2024-25 Total Pay For Each Employee
Charlie Kratovil made this OPRA request to Berkeley Heights Public Schools as part of a batch sent to 85 authorities Automatic anti-spam measures are in place for this older request. Please let us know if a further response is expected or if you are having trouble responding.
Dear Berkeley Heights Public Schools,
Please accept this electronic request for public records made under NJSA 47:1A-10 and the common law right of access. I am not required to fill out an official form or use a particular software platform to submit my request per NJSA 47:1A-5(f), which states that an email from a requestor including all of the information required on the adopted form shall suffice in place of a completed form as a valid government record request.
I HAVE NOT been convicted of any indictable offense under the laws of New Jersey, any other state, or the United States.
I WILL NOT use the requested government records for a commercial purpose.
I AM NOT seeking records in connection with a legal proceeding.
Records requested:
1) records sufficient to show the name, title/position, and total amount paid to each current or former employee on the payroll during the 2024-25 fiscal year. If possible, please include breakdowns by categories such as base pay, overtime pay, stipends, bonuses, etc.
My preferred delivery method for response(s) to this request is by E-mail as an Excel spreadsheet attachment. If you have any questions for me, feel free to call at 732-993-9697.
Please confirm you have received this request. If you are not the custodian of records, please forward my request to that person and provide their email address to me for future reference.
Yours faithfully,
Charlie Kratovil
Dr. Gallagher,
Respectfully, the link provided to the board's meeting schedule, agendas, and minutes does not satisfactorily address my request. This link does not include any actual payroll records, certainly none that are sufficient to show the total amount paid to each district employee during the fiscal year. If I am missing this information and it's somewhere on the district's website, please instruct me specifically how to locate it.
NJSA 47:1A-10 states that "An individual’s name, title, position, salary, payroll record, length of service,
date of separation and the reason for such separation, and the amount and type of any pension received," are not exempt from the OPRA. I have requested some of this OPRA-able information (name, title/position, and total amount paid... during the 2024-25 fiscal year) for each current and former employee who was on the district's payroll during that year. While you may not be required to prepare or create a new record, the district must have this information somewhere, and the OPRA requires it be provided upon request. You are free to provide the info in whatever format you have it, but you may also create a new record if you wish.
An example of a satisfactory response to this kind of OPRA request can be seen at the following link, which contains a record provided by the Morris-Union Jointure Commission: https://opramachine.com/request/78085/re...
I hope we can resolve this soon, and respectfully suggest the following. Please advise me of what format your payroll records are in, and I can let you know if that format might be satisfactory for my purposes.
Thank you for your time and attention to this matter.
Yours sincerely,
Charlie Kratovil
Mr. Kratovil,
All employees' name, title or position, salary, steps(years of credit),
any dates of separation and the reason for such separation, and extra
compensation are approved by the Board of Education in public meetings.
They are listed on backups to meeting agenda and minutes for all the
public to review. What you are asking for is already available on the
website as we have responded.
Respectfully, I don't think your response that the requested information is "listed on backups to meeting agenda and minutes for all the public to review" is adequate - as you know, the documentation you reference is hundreds of pages for each meeting, the vast majority of which is not relevant to the request I made. Even if all the requested information were contained within, it would still be unreasonable to expect someone to come through tens of thousands of pages to obtain the fundamental information about the district's payroll.
For example, how would one go about finding the total amount you were paid for the year 2024-25? It's not at all obvious from the link you provided. Please provide specific instructions of where and what to click on.
Surely, the district can produce a report or other document that shows the requested information. Your payroll specialist would most likely be able to produce such a report the same day it is requested. I encourage to reconsider your response, and speak with Ms. Karen Anthenelli about providing the info.
Yours sincerely,
Charlie Kratovil
Mr. Kratovil,
Again, OPRA is for existing government records. You are clearly asking in
your own words "Surely, the district can produce a report or other
document that shows the requested information. Your payroll specialist
would most likely be able to produce such a report the same day it is
requested." As per N.J.S.A. 47:1A-1.1, OPRA only requires public agencies
to provide access to existing government records. It does not require the
creation of new records or the compilation of data into a new format.
Therefore, to the extent that your request seeks the creation of a
specific document or customized report, it is respectfully denied on that
basis.
I am respectfully asking you to reconsider this denial. Section 10 of the OPRA requires you to provide payroll records for each employee. Are you able to do that? Other districts are providing the requested information.
Yours sincerely,
Charlie Kratovil
Thank you for your recent email and/or request submitted under the New
Jersey Open Public Records Act (OPRA), N.J.S.A. 47:1A-1 et seq.
Please be advised that I have been contracted by the district for two days
per week, and I am generally available on Tuesdays and Thursdays.
Accordingly, all OPRA requests will be reviewed and processed on those
days.
In accordance with OPRA, the district has seven (7) business days from the
date of receipt to respond to a request, unless an extension is necessary.
Given my limited availability, and depending on the nature and scope of
your request, please be advised that an extension of time may be required
to ensure a complete and thorough response. Should an extension be
necessary, you will be notified in writing in compliance with OPRA
requirements.
We appreciate your understanding and cooperation.
Mr. Kratovil,
OPRA requires disclosure of certain payroll information; name, position,
salary, length of service, date of separation,reason for separation. All
of this information is readily available on our board agendas for anyone
in the public to access. We will not create a record or complete a data
drive for any OPRA request.
Dear Berkeley Heights BOE,
I would like to speak to the Business Administrator about this request. Please have him call me at 732-993-9697. Thanks,
Charlie Kratovil
Thank you for your recent email and/or request submitted under the New
Jersey Open Public Records Act (OPRA), N.J.S.A. 47:1A-1 et seq.
Please be advised that I have been contracted by the district for two days
per week, and I am generally available on Tuesdays and Thursdays.
Accordingly, all OPRA requests will be reviewed and processed on those
days.
In accordance with OPRA, the district has seven (7) business days from the
date of receipt to respond to a request, unless an extension is necessary.
Given my limited availability, and depending on the nature and scope of
your request, please be advised that an extension of time may be required
to ensure a complete and thorough response. Should an extension be
necessary, you will be notified in writing in compliance with OPRA
requirements.
We appreciate your understanding and cooperation.
