records Officer may also require the payment of the remainder of the
copying cost before providing all the records, or the payment of the cost of
copying an installment before providing that installment.
8. Review of Denials of Public Records Request.
a. Internal Review. Any person who objects to the denial or partial denial of a
public records request may petition in writing, including by email, to the
Public Records Officer for a review of that decision. The petition shall include
a copy of or reasonably identify the written statement by the PPFD denying
the request. The Public Records Officer shall provide the appeal to the
PPFD's legal counsel or other person designated by the PPFD to review the
denial. The PPFD will consider the petition and either affirm or reverse the
denial within 2 business days following the PPFD's receipt of the appeal, or
within such other time as the PPFD and the requestor mutually agree upon.
b. Judicial Review. Any person may obtain court review of denials of public
records requests pursuant to RCW 42.56.550.
9. Document Management. The Executive Director shall review this Policy as needed
and propose any suggested changes to the Board.
10. Revision History
Rev. Revision Date Description
0 June 23, 2026 Initial document release
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