CITY OF
BURLINGTON MUNICIPAL CODE
Chapter 67,
RECORDS
[HISTORY: Adopted by the Common Council of the City
of Burlington 12-19-2000 by Ord. No. 1646(50).
Amendments noted where applicable.]
§ 67-1. Legal custodians.
A. Unless provided below, the City Administrator
is designated as legal custodian of all records of
the City departments, boards, committees and
commissions. The following offices or departments
shall have as the legal custodian of records the
individual so named:
| Office or
Department |
Legal Custodian
|
General City
records
(including Council) |
City Administrator |
| Fire Department |
Fire Chief |
| Police
Department |
Chief of Police |
| Financial
records |
City Treasurer |
| Municipal
Library |
Librarian |
| City Attorney's
office |
City Attorney |
B. Each legal custodian shall name a person to
act as legal custodian in his or her absence or in
the absence of his or her designee, and each legal
custodian shall send notice of the designated deputy
to the City Administrator.
§ 67-2. Policies regarding requests for records.
All City offices or departments, boards, committees
and commissions that adopt a policy shall do so in
writing and shall:
A. Designate a custodian and an alternate to act
as a custodian in the absence of the primary
custodian.
B. Designate within the written policy the office
hours during which a records request may be made.
C. Provide that all such requests shall be made
in writing or otherwise reduced to writing.
D. Provide for the payment of fees not
inconsistent with this policy.
E. Provide a draft for approval by the City
Attorney. No policy or any changes thereto shall be
implemented without the approval of the City
Attorney.
§ 67-3. Policies to be filed with Clerk.
All City offices or departments that have adopted a
policy or that will adopt a policy pursuant to
§ 67-2 shall provide a copy of such policy to the
City Clerk, who shall maintain a policy file and use it
to redirect records requests to the appropriate
custodian.
§ 67-4. Review of certain requests by Attorney.
All records requests determined by the custodian to
be other than routine shall be directed to the office of
the City Attorney for review and recommendation.
§ 67-5. Requests made to Administrator.
Records requests made to the office of the City
Administrator shall:
A. Be in writing and be specific as to the
information requested.
B. Be made during regular office hours, Monday
through Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
C. Be filled within a reasonable time.
§ 67-6. Fees.
A. The Clerk's office shall charge the person
requesting information the following fees:
(1) A fee set by the Common Council, per
page, to reproduce and fill the request by
photocopying.
(2) The actual and necessary costs of
reproducing engineering drawings, plans and
specifications.
(3) If it is necessary to photograph the
information, the actual necessary and direct
cost of photographing.
(4) The actual, necessary and direct search
fees if they exceed an amount set by the Common
Council. Search fees shall be charged on an
hourly basis, at a rate set by the Common
Council. In the event it is necessary to use
nonclerical personnel in the search, their time
will be charged at their existing hourly rate
plus benefits.
(5) The actual, necessary and direct cost of
mailing.
B. When the estimated and/or actual charges
exceed an amount set by the Common Council, the
Clerk shall require prepayment.
C. The legal custodian may provide copies of the
record without charge or at a reduced charge if he
or she determines that waiver or reduction of the
fee is in the public interest.
§ 67-7. Public access to records.
A. Except as provided, any person has a right to
inspect a record and to make or receive a copy of
any record as provided in § 19.35(1), Wis. Stats.
B. Records will be available for inspection and
copying during all regular office hours.
C. If regular office hours are not maintained at
the location records are kept, the custodian will
use his/her best efforts to have records available
for inspection and copying upon at least 72 business
hours' advance notice of intent to inspect or copy.
D. The legal custodian may require supervision
during inspection or may impose other reasonable
restrictions on the manner of access to an original
record if the record is irreplaceable or easily
damaged.
E. Pursuant to § 19.34, Wis. Stats., and the
guidelines therein listed, each department, board,
committee or commission shall adopt, prominently
display and make available for inspection and
copying at its offices, for the guidance of the
public, a notice containing a description of its
organization and the established times and places at
which, the legal custodian from whom, and the
methods whereby the public may obtain information
and access to records in its custody, make requests
for records, or obtain copies of records and the
cost thereof. This subsection does not apply to
members of the Common Council.
§ 67-8. Limitations on right to access.
A. As provided in § 19.36, Wis. Stats., the
following records are exempt from inspection under
this chapter:
(1) Records specifically exempted from
disclosure by state or federal law or authorized
to be exempted from disclosure by state law.
(2) Any record relating to investigative
information obtained for law enforcement
purposes wherever federal law or regulations
require exemption from disclosure or if
exemption from disclosure is a condition to
receipt of aids by the state.
(3) Computer programs and files, although the
material used as input for a computer
program/file or the material produced as a
product of the computer program is subject to
inspection.
(4) Pursuant to § 905.08, Wis. Stats., a
record or any portion of record containing
information qualifying as a common law trade
secret, as defined in § 134.90(1)(c), Wis.
Stats.
(5) Any other records specifically exempted
by § 19.36, Wis. Stats.
B. As provided by § 43.30, Wis. Stats., public
library circulation records are exempt from
inspection under this section.
C. In responding to a request for inspection or
copying a record which is not specifically exempt
from disclosure, the legal custodian, after
conferring with the City Attorney, may deny the
request, in whole or in part, only if he or she
determines that the harm to the public interest
resulting from disclosure would outweigh the public
interest in full access to the requested record.
Examples of matters for which disclosure may be
refused include, but are not limited to, the
following:
(1) Records obtained under official pledges
of confidentiality which were necessary and
given in order to obtain the information
contained in them.
(2) Pursuant to § 19.85(1)(a), Wis. Stats.,
records of current deliberations after a
quasi-judicial hearing.
(3) Pursuant to § 19.85(1)(b) and (c), Wis.
Stats., records of current deliberations
concerning employment, dismissal, promotion,
demotion, compensation, performance, or
discipline of any City officer or employee, or
the investigation of charges against the City
officer or employee, unless such officer or
employee consents to such disclosure.
(4) Pursuant to § 19.85(1)(d), Wis. Stats.,
records concerning current strategy for crime
detection or prevention.
(5) Pursuant to § 19.85(1)(e), Wis. Stats.,
records of current deliberations or negotiations
on the purchase of City property, investing of
City funds, or other City business whenever
competitive or bargaining reasons require
nondisclosure.
(6) Pursuant to § 19.85(1)(f), Wis. Stats.,
financial, medical, social or personal histories
or disciplinary data of specific persons which,
if disclosed, would be likely to have a
substantial adverse effect upon the reputation
of any person referred to in such history or
data.
(7) Pursuant to § 19.85(1)(g), Wis. Stats.,
communications between legal counsel for the
City and any officer, agent or employee of the
City, when advice is being rendered concerning
strategy with respect to current litigation in
which the City or any of its officers, agents or
employees is or is likely to become involved, or
communications which are privileged under
§ 905.03, Wis. Stats.
(8) Pursuant to § 19.85(1)(h), Wis. Stats.,
requests for confidential written advice from an
ethics board and records of advice given by such
ethics board on such request.
D. If a record contains information that may be
made public and information that may not be made
public, the custodian of record shall provide the
information that may be made public and delete the
information that may not be made public from the
record before release. The custodian shall confer
with the City Attorney prior to releasing any such
record and shall follow the guidance of the City
Attorney when separating out the exempt material. If
in the judgment of the custodian and the City
Attorney there is no feasible way to separate the
exempt material from the nonexempt material without
unreasonably jeopardizing nondisclosure of the
exempt material, the entire record shall be withheld
from disclosure.
§ 67-9. Duty to maintain records.
A. Except as provided under § 67-10 below, each
officer and employee of the City shall safely keep
and preserve all records received from his or her
predecessor or other persons and required by law to
be filed, deposited or kept in his or her office or
which are in lawful possession or control of the
officer or employee or his or her deputies, or to
the possession or control of which he or she or they
may be lawfully entitled as such officers or
employees.
B. Upon expiration of an officer's term of office
or an employee's term of employment, or whenever the
office or position of employment becomes vacant,
each such officer or employee shall deliver to his
or her successor all records then in his or her
custody and the successor shall receipt therefor to
the officer or employee, who shall file the receipt
with the City Administrator. If a vacancy occurs
before a successor is selected or qualified, such
record shall be delivered to and receipted for by
the Administrator, on behalf of the successor, to be
delivered to such successor upon the latter's
receipt.
§ 67-10. Destruction of records.
A. City officers may destroy the following
nonutility financial records of which they are the
legal custodian and which are considered obsolete
after completion of any required audit by the
Department of Revenue or an auditor licensed under
Ch. 442, Wis. Stats., but not less than seven years
after payment or receipt of any sum involved in a
particular transaction, unless a shorter period has
been fixed by the State Public Records Board
pursuant to § 16.61(3)(e), Wis. Stats., and then
after such shorter period:
(1) Bank statements, deposit books, slips and
stubs.
(2) Bonds and coupons after maturity.
(3) Canceled checks, duplicates and check
stubs.
(4) License and permit applications, stubs
and duplicates.
(5) Payrolls and other time and employment
records of personnel included under the
Wisconsin Retirement Fund.
(6) Receipt forms.
(7) Special assessment records.
(8) Vouchers, requisitions, purchase orders
and all other supporting documents pertaining
thereto.
B. City officers may destroy the following
utility records of which they are the legal
custodian and which are considered obsolete after
completion of any required audit by the Department
of Revenue or an auditor licensed under Ch. 442,
Wis. Stats., subject to State Public Service
Commission regulations, but not less than seven
years after the record was effective, unless a
shorter period has been fixed by the State Public
Records Board pursuant to § 16.61(3)(e), Wis.
Stats., and then after such shorter period, except
that water stubs, receipts of current billings and
customer ledgers may be destroyed not less than two
years after payment or receipt of the sum involved
or the effective date of the record:
(1) Contracts and papers relating thereto.
(2) Excavation permits.
(3) Inspection records.
C. City officers may destroy the following
records of which they are the legal custodian and
which are considered obsolete but not less than
seven years after the record was effective, unless
another period has been set by statute, and then
after such a period, or unless a shorter period has
been fixed by the State Public Records Board
pursuant to § 16.61(3)(e), Wis. Stats., and then
after such a shorter period:
(1) Contracts and papers relating thereto.
(2) Correspondence and communication.
(3) Financial records other than annual
financial reports.
(4) Justice dockets.
(5) Oaths of office.
(6) Reports of boards, commissions,
committees and officials duplicated in the
Common Council proceedings.
(7) Election notices and proofs of
publication.
(8) Canceled voter registration cards.
(9) Official bonds.
(10) Police records other than investigative
records.
(11) Resolutions and petitions, provided the
text of the same appears in the official City
minutes.
D. Notwithstanding the above provisions appearing
in this section, it is intended hereby that election
materials may be destroyed according to lesser time
schedules as made and provided in § 7.23, Wis.
Stats.
E. Unless notice is waived by the State
Historical Society, at least 60 days' notice shall
be given the State Historical Society prior to the
destruction of any records as provided by
§ 19.21(4)(a), Wis. Stats.
F. Any tape recordings of a governmental meeting
of the City may be destroyed, erased or reused no
sooner than 90 days after the minutes of the meeting
have been approved and published, if the purpose of
the recording was to make minutes of the meeting.
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