(A) The City Clerk is hereby designated as the FOIA Officer to whom all initial requests for access to the records of the city are to be referred. Such requests are to be made at the offices of the City Clerk at 415 11th Avenue, Fulton, Illinois, between the hours of 8:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m. Monday through Friday. In the event that Linda Hollis, City Clerk, is not available during the times described above, then Tammy Garibay is designated as the first deputy FOIA Officer and if Tammy Garibay is not available during the times described above, then ReNee Borgman is designated as the second deputy FOIA Officer to whom such initial requests are to be made. This information shall be posted on the city website when and if applicable to the city under the law. Except in instances when records are furnished immediately, the FOIA Officer, or her designees, shall receive requests submitted to the city under the Freedom of Information Act, ensure that the city responds to requests in a timely fashion, and issue responses under the Act. The FOIA Officer shall develop a list of documents or categories of records that the city shall immediately disclose upon request.
(B) Upon receiving a request for a public record, the FOIA Officer shall:
(1) Note the date the city receives the written request;
(2) Compute the day on which the period for response will expire and make a notation of that date on the written request;
(3) Maintain an electronic or paper copy of a written request, including all documents submitted with the request until the request has been complied with or denied; and
(4) Create a file for the retention of the original request, a copy of the response, a record of written communications with the requester, and a copy of other communications.
(C) The FOIA Officer and Deputy FOIA Officers shall, within six months after January 1, 2010, successfully complete an electronic training curriculum to be developed by the Public Access Counselor of the State of Illinois and thereafter successfully complete an annual training program. Whenever a new Freedom of Information Officer is designated by the city, that person shall successfully complete the electronic training curriculum within 30 days after assuming the position.
(D) Any records which are the subject of a request under the Freedom of Information Act shall be retrieved from such place as they are stored, by the FOIA Officer, or by an employee of the city acting under the direction of the FOIA Officer. In no event shall records be retrieved by the party requesting them or by any person who is not employed by the city.
(E) If copies of records are requested, the fees for such copies, whether certified or not, shall be determined from time to time by the FOIA Officer pursuant to Section 6(b) of the Freedom of Information Act. The City Clerk shall maintain a written schedule of current fees in the Clerk's office. The fees so charged shall reflect the actual cost of copying the records, and the cost of certifying copies, if certification is requested.
(F) In the event that a request to inspect city records is denied by the FOIA officer, the denial may be appealed to the Public Access Counselor of the State of Illinois.
(G) The City Clerk shall prepare: a City Information Directory; a block diagram of the functional subdivisions of the city; a City Records Directory; and a Records Catalogue, all of which shall be substantially in the same form as the documents attached to Ordinance No. 1404 and made a part hereof as Exhibits “A”, “B”, “C”, and “D”. This information shall also be posted on the city's website, when applicable.
(Ord. 1404, passed 2-1-10)