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Guidelines for Submitting Public Records Requests

Philomath Fire & Rescue, as set forth by Oregon Law, sets recovering costs of obtaining or reviewing public records and/or photographs as follows:

  1. This policy applies to all records of Philomath Fire & Rescue.
  2. All request for, or discussion on medical records, other than the patient, (parent or legal guardian if under 18 and not an emancipated minor or married) shall require a written release signed by the patient.  Request from Good Samaritan Hospital for patient records shall be recognized as required by Philomath Fire & Rescue’s Medical Advisor Doctor Ethan Wilson.  Any other request for medical records that do not have a release signed by the patient shall require a subpoena. 
  3. All requests for documents that are considered public record must be made during normal working hours.  Normal working hours are 8:00 AM till 5:00 PM Monday through Friday, Holidays excluded.
  4. Readily available records will be provided as soon as possible.  Records, which are not readily available because of the magnitude or nature of the requested records, shall be produced within a reasonable time.  In such case, the District shall inform the individual requesting the records, when they will be available for review, or when copies ordered are available.
  5. The District’s nominal fee for search, review, release and copying of any public record, including photographs, shall be as follows:
  • Copies of records shall be $.10 per copy for single side letter size copies and $.15 per copy for double-sided letter size copies.  Cost for reproduction of photograph shall be at the rate the district is charged.
  • In addition to copy or reproduction charges, District shall charge $25.00 per hour for each staff person involved, with a minimum one-quarter hour charged for each staff person’s time spent in assembling, reviewing, or copying records. The total time to be spent researching and copying shall be estimated by the staff, and the fee shall be paid by the individual requesting copies prior to the commencement of the actual search and copying.  If the amount of time involved is less than estimated, the excess money shall be refunded to the individual.  If the actual cost is in excess, the difference shall be paid by the individual prior to obtaining any documents.
  • The District may furnish copies without charge or at a substantially reduced fee if the District determines that the waiver or reduction of fees is in the public interest, because making the record available primarily benefits the general public.
  • There shall be no extra fee to cover the cost of providing records in an alternate print format for individuals with a disability.
  • If a request is of such magnitude and nature that compliance would disrupt the District’s normal operation, separate arrangements shall be made, prior to such a release of records, in accordance with advice from legal counsel.
  • If the District determines that it is more efficient or less disruptive to District operations to out-source copying services, actual staff time spent in searching, assembling, reviewing, delivering and picking up records from the copying service will be charged, as set forth above, together with the actual cost of the copying charged by the copying service.

At no time shall original records or photographs belonging to the District be removed or out of District direct supervision.  District records and / or photographs shall not be reviewed unless District personnel are available to visually monitor that review at all times.  The charge for District personnel time for monitoring shall be as set forth above.

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