Laserfiche WebLink
reports and that Lakewood usually ranks in the top 3 municipalities in regard to delivery on <br />public records requests.Turnaround time on requests is usually 3 days. <br />Council members and Ms. Swallow then discussed the city’s duty under Ohio Revised Code to <br />negotiate with a requestor to try and figure out what they’re looking for, in the event he or she <br />provides a vague request.The negotiation process entails running an initial search through an <br />online Barracuda system, which usually returns a lot of material, and the city asking the party to <br />narrow or be more specific with his/her request. If the party refuses and the request remains <br />overly vague, the city does not have to respond, which would be classified as a request denial. <br />The requestor then has the option to make a complaint to the Ohio Attorney General’s office, <br />who can then request both parties to participate in a mediation. <br />Concerns were expressed regarding the language and measurement of speed and thoroughness <br />required in the legislation when responding to a public records request. The Law Department <br />needs time to redact personal information, which can take an in exorbitant amount of time to do <br />depending on the depth of the request. It was determined that a municipality has a reasonable <br />amount of time to respond to a request, and this timeframe is determined by case law. There was <br />some discussion as to requiring a fee schedule for print pages requested and whether it would be <br />necessary.It was noted that the Law Department educates new employees on public records law <br />through orientation and trainings. <br />Council President O’Leary expressed some concerns about section 110.80. He indicated that the <br />notions of this section would be found in a records policy instead of city code. He argues that the <br />terminologyused in the legislation should be broad enough to accommodate applicable <br />exceptions to the law and factor in Ohio and federal records laws. Assistant Director Swallow <br />also disagreed with the component of the law that does not require a requestor’s name orpurpose <br />for the request. Both parties acknowledged that different rules apply to different types of <br />requestors, such as commercial ones or individuals that are incarcerated. <br />Members requested the Law Department update the ordinance, tracking the changes discussed in <br />the committee meeting. It was affirmed that NextRequest software will be added to the city’s <br />website and employees will receive training on it over the next couple months. The system has <br />the ability to provide automated reminders to staff on outstanding requests. Councilman Rader <br />provided the referral of NextRequest to the Law Department, having worked in the legal <br />profession with the software previously. Council President O’Leary noted that the Counciloffice <br />now has a portal that allows a public-facing response to a public records request. Chairwoman <br />George stated that the committee will meet once more to implement changes to the legislation. <br />ORDINANCE 25-19-AN ORDINANCE repealing 905.07 Animals, andenacting a new <br />905.07 Animals which require that all dogs in any park be registered with the County <br />Fiscal Officer and wear a registration tag. (Placed on 1st reading and referred to Rules & <br />nd <br />Ordinances Committee 9/3/19; 2reading…) <br />Councilman Anderson stated that he proposed Ordinance 25-19 to follow up on the public <br />sentiment of supporting dogs and the animal shelter that was expressed when the city was <br />updating its dog ordinances.He listed the many benefits that come with dog registration. It was <br /> <br />