District Information - FOIL Request Form

The Freedom of Information Law (commonly referred to as FOIL) requires school districts to allow public access to certain official records and reaffirms the public’s right to know how government operates.  The law does not require that records be created or compiled in order to comply with a request.  The district is required to provide records that exist, are in its possession, and are not otherwise exempt from the provisions of FOIL.  Manipulation of computer data in response to a request will not be considered “creating” a new record unless it involves significant expense.

Submitting a FOIL / FERPA

FOIL requests must be made in writing, either in hard copy or electronically, to the Records Access Officer by either:

• Writing:
  Carmel Central School District
  Attention:  Mr. Ken Silver, Records Access Officer
  81 South Street, PO Box 296
  Patterson, NY  12563
• Faxing: (845) 878-4337
• Emailing: foil@carmelschools.org

You can copy the text below into your correspondence and use the portions that are most applicable to your request:

Dear Records Access Officer:

1.  Please email me the following records if possible (include as much detail about the record as possible including names, dates, times, descriptions, etc.)
   
   
2. Please advise me of the appropriate time during normal business hours for inspecting the following records prior to (or instead of) obtaining copies (include as much details about the record as possible including names, dates, times, descriptions, etc.)
   
   
3. Please inform me of the cost of providing paper copies of the following records (include as much detail about the record as possible including names, dates, times, descriptions, etc.)
   
   
4. If all the requested records cannot be emailed to me, please inform me by email of the portions that can be emailed and advise me the cost for reproducing the remainder of the records requested.
   
   
5. If the requested records cannot be emailed to me due to the volume of records identified in response to my request, please advise me of the actual cost of copying all records onto a USB flash drive.
   
   
6. If my request is too broad or does not reasonably describe the records, please contact me via email so that I may clarify my request, and when appropriate, inform me of the manner in which records are filed, retrieved or generated.
   
   
7. If it is necessary to modify my request, please contact me at: (include your phone number).

If, for any reason, any portion of my request is denied, please inform me of the reasons for the denial in writing, and provide the name, address and email address of the person or body for whom an appeal should be directed.

Thank you.

Your name and contact information

Please be as specific as possible when describing the requested records. The narrower the request, the faster the District will be able to provide any responsive records. If your request is unclear, you will be contacted to provide specificity before work can begin on your request.

FOIL Request Acknowledgement

The school district must respond within five business days to acknowledge receipt of the written request by either making the record available, issuing a written denial, or acknowledging the request.  The acknowledgement will provide an estimated response date, no more than 20 business days away, of when the request is expected to be granted, or denied, based on the information in the request.  (Business days exclude weekends, holidays, and school recesses).  An extension may be necessary if the request is time consuming, yields a voluminous amount of records, requires extensive redacting, or other factors.  If this is the case, the district will provide another date by which the request will either be granted or denied.

Examples of information that may be withheld from a FOIL request include records that:

1. Are specifically exempt from disclosure by state or federal law (e.g., attorney-client privileged information, or student records protected by the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA));
2. Constitute an unwarranted invasion of personal privacy;
3. Are inter-agency or intra-agency materials that contain opinion, recommendation or the like;
4. If disclosed, would impair present or imminent contract awards or collective bargaining negotiations;
5. If disclosed could endanger the life or safety of any person.

The fee for paper copies of documents up to 8 1/2 x 14 inches is 25 cents per page. The fee for other records will reflect the actual cost of reproducing the record (e.g., the cost of a USB flash drive, or professional copying services for very large documents such as property maps).