Public Records Request

Public Records Request

North Carolina public records law is found in General Statutes Chapter 132. The custodian of the records bears the responsibility of maintaining the records and also permitting the public inspection, or providing copies of the records upon request. The statute authorizes a fee to be charged for copying of records. These procedures also include a fee schedule to cover the reasonable cost of responding to public record requests, consistent with North Carolina’s public records laws.

Related Form:

Town of Boone Public Records Request Form

Town of Boone Police Department Public Records Request Form

  1. How to Request Copies of Public Records & What to Expect
  2. Fulfillment of Public Records Requests
  3. Charges and Fees for Public Records
  4. Exceptions to Public Records Requests

How to Request Copies of Public Records

Public records requests should be submitted to the Town Clerk. To process requests in a timely, consistent and orderly manner, the Town requests that these be submitted using the Town of Boone’s Public Records Request Form and be mailed, hand-delivered or e-mailed to the Town Clerk. Requests may be made in person at Town Hall during normal business hours (Monday-Friday 8:00am-5:00pm).

When making a record request, please include the following information:

  1. Date of the request.
  2. Requestor’s name.
  3. Requestor’s full mailing address (name, organization, street address, city, state, zip code).
  4. Requestor’s day-time phone number.
  5. A complete description of the record(s) requested.
  6. The title and date of the requested record(s), if known.
  7. Whether the requestor intends to inspect the records or obtain a photocopy. A fee is required for photocopies.

What to Expect After a Request is Made:

Within two business days of receipt of the request, the Town will provide an acknowledgment of the request. For requests that do not require extensive research or extensive clerical resources, the Town will provide a follow-up response to the request as soon as possible, normally within five business days of receipt. If the request is received after 5 p.m, the request will be considered received on the next business day. The follow-up response may include:

  1. Providing or making available the record after the payment of applicable fees, if any;
  2. An estimate of the time necessary for further response;
  3. Denying the request accompanied by an explanation of the basis for the denial;
  4. Requesting a deposit; or,
  5. Requesting clarification of the request, and if the follow-up response asks for clarification on the request, no further response will be made to the requestor until the clarification is received by the Town Clerk. If no response is received within 14 calendar days, the request will be dismissed and the requestor must submit a new request.

Where the request for public records is extraordinarily large such that extensive use of information technology resources and/or extensive clerical or supervisory assistance by personnel is required as set forth in G.S. 132-6.2(b), then the Town shall respond to the requestor to discuss the most appropriate procedure to efficiently meet the request and the cost associated with the request.

A public record request is not continuing in nature. Therefore, it only applies to public records available at the time of the request. If additional records are created after the date of the requestor’s original public records request, the requestor must submit a new request for those records. If the requestor specifies a preference for a specific format, the records will be produced in the preferred format if:

  1. It is determined that the records exist and are subject to release;
  2. The Town is capable of providing the records in the format requested;
  3. The format requested is consistent with how the record is maintained or is otherwise reasonable; and,
  4. The requester pays all fees associated with fulfilling the request.

A record request will be considered fulfilled upon:

  1. The requestor’s receipt of or inspection of the records;
  2. Notification to the requestor that the photocopies requested are available for payment and pick-up (if photocopies were requested); or, 
  3. A denial of the request.