CHESTER TOWNSHIP BOARD OF EDUCATION  POLICY 3801

 

 

PUBLIC RECORDS

 

 

The Board recognizes the importance of public records as the record of the acts of this district and the repository of information about this district.  Members of the public have the right under law to inspect and copy with certain exceptions the public records of this district.

 

The public records of this district shall mean any paper, written or printed book, document or drawing, map or plan, photograph, microfilm, sound-recording or similar device, or any copy thereof which has been required by law to be made, maintained, or kept on file by this Board or its officials.

 

The Board shall make the public records of this district available to the residents of this State for inspection and copying, with the exception of those records exempted from such inspection and copying by law and the rules of this Board.

  1. Records exempted by law include:
    1. Personnel and pension records of an individual, except that the following are public record:  an individual’s name, title of position, salary, payroll record, length of service, date of separation and the reason therefore, the amount and type of pension he receives; and data, other than detailed medical or psychological information, which shows conformity with qualifications for employment and pensions.
    2. Questions on examinations required to be conducted by a local governmental agency.
    3. Records concerning morbidity, morality and reportable diseases.
    4. Records concerning individual pupils.
    5. Election tally sheets and ballots.
    6. Reports of investigations in progress.

 

B.      The Board declares disclosure of certain public records to be inimical to the public interest and therefore exempts from public inspection records concerning:

    1. Matters, the disclosure of which, would impair a right to receive Federal funds.
    2. Pending negotiations toward a collective bargaining agreement.
    3. Any material the disclosure of which constitutes an unwarranted invasion of individual privacy such as any records, data, reports, recommendations, or other personal material, including but not limited to information relative to the individual’s personal and family circumstances, and any material pertaining to admission, discharge, treatment, progress or condition of any individual, unless the individual concerned (or, in the case of a minor or incompetent, his guardian) shall request in writing that the same be disclosed publicly.
    4. Contemplated purchase, lease or acquisition of real property.
    5. Tactics and techniques utilized in protecting the safety and property of the public where such disclosure would impair such protection.
    6. Pending or anticipated litigation, contract negotiations, (other than in the collective bargaining process), and other issues that may fall within the privileged relationship between the Board and its attorney.

 

 

 

 

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PUBLIC RECORDS                                                                               POLICY 3801

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C.      The Board declares disclosure of the following records to be likely to violate the privacy of individuals and therefore exempts from public inspection:

    1. Rosters of employees of the Board.
    2. The home address or telephone number of any employee of the Board, except as the individual student or employee may wish such information to be released.
    3. Notations and tape recordings made and temporarily retained by an individual solely as an administrative convenience in the performance of assigned duties, except that tape recordings of public meetings may not be exempted from public inspection.
    4. Records made and privately retained by an individual, which express personal impressions, opinions, and conclusions, and the disclosure of which would tend to violate the recorder’s privacy.

 

Any resident of the State may inspect and copy the public records of this district, except exempted records enumerated above, during the regular business hours of the office in which such records are maintained, and provided that advance notice of such intended inspection has been given the custodian of the record not less than one working day before the inspection.

 

A resident may purchase copies of the public record of this district upon payment of 10 cents per page.  No public record may be removed from the office in which it is maintained.  Nothing in this policy shall be construed as preventing a Board member from inspecting in the performance of official duties any record of this district except pupil records.

 

 

Date Revised:    5/13/03

Date Adopted:   5/12/65

 

 

Legal References:          N.J.S.A. 18A14-61, 14-62,

                                      47:1A-1 et seq, 3-16

                                    N.J.A.C. 6:2.1 et seq, 6:66-1.1 et seq,

                                      66-2.6, 66-2.7

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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