Mr. Moore,

The Nutley Municipal Clerk’s Office is in receipt of the attached OPRA
request no. 476-20, which was received by the Township on September 16,
2020. Please be advised that additional time will be required in order to
review and prepare the requested documents for production. We will require
an extension through October 6, 2020.

Thank you,

Ceci Tramontana, RMC

Deputy Municipal Clerk

Municipal Clerk’s Office

Township of Nutley, NJ

(973) 284-4951 x2233 Office

(973) 284-5668 Fax

[1]www.nutleynj.org

References

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1. http://www.nutleynj.org/

Mr. Moore,

My email below was an extension notice. I attached the PDF of your request so that you would know which OPRA request I am referencing.

Thank you,

Ceci Tramontana, RMC
Deputy Municipal Clerk
Municipal Clerk’s Office
Township of Nutley, NJ
(973) 284-4951 x2233 Office
(973) 284-5668 Fax
www.nutleynj.org

show quoted sections

Mr. Moore,

This correspondence shall serve as Nutley Township (the “Township”)’s
response to your request for access to government records pursuant to the
Open Public Records Act, N.J.S.A. 47:1A-1.1, et seq. (“OPRA”), which was
received by the Township on September 16, 2020. The Township sent you an
extension notice via email on September 25, 2020. Below is a list of each
request for access and the Township’s response to the same:

"I seek all documents for the following bill list. I seek the original
contract, the approval and the actual contract for the following. The
7-day rule will be enforced.

20-00685 - MILLENNIUM STRATEGIES LLC, 

20-00725 - INGLESINO,WEBSTER,WYCISKALA,

20-01416 - BLUE 360 MEDIA, LLC

20-01057 - SCARINCI AND HOLLENBECK

20-02233 - POSITIVE PROMOTIONS INC.

20-02377

20-02378

20-02379

20-02426

20-02471

20-02536"

Please see attached records (66 pages in total). Redactions have been made
for personal identifying numbers pursuant to N.J.S.A. 47:1A-5; personnel
records pursuant to N.J.S.A. 47:1A-1.1; and, medically related information
exempt from disclosure pursuant to Executive Order No. 26 (McGreevey 2002)
and HIPAA Privacy Rule (see 45 C.F.R. 164.502(d)).

To the extent that you have also requested access to the above government
records under the common law, your stated interest in obtaining the
records must be balanced against the Township of Nutley’s interest in
nondisclosure.  See Loigman v. Kimmelman, 102 N.J. 98 (1986).  The
foregoing response to your request for access to government records
incorporates the aforementioned balancing test.  Please note that "a
party's status as a litigant does not enlarge its access to government
records under OPRA”.  MAG Entm't, LLC v. Div. of Alcoholic Beverage
Control, 375 N.J. Super. 534, 545-46 (App. Div. 2005).  The Township of
Nutley reserves the right to raise any other grounds for denial not raised
in this response.  Failure of the Township of Nutley to assert an
exemption or privilege does not act as a waiver of any grounds for
denial.  Furthermore, a reviewing Court or the Government Records Council
("GRC") may deem a denial of access to be authorized on grounds other that
those advanced by a custodian.  See Paffv. Twp. of Plainsboro,
A-2122-05T2, 2007 WL 957289, at *2 (App. Div., Apr. 2, 2007), affirming,
Paff v. Township of Plainsboro, GRC Complaint No. 2005-29 (March 2006). 
If your request for access to a government record has been denied or
unfilled, you have a right to challenge the decision by the Township of
Nutley to deny access.  At your option, you may either initiate a
proceeding in the Superior Court of New Jersey or file a complaint with
the GRC by completing the Denial of Access Complaint Form.  You may
contact the GRC by toll-free telephone at 866-850-0511, by mail at P.O.
Box 819, Trenton, NJ, 08625, by e-mail at [1][email address], or on
its website at [2]www.state.nj.us/grc.  The GRC can also answer other
questions about the law.  All questions regarding complaints filed in
Superior Court should be directed to the Court Clerk in your County.

Sincerely,

Ceci Tramontana, RMC

Deputy Municipal Clerk

Municipal Clerk’s Office

Township of Nutley, NJ

(973) 284-4951 x2233 Office

(973) 284-5668 Fax

[3]www.nutleynj.org

References

Visible links
1. mailto:[email address]
2. http://www.state.nj.us/grc
3. http://www.nutleynj.org/

Dear Mr. Moore,

This correspondence shall serve as Nutley Township’s (the “Township”) response to your request for access to government records pursuant to the Open Public Records Act, N.J.S.A. 47:1A-1.1, et seq. (“OPRA”), which was received by the Township on September 16, 2020. The Township sent you an extension notice via email on September 25, 2020. On September 30, 2020 the Township responded to your request and sent the responsive documents to the opramachine.com email provided on your initial request. On October 6, 2020, you sent an e-mail stating, " I understand from the Township Clerk, Eleni Pettia [sic], It is my fault i cannot open the file she sent to me in response. Therefore, I request the response to be in an excel file."

As a preliminary matter, your OPRA request specified that the Township’s response was to be directed to the website opramachine.com. The PDF file containing the responsive records was sent to opramachine.com and, as of today, it is fully accessible on that website. Township IT services has tested the PDF file, both as produced and as it appears on opramachine.com, and has found it to be fully accessible with the appropriate PDF reader application. Moreover, pursuant to N.J.S.A. 47:1A-5(d), a custodian "shall permit access to a government record and provide a copy thereof in the medium requested if the public agency maintains the record in that medium” (emphasis added). If the public agency does not maintain the record in the medium requested, the custodian shall either convert the record to the medium requested or provide a copy in some other meaningful medium” (emphasis added). The Township does not maintain the requested records in Excel format. Rather, the records are maintained on paper, which was assembled and converted to a meaningful format (PDF) so that they could be uploaded to your requested recipient, opramachine.com, and accessed digitally. PDF is a widely-used and accepted digital format for scanned images of documents. Neither the paper copies, nor the PDF file can be converted into Excel format.

Alternatively, a paper copy of the requested records can be prepared and made available for pickup at the Township Municipal Building, or mailed to you. Copying fees (and postage if applicable) will apply for any paper copies requested.

To the extent that you have also requested access to the above government records under the common law, your stated interest in obtaining the records must be balanced against the Township of Nutley’s interest in nondisclosure. See Loigman v. Kimmelman, 102 N.J. 98 (1986). The foregoing response to your request for access to government records incorporates the aforementioned balancing test. Please note that "a party's status as a litigant does not enlarge its access to government records under OPRA”. MAG Entm't, LLC v. Div. of Alcoholic Beverage Control, 375 N.J. Super. 534, 545-46 (App. Div. 2005). The Township of Nutley reserves the right to raise any other grounds for denial not raised in this response. Failure of the Township of Nutley to assert an exemption or privilege does not act as a waiver of any grounds for denial. Furthermore, a reviewing Court or the Government Records Council ("GRC") may deem a denial of access to be authorized on grounds other that those advanced by a custodian. See Paff v. Twp. of Plainsboro, A-2122-05T2, 2007 WL 957289, at *2 (App. Div., Apr. 2, 2007), affirming, Paff v. Township of Plainsboro, GRC Complaint No. 2005-29 (March 2006). If your request for access to a government record has been denied or unfilled, you have a right to challenge the decision by the Township of Nutley to deny access. At your option, you may either initiate a proceeding in the Superior Court of New Jersey or file a complaint with the GRC by completing the Denial of Access Complaint Form. You may contact the GRC by toll-free telephone at 866-850-0511, by mail at P.O. Box 819, Trenton, NJ, 08625, by e-mail at [email address], or on its website at //www.state.nj.us/grc. The GRC can also answer other questions about the law. All questions regarding complaints filed in Superior Court should be directed to the Court Clerk in your County.

Sincerely,

Ceci Tramontana, RMC
Deputy Municipal Clerk
Municipal Clerk’s Office
Township of Nutley, NJ
(973) 284-4951 x2233 Office
(973) 284-5668 Fax
www.nutleynj.org