- #SCIENTIFIC WORKPLACE 6 HOW TO OPEN RAP FILE FULL#
- #SCIENTIFIC WORKPLACE 6 HOW TO OPEN RAP FILE CODE#
Office of the Attorney General (2013)(federal laws and rules). University of Wash (1994)(“ PAWS II”) (other state laws) O’Connor v. See, e.g., Progressive Animal Welfare Soc'y v. “Other statutes” can be found in state laws, federal laws and regulations, and court rules and need not address the PRA. Other statutes incorporated into the PRA use a variety of terms such as “confidential,” “privileged,” “not discoverable or admissible,” or “shall not be disclosed,” to create exemptions. For example, agencies may not produce lists of individuals in response to requests made for commercial purposes under RCW 42.56.070(9) as addressed above in Chapter 1.6A. In addition, there are categories of requests where disclosure is prohibited unless certain conditions are met and where an agency has no discretion to disclose the record. For records subject to “other statutes,” however, an agency may be required to withhold records if the statute prohibits disclosure. Therefore, an agency has the discretion to disclose an exempt record under the PRA. Seattle Housing Authority (2013).Įxemptions within the PRA can be "permissive rather than mandatory." 1980 Att’y Gen. RCW 42.56.210(2) Resident Action Council v. Categorical exemptions create a presumption that the record is generally exempt which can be overcome if a court finds the exemption is “clearly unnecessary” to protect privacy rights or government interests. Department of Corrections (2015).Įxemptions under the PRA have been classified by the Washington Supreme Court as being of two primary types: categorical, meaning that a particular type of information or record is exempt and conditional, meaning that exempting a record depends on the effect on a privacy right or government interest. An agency agreement or promise not to disclose a record cannot create an exemption that does not exist in the law. See Chapter 1.7E.Īn agency cannot define the scope of a statutory exemption through rule-making or policy. The existence of records withheld as exempt records must be disclosed to the requester.
With limited exceptions, an agency must redact and produce the remaining parts of the records if exempt information exempt under the PRA can be effectively deleted or if the exemption is found by a court to be “clearly unnecessary to protect any individual’s right of privacy or any vital governmental function.” RCW 42.56.210(1) Resident Action Council v. Cowles Publishing Co (1990) (cited in PAWS II). The "other statutes" provision does not allow a court "to imply exemptions but only allows specific exemptions to stand." Brouillet v. An exemption will not be inferred or presumed. A record or portion of a record must fit squarely within a specific exemption in order to be withheld otherwise, the withholding is invalid. References to some statutes outside the PRA are made within the PRA and others stand alone.
An agency can refuse inspection and copying of public records based on exemptions found either in the PRA or in an "other statute which exempts or prohibits disclosure of specific information or records." RCW 42.56.070(1). The PRA requires exemptions to be narrowly construed to promote the public policy of disclosure. Instead, this Chapter provides general guidance on exemptions and summarizes many of the ones most frequently encountered by requesters and agencies.
#SCIENTIFIC WORKPLACE 6 HOW TO OPEN RAP FILE FULL#
A full treatment of all exemptions is beyond the scope of this Open Government Resource Manual. The Public Records Exemptions Accountability Committee (“ Sunshine Committee”) is charged with reviewing exemptions in state law and making recommendations for changes.
#SCIENTIFIC WORKPLACE 6 HOW TO OPEN RAP FILE CODE#
For a list of these exemptions, see the linked table prepared by the Office of the Code Reviser (see the list under “Schedule of Review,” then select the most recent year). Many court cases interpret these exemptions, and new exemptions can be created or modified each year by the Legislature. If an exemption applies to all or part of a record, the exempt content can be withheld or deleted (redacted).
These laws are called “exemptions.” The PRA and other statutes provide hundreds of very specific exemptions. Records must be produced upon request unless a law “exempts or prohibits disclosure of specific information or records.” RCW 42.56.070(1). 2.1 Exemptions Permit Withholding or Redaction of Records
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