Dear Watchful Eye:

The Township of North Bergen (the “Township”) received your request dated July 3, 2025 under the New Jersey Open Public Records Act (“OPRA”), N.J.S.A. 47:1A-1 et seq.

Records requested:
“I am requesting the last three years of EZ pass Toll logs for Deputy Chief Corbisiero. Captain Queiro has evidence that the blotter and his Ez pass doesn't match for approximately 29 hours of missing time which totals over 3 days that DC Carbs has stolen. Chief Farley gave the DC a heads up and the blotter went missing for days as it was locked in the DC's Office, I am requesting the Ez pass records so they can be matched to the blotter if the DC didn't forge the blotter to hide the stolen hours."

The Township responds:

Response: Pursuant to N.J.S.A. 47:1A-9 (NJ Revised Statute 27:25A-21.3 - Violations of toll collection monitoring system regulations);

c. Except as otherwise provided in this subsection, … any information obtained from a toll collection monitoring system shall be available for the exclusive use of the authority and any law enforcement official for the purposes of discharging their duties pursuant to sections 11 through 15 of P.L.1997, c.59 (C.27:25A-21.1 through C.27:25A-21.5) and the toll collection monitoring system regulations. Any such report or information shall not be deemed a public record under P.L.1963, c.73 (C.47:1A-1 et seq.) or the common law concerning access to public records. The certified reports and information, including but not limited to, any recorded image of any motor vehicle, the license plate of any motor vehicle or the operator or passenger of any motor vehicle, shall not be discoverable as a public record by any person, entity or governmental agency, except upon a subpoena issued by a grand jury or a court order in a criminal matter, nor shall they be offered in evidence in any civil or administrative proceeding, not directly related to a violation of the toll collection monitoring system regulations, or in any municipal court prosecution for a violation of any of the provisions of Title 39 of the Revised Statutes.

Regarding the remainder of your request, “Captain Queiro has evidence that the blotter and his Ez pass doesn't match for approximately 29 hours of missing time which totals over 3 days that DC Carbs has stolen. Chief Farley gave the DC a heads up and the blotter went missing for days as it was locked in the DC's Office,” pursuant to N.J.S.A. 47:1A5(g), requests for information, ambiguous statements, or requests that ask questions are NOT valid OPRA requests. OPRA applies to requests for records, not requests for isolated facts. A valid OPRA request must seek specific, identifiable records. MAG Entm’t, LLC v. Div. of Alcohol Beverage Control, 375 N.J. Super. 534 (App. Div. 2005); Bent v. Stafford Police Dept., 381 N.J. Super. 30 (App. Div. 2005).

For these reasons, your request is denied.

You requested the same records under the common law. Unlike with OPRA, the burden to show that access to common law public records should be permitted lies with the requestor. “The common-law right to access public records depends on three requirements: (1) the records must be common-law public documents; (2) the person seeking access must ‘establish an interest in the subject matter of the material,’; and (3) the citizen's right to access ‘must be balanced against the State's interest in preventing disclosure.” Keddie v. Rutgers, 148 N.J. 36, 50, 689 A.2d 702, 709 (1997) (internal citations omitted). You have neither established that the records you seek are common-law public documents, identified an interest in the subject matter of such records, nor set forth how your need for disclosure outweighs the State’s clearly expressed, strong public policy interest in preventing such disclosure. Accordingly, your request is denied under common law.

As with any OPRA request, you have the right to challenge the decision by the Township regarding your request. At your option, you may either institute a proceeding in the Superior Court of New Jersey or file a complaint with the Government Records Council (“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 PO Box 819, Trenton, NJ 08625, by e-mail at [email address] or at their web site at https://www.nj.gov/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 the County in which you reside.

Thank you.

Erin Barillas, RMC
Township Clerk
Township of North Bergen
4233 Kennedy Blvd
North Bergen, NJ 07047
e: [North Bergen Township request email]
o: 201-392-2024
f: 201-330-7694
www.northbergen.org

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