Layoff Notices Week of 1/6/2019
Dear Colts Neck Township,
This is a request for public records made under OPRA and the common law right of access. I am not required to fill out an official form. Please acknowledge receipt of this message.
Records requested:
Copies of all layoff notices distributed the week of 1/6/2019.
Copies of all RICE notices for affected employees.
Copies of all severance agreements for laid off employees.
Yours faithfully,
Anonymous
Dear Anonymous:
Your request under OPRA and common law right of access (copy attached) was received by the Township on January 14, 2019 and was received by the Custodian of Record, Beth Kara, on January 14, 2019. This response is provided to you on the first business day after date of receipt by the Custodian of Record.
Your request:
1) Copies of all lay-off notices distributed the week of 1/6/2019;
2) Copies of all Rice notices for affected employees; and
3) Copies of all severance agreements for laid off employees.
Each of these documents pertains to Township employees and personnel decisions regarding these employee, and are thus personnel documents that are not government records subject to OPRA per the personnel records exception codified at NJSA 47:1A-10. Your requests cannot be construed to include any information disclosable under OPRA; therefore, under OPRA, these documents will not be disclosed.
You have also made your request under the common law right of access. In order to access a public record pursuant to the common law right of access, the requester must demonstrate a legally recognized interest in the subject matter of the documents requested, which can be balanced against the Township’s interest in non-disclosure. (See Education Law Center v. N.J. Dept. of Educ., 198 N.J. 274, 302-03 (2009). Your January 12, 2019 request was made anonymously, and therefore, your interest in the requested information cannot be discerned or balanced against the Township’s interest. Therefore, your request pursuant to the common law right of access is denied.
Sincerely,
Beth Kara, RMC/CMC
Custodian of Record
Colts Neck Township
124 Cedar Drive
Colts Neck, New Jersey 07722
732-461-5470, x 100
[email address] / www.coltsneck.org
Dear Beth Kara,
Hello. Can you please release them with redactions? Thanks
Yours sincerely,
Anonymous
Dear Anonymous;
Your request to release the documents with redactions, which was received January 15, 2019 by the Township, and January 15, 2019 by the Custodian of Record, Beth Kara, has been referred to the Township Attorney.
A response is expected to be forthcoming tomorrow, January 16, 2019.
Sincerely,
Beth Kara, RMC/CMC
Custodian of Record
Colts Neck Township
124 Cedar Drive
Colts Neck, New Jersey 07722
732-461-5470, x 100
[email address] / www.coltsneck.org
Dear Anonymous;
With regard to my interim response to you yesterday shown below, an extension is respectfully requested to January 18, 2019 to allow for redaction of all documents requested.
Sincerely,
Beth Kara, RMC/CMC
Custodian of Record
Colts Neck Township
124 Cedar Drive
Colts Neck, New Jersey 07722
732-461-5470, x 100
[email address] / www.coltsneck.org
Dear Anonymous:
Your request under OPRA and common law right of access (shown below) was received by the Township on January 12, 2019 and was received by the Custodian of Record, Beth Kara, on January 14, 2019. The Custodian of Record responded to you on the first business day after date of receipt by the Custodian of Record, to which you responded by requesting the documents with redactions (shown below).
Thus, your request is:
1) Redacted copies of all lay-off notices distributed the week of 1/6/2019;
2) Redacted copies of all Rice notices for affected employees; and
3) Redacted copies of all severance agreements for laid off employees.
Each of these documents pertains to Township employees and personnel decisions regarding these employees, and are thus personnel documents that are not government records subject to OPRA per the personnel records exception codified at NJSA 47:1A-10. However, in a good faith effort to provide these documents to the extent the reference disclosable exceptions to the personnel records exception, such as employee names and dates of separation, please find attached the requested (1) redacted Rice notices (first attachment - 15 Pages) and (2) redacted lay-off notices distributed the week of January 6, 2019 (second attachment - 9 Pages).
Please note that, at this time, the severance agreements shall not be disclosed pursuant to the personnel records exception and the predecisional deliberative process privilege. Redacted versions of these agreements may be available after they have been executed; at this time, however, they remain draft, predecisional documents (as well as personnel records) which are not subject to disclosure under OPRA. See O'Shea v. W. Milford Bd. of Educ., GRC Complaint No. 2004-93 (April 2006). Therefore, your request for redacted copies of all severance agreements for laid off employees is denied.
You have also made your request under the common law right of access. As noted in our January 15, 2019 response to your original request, in order to access a public record pursuant to the common law right of access, the requester must demonstrate a legally recognized interest in the subject matter of the documents requested, which can be balanced against the Township’s interest in non-disclosure. (See Education Law Center v. N.J. Dept. of Educ., 198 N.J. 274, 302-03 (2009).
Your January 15, 2019 revised request remains anonymous, and therefore, your interest in the requested information cannot be discerned or balanced against the Township’s interest. Therefore, your request pursuant to the common law right of access is denied.
Sincerely,
Beth Kara, RMC/CMC
Custodian of Record
Colts Neck Township
124 Cedar Drive
Colts Neck, New Jersey 07722
732-461-5470, x 100
[email address] / www.coltsneck.org