Section 200.10  Methods for requesting access to records

 

a)         Requests for access to records for inspection and copying shall be submitted in writing to the Freedom of Information Officer at the office of the Bureau.  The application shall include the name and address of the requestor and a phone number where the requestor may be reached during the regular business day and shall be on a form provided by the Bureau, a copy of which form appears in Appendix A to this Part.

 

b)         The application must describe the requested document by subject matter and approximate date of issuance, if known.  If the description is not sufficiently clear to allow easy identification of the records sought, the requestor may be asked to supply additional necessary information.

 

Section 200.20  Lists of types and categories of records

 

The Bureau maintains records of the following general categories:

 

a)         Records which are generally accessible for inspection and copying:

 

1)         Minutes of meetings of the Legislative Reference Bureau's board and of its subcommittees.

 

2)         Records relating to the receipt, obligation and expenditure of funds, budget and appropriation, purchasing and contracts.

 

3)         General correspondence.

 

4)         Records developed in relation to the preparation of the Legislative Synopsis and Digest.

 

b)         Records which are generally exempt from inspection and copying:

 

1)         Records developed in relation to the preparation of legislative documents.  Exempt under Section 7(f) of the Freedom of Information Act (the Act)–preparation of legislative documents.

 

2)         Personnel records of current and former employees.  Exempt under Sections 7(b) of the Act–privacy and 7(w) of the Act–internal personnel rules and practices.

 

3)         Applications for employment.  Exempt under Section 7(b) of the Act–privacy.

 

4)         Legislative Synopsis and Digest subscription records.  Exempt under Section 7(i) of the Act–disclosure reasonably expected to produce private gain.

 

5)         Computerized statute data base.  Exempt under Section 7(a) of the Act–prohibited by law.

 

Section 200.30  Procedure for response

 

a)         The Bureau shall respond to a written request for public records within 7 working days after receipt of the request.

 

b)         If the request cannot be responded to within 7 working days for one of the reasons provided in Section 3(d) of the Act, the Bureau shall have an additional 7 working days in which to respond.  Within the initial 7 day period the Bureau shall give the requestor written notice of the extension of time to respond.  Such notice shall set forth the reasons why the extension is necessary.

 

Section 200.40  Response to the request

 

a)         The Bureau shall respond to request for public records by approving the request, by denying the request or by approving it in part and denying it in part.

 

b)         When a request for public records has been approved, the Bureau may give notice that the requested material will be made available upon payment of reproduction costs, or give notice of the time and place for inspection of the requested material.

 

c)         A denial of a request for public records shall be made in writing.  It shall state the reasons for the denial in accordance with either Section 3(f) or Section 7 of the Act and the names and titles of persons responsible for the decision to deny the request.  The denial shall also inform the requestor of the right to appeal to the Chairman of the Board of the Legislative Reference Bureau.

 

d)         Categorical requests that place an undue burden on the Bureau shall be denied only after extending the requestor an opportunity to confer in an attempt to reduce the request to manageable proportions in accordance with Section 3(f) of the Act.

 

e)         Failure to respond to a written request within 7 working days may be considered by the requestor as a denial of the request.

 

Section 200.50  Appeal of a denial

 

a)         A requestor whose request for public records has been denied by the Freedom of Information Officer may appeal the denial to the Chairman.  The notice of appeal shall be in writing and shall be addressed to:

 

Chairman

Legislative Reference Bureau

112 State Capitol

Springfield, Illinois  62706

Attn:  FOIA Appeal

 

b)         The Notice of Appeal shall include a copy of the original request, a copy of the denial received by the requestor, and a written statement setting forth the reasons why the requestor believes the appeal should be granted.

 

Section 200.60  Chairman's Response to Appeal

 

The Chairman shall respond to an appeal within seven working days after receiving Notice thereof.  The Chairman shall either affirm the denial in writing or provide access to the requested public records.  Each notice of denial on appeal shall inform the requestor of the right to judicial review under Section 11 of the Act.  Failure of the Chairman to respond within seven working days may be considered by the requestor an affirmation of the denial.

 

Section 200.70  Inspection of Records at Bureau Offices

 

a)         Generally, public records will be made available for inspection at the Bureau's offices between the hours of 8:30 a.m. and 5:00 p.m., Monday through Friday, except on state holidays.  A place will be provided in which the requestor may inspect public records.

 

b)         An employee of the Bureau may be present throughout the inspection.

 

c)         Documents which the requestor wishes to have copied shall be segregated during the course of the inspection.  Generally, all copying will be done by Bureau employees.

 

Section 200.80  Copies of Public Records–Fees

 

a)         Copies of public records shall be provided to the requestor only upon payment of any charges that are due.

 

b)         The fee for copying records shall be 25 cents per page.

 

c)         Charges shall be waived if the requestor is a State officer or agency.

 

Section 200.90  General Materials Available from the Freedom of Information Officer

 

The Freedom of Information Officer shall make available to the public at no charge the following materials:

 

a)         A brief description of the organizational structure and budget of the Bureau.

 

b)         A brief description of the means for requesting information and public records; and

 

c)         A list of types and categories of public records maintained by the Legislative Reference Bureau.

 

Section 200.200  Rulemaking Procedures

 

a)         Rules of the Legislative Reference Bureau may be adopted, amended or repealed only by vote of the Board.

 

b)         Rule making proceedings of the Bureau must be conducted in compliance with applicable provisions of the Illinois Administrative Procedure Act. (Ill. Rev. Stat. 1983, ch. 127, pars. 1001 et seq.)

 

Section 200.300  Description of the Organization

 

a)         The Legislative Reference Bureau is a service agency of the Illinois General Assembly.

 

b)         It is charged by statute:

 

1)         to establish in the State Capitol a reference bureau in which would be collected such laws, reports, books, periodicals and other printed or written matter as may aid the members of the General Assembly in the performance of their official duties;

 

2)         to digest and index all bills, resolutions and amendments introduced in the General Assembly and furnish copies of the digest and index to members of the General Assembly each week during its session;

 

3)         to afford to any member of the General Assembly, upon request, such legal assistance and information as may be practicable in the preparation of bills, resolutions and amendments for introduction into the General Assembly;

 

4)         to recommend the revision, simplification and rearrangement of existing statutory law and the elimination from such law of obsolete, superseded, duplicated and unconstitutional statutes or parts of statutes and to propose legislation to revise the existing statutory law to conform to any reorganization of the executive branch which takes effect pursuant to an executive order of the Governor under Section 11 of Article V of the Illinois Constitution of 1970;

 

5)         to create a computer memory system containing the Illinois Revised Statutes and to revise the data base periodically to keep it current and to provide information from that system for the members and agencies of the General Assembly and the Attorney General; and

 

6)         to review all reported decisions of the Federal courts, the Illinois Supreme Court and the Illinois Appellate Court which affect the interpretation of the Illinois Constitution and statutes and report the results of its research to the General Assembly each year, recommending technical corrections in the statutes to comply with decisions and pointing out where substantive issues arise.

 

c)         The Bureau is not charged with the provision of any services directly to members of the public but the Legislative Synopsis and Digest prepared by the Bureau for the General Assembly is available to the public by subscription for the statutory fee.

 

d)         The Legislative Reference Bureau consists of and is governed by a board of 12 members of the General Assembly.

 

e)         The Board appoints an executive secretary and two deputy secretaries who administer the operations of the Bureau under the direction of the Board.

 

f)         The executive secretary is the Freedom of Information Officer.

 

g)         The office of the Bureau is in Room 112 in the State Capitol, Springfield, Illinois 62706.  Its phone number is (217) 782-6625.  The Bureau's regular office hours are from 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., Monday through Friday, state holidays excepted.

Section 200.APPENDIX A   Legislative Reference Bureau Request for Inspection of Public Records

 

 

 

Name of person making request (please print)
Address			City
Telephone Number
If inspection is being made on behalf of another individual or group, print the name of the second party.
Full description of records to be inspected:
Date		Signature of person making request