(A) The following public records are excluded from the application of this chapter and these rules and regulations, and shall be subject to inspection only upon order of a court of competent jurisdiction, except that no court shall authorize the inspection by any party of any materials pertaining to civil litigation beyond that which is provided by the Rules of Civil Procedure governing pretrial discovery:
(1) Public records containing information of a personal nature where the public disclosure thereof would constitute a clearly unwarranted invasion of personal privacy.
(2) Records confidentially disclosed to an agency and compiled and maintained for scientific research. This exemption shall not, however, apply to records the disclosure or publication of which is directed by other statute.
(3) (a) Records confidentially disclosed to an agency or required by an agency to be disclosed to it, generally recognized as confidential or proprietary, which if openly discussed would permit an unfair commercial advantage to competitors of the entity that disclosed the records.
(b) Records confidentially disclosed to an agency or required by an agency to be disclosed to it, generally recognized as confidential or proprietary, which are compiled and maintained (i) in conjunction with an application or the administration of a loan or grant; (ii) in conjunction with an application for or the administration of assessments, incentives, inducements, and tax credits as described in KRS Chapter 154; (iii) in conjunction with the regulation of commercial enterprise, including mineral exploration records, unpatented, secret commercially valuable plans, appliances, formulae, or processes, which are used for the making, preparing, compounding, treating, or processing of articles or materials which are trade commodities obtained from a person; or (iv) for the grant or review of a license to do business. These exemptions shall not, however, apply to records the disclosure or publication of which is directed by other statutes.
(4) Public records pertaining to a prospective location of a business or industry where no previous public disclosure has been made of the business' or industry's interest in locating in, relocating within, or expanding within the Commonwealth. This exemption shall not include those records pertaining to applications to agencies for permits or licenses necessary to do business or to expand business operations within the state, except as provided in division (A) (3) above.
(5) Public records which are developed by an agency in conjunction with the regulation or supervision of financial institutions, including but not limited to, banks, savings and loan associations, and credit unions, which disclose the agency's internal examining or audit criteria and related analytical methods.
(6) The contents of real estate appraisals or engineering or feasibility estimates and evaluations made by or for a public agency relative to the acquisition of property, until such time as all of the property has been acquired. The law of eminent domain shall not be affected by this provision.
(7) Test questions, scoring keys, and other examination data used to administer a licensing examination, examination for employment, or academic examination before the exam is given or if it is to be given again.
(8) Records of law enforcement agencies or agencies involved in administrative adjudication that were compiled in the process of detecting and investigating statutory or regulatory violations, if the disclosure of the information would harm the agency by revealing the identity of informants not otherwise known or by premature release of information to be used in a prospective law enforcement action or administrative adjudication. Unless exempted by other provisions of this chapter, public records exempted under this provision shall be open after enforcement action is completed or a decision is made to take no action. The exemptions provided by this subdivision shall not be used by the custodian of the records to delay or impede the exercise of rights granted by this chapter.
(9) Preliminary drafts, notes, or correspondence with private individuals, other than correspondence which is intended to give notice of final action of a public agency.
(10) Preliminary recommendations and preliminary memoranda in which opinions are expressed or policies formulated or recommended.
(11) All public records or information the disclosure of which is prohibited by federal law or regulation or state law.
(12) Public records or information the disclosure of which is prohibited or restricted or otherwise made confidential by enactment of the General Assembly, including any information acquired by the Department of Revenue in tax administration that is prohibited from divulgence or disclosure under KRS 131.190.
(13) (a) Public records the disclosure of which would have a reasonable likelihood of threatening the public safety by exposing a vulnerability in preventing, protecting against, mitigating, or responding to a terrorist act and limited to:
1. Criticality lists resulting from consequence assessments;
2. Vulnerability assessments;
3. Antiterrorism protective measures and plans;
4. Counterterrorism measures and plans;
5. Security and response needs assessments;
6. Infrastructure records that expose a vulnerability referred to in this division through the disclosure of the location, configuration, or security of critical systems, including public utility critical systems. These critical systems shall include but not be limited to information technology, communication, electrical, fire suppression, ventilation, water, wastewater, sewage and gas systems.
7. The following records when their disclosure will expose a vulnerability referred to in this division: detailed drawings, schematics, maps, or specifications of structural elements, floor plans, and operating, utility or security systems of any building or facility owned, occupied, leased or maintained by a public agency; and
8. Records when their disclosure will expose a vulnerability referred to in this division and that describe the exact physical location of hazardous chemical, radiological, or biological materials.
(b) As used in this division, “TERRORIST ACT” means a criminal act intended to:
1. Intimidate or coerce the city or a public agency or all or part of the civilian population;
2. Disrupt a system identified in division (a)5.; or
3. Cause massive destruction to a building or facility owned, occupied, leased, or maintained by a the city.
(c) On the same day that the city denies a request to inspect or copy a public record for a reason identified in this division, the city shall forward a copy of the written denial of the request, referred to in KRS 61.880(1), to the executive director of the Kentucky Office of Homeland Security and the Attorney General;
(d) Nothing in this division shall affect the obligations of the city with respect to disclosure and availability of public records under state environmental, health, and safety programs;
(e) The exemption established in this division shall not apply when a member of the Kentucky General Assembly seeks to inspect a public record identified in this division under the Open Records Law.
(14) Public or private records, including books, papers, maps, photographs, cards, tapes, discs, diskettes, recordings, software, or other documentation regardless of physical form or characteristics, having historic, literary, artistic, or commemorative value accepted by the archivist of a public university, museum, or government depository from a donor or depositor other than a public agency. This exemption shall apply to the extent that nondisclosure is requested in writing by the donor or depositor of such records, but shall not apply to records the disclosure or publication of which is mandated by another statute or by federal law.
(15) Records of a procurement process under KRS Chs. 45A or 56. This exemption shall not apply after:
(a) A contract is awarded; or
(b) The procurement process is canceled without an award of a contract and there is a determination that the contract will not be resolicited; and
(c) Client and case files maintained by the Department of Public Advocacy or any person or entity contracting with the Department of Public Advocacy for the provision of legal representation under KRS Ch. 31; and
(16) Communications of a purely personal nature unrelated to any governmental function.
(B) No exemption under this section shall be construed to prohibit disclosure of statistical information not descriptive of any readily identifiable person. In addition, if any public record contains material which is not excepted under this section, the city shall separate the excepted and make the nonexcepted material available for examination, subject to the possible applicability of § 34.08.
(C) The provisions of this section shall in no way prohibit or limit the exchange of public records or the sharing of information between public agencies when the exchange is serving a legitimate governmental need or is necessary in the performance of a legitimate government function.
(D) No exemption under this section shall be construed to deny, abridge, or impede the right of a municipal employee, an applicant for employment, or an eligible person on an employment register to inspect and copy any record, including preliminary and other supporting documentation, that relates to that person. Such records shall include, but not be limited to work plans, job performance, demotions, evaluations, promotions, compensation, classification, reallocation, transfers, layoffs, disciplinary actions, examination scores, and preliminary and other supporting documentation. A municipal employee, applicant, or eligible person on an employment register shall not have the right to inspect or copy any examination or any documents relating to ongoing criminal or administrative investigations by an agency.
(KRS 61.878)
(Am. Ord. 12-21-2, passed 12-21-21)