(a) The custodian shall send a copy of all written requests to inspect and copy documents to the Corporate Secretary. The Corporate Secretary shall track all requests and forward them to the General Counsel’s Office for review. The Corporate Secretary shall also send a copy of a request from the news media to the Communications and Community Relations Director in addition to the General Counsel’s Office.

(b) The General Counsel’s Office will review all written requests to inspect and copy documents and will advise the custodian if there are any legal reasons to deny all or part of the request to inspect or copy documents. If the custodian grants a written request for inspection, the custodian must produce the record for inspection within a reasonable period of time not to exceed 30 calendar days from the date of the request.

(c) If a person requests a copy of a public record that is ordinarily stored electronically by WSSC, and is otherwise subject to inspection under the Act, the custodian shall produce the record in the electronic format in which it is ordinarily maintained by copying the record onto portable storage media such as audio tapes, videotapes, compact discs (CD) or digital media discs (DVD).

(d) Any decision to deny a request or any part of a request must be reviewed by the General Counsel’s Office before it is sent to the applicant. Within 10 working days after a denial of all or part of a request, the custodian must also provide the applicant with a written statement containing the reasons for the denial, the legal authority for the denial, and notice of any remedies under the Act for review of the denial. Any denial of a request must be communicated within 30 calendar days of receipt of the written request.

(e) If a requested public record is not in the custody or control of the person to whom written application is made, that person should forward the request to the appropriate custodian within WSSC no later than two working days after receipt and send a copy of the request to the Corporate Secretary. If it is determined that the requested documents are not within the custody or control of WSSC, the person receiving the request must so notify the applicant within 10 working days of receipt of the request. That person must also provide the applicant the name of the custodian of the record or the location or possible location of the record outside of WSSC, if known.

(f) If the custodian determines that the record requested does not exist, the custodian shall notify the applicant of this determination as soon as possible, but not to exceed 30 calendar days after receipt of the request. The custodian shall send a copy of this notification to the Corporate Secretary for tracking.

(g) With the consent of the applicant, the custodian may extend any time limit imposed by this section for an additional 30 calendar days. (L 07-01 § 8)