(a) The Board of Supervisors and the Legislature, mindful of the right of individuals to privacy, finds and declares that access to information concerning the conduct of the people’s business is a fundamental and necessary right of every person in this County. There shall be a presumption that the record sought is public, and the burden shall be upon the custodian to articulate with specificity the exemption which applies.
(b) All requests for public records shall be directed to the department or Board office responsible for the records requested or to the Clerk of the Board, who shall direct the request to the appropriate department or Board office. The California Public Records Act sets forth timelines for responding to such requests and providing records. Each Board office and department will respond to and provide the requested records as rapidly as possible, striving to provide them sooner than the timelines in the California Public Records Act. Said timelines should never be asserted to delay fulfilling a simple, routine or otherwise readily answerable request. When gathering documents responsive to a request, the Board office or department will not withhold all of the records that are responsive to the request until all potentially responsive documents have been gathered and reviewed, but will rather provide them in stages as gathered and reviewed.
(c) County officers and employees will promptly provide records of reimbursement of County officer and employee expenditures with as little redacted as possible, except information routinely redacted by the County Auditor to deter identity theft and protect privacy. For purposes of reimbursement of County officer and employee expenditures, this Division includes, but is not limited to, all bills, claims, invoices, vouchers or other records of payment and disbursements showing the amount paid, the payee and the purpose for which payment is made. The “deliberative process privilege” shall not be asserted with regard to County payments and disbursements other than information routinely redacted by the County Auditor to deter identity theft and protect privacy. As technology advances, the County Auditor will devise a system where records of reimbursement of expenditures can be posted and accessed by the public on the County’s website.
(d) County officers and officials are discouraged from asserting the “deliberative process privilege” as to records reflecting meetings or contacts where County business is discussed with persons who are not County officers, officials or employees. In no case should the “deliberative process privilege” be asserted as to the identities of other County staff members at such meetings or contacts.
(e) Any agenda item hiring the staff of the Board of Supervisors or raising the salaries of the staff of the Board of Supervisors shall have attached to said item a list of the staff members affected by the hiring or salary increase and the amount of increase for each such staff member.
(f) The County Administrative Officer will provide training to at least two staff members of each Board office and department about the California Public Records Act and on how to properly respond to California Public Records Act requests received by that office or department. No employee of any department shall deny access to any record of that office without first consulting with at least one of the staff members who has received such training.
(Ord. 4125, passed - -2010)