North Carolina Public Records Request

NORTH CAROLINA PUBLIC RECORDS REQUEST

(N.C.G.S. Chapter 132)

PRACTITIONER NOTES

1. A custodian must permit inspection at reasonable times under reasonable supervision and furnish copies as promptly as possible after payment of lawful fees. North Carolina does not impose a general fixed-day response deadline. N.C.G.S. § 132-6(a).
2. A requester may not be required to disclose the purpose or motive for a request. § 132-6(b).
3. A request may not be denied because confidential and nonconfidential information are commingled. The public agency must bear the cost of separating them. § 132-6(c).
4. An agency may satisfy its access duty by posting records online in a format that permits viewing and printing or saving. If it does so, it need not provide those records another way. § 132-6(a1).
5. A requester may choose any medium the public agency is capable of providing. The agency may not deny the chosen medium merely because it prefers another. § 132-6.2(a).
6. An uncertified copy fee generally may not exceed actual reproduction cost. For a request requiring extensive information-technology resources or extensive clerical or supervisory assistance, the agency may add a reasonable special service charge based on actual qualifying technology or labor costs. § 132-6.2(b).
7. The Act does not require creation or compilation of a nonexistent record or conversion to electronic form of a record not kept electronically. If the agency voluntarily creates or compiles a record as a service, the charge may be negotiated. § 132-6.2(e).
8. A request is not a contract. Delete unused bracketed instructions and do not add warranties, covenants, defaults, cure periods, indemnities, force majeure, arbitration clauses, jury waivers, assignment restrictions, integration clauses, or execution formalities.

REQUEST LETTER

Date: [DATE]

Method: [EMAIL / MAIL / FACSIMILE / PORTAL / HAND DELIVERY]

To:
[RECORDS CUSTODIAN / PUBLIC RECORDS OFFICER]
[PUBLIC AGENCY]
[OFFICE OR DIVISION]
[ADDRESS / EMAIL / FACSIMILE / PORTAL]

From:
[REQUESTER NAME]
[TITLE / ORGANIZATION, IF ANY]
[MAILING ADDRESS]
[EMAIL]
[TELEPHONE]

Re: North Carolina Public Records Request — [SUBJECT]

Dear Records Custodian:

Under N.C.G.S. Chapter 132, I request inspection and/or copies of the public records described below.

1. Records Requested

1. [DESCRIBE THE FIRST RECORD OR DISCRETE RECORD SET.]
2. [DESCRIBE THE SECOND RECORD OR DISCRETE RECORD SET.]
3. [ADD ADDITIONAL ITEMIZED REQUESTS.]

Date range: [START DATE] through [END DATE]

Relevant office, official, employee, contractor, project, contract, incident, matter, or file number: [DETAILS]

Helpful custodians, email addresses, search terms, systems, databases, or data fields: [DETAILS]

This request seeks existing records and does not require creation or compilation of a new record. If clarification would help identify responsive records or reduce cost, please contact me at [EMAIL / TELEPHONE].

2. Inspection, Copies, Media, and Delivery

I request:

• ☐ inspection at a reasonable time;
• ☐ electronic copies in this medium the agency is capable of providing: [MEDIUM];
• ☐ paper copies;
• ☐ inspection first, with copies selected afterward;
• ☐ certified copies; or
• ☐ another available method: [METHOD].

Preferred delivery or inspection method: [EMAIL / SECURE LINK / PORTAL / APPOINTMENT / MAIL / PICKUP].

If responsive records are already available online in a format that permits viewing and printing or saving, please provide the specific links.

3. Fees and Cost Communication

I authorize lawful fees up to $[AMOUNT]. Before exceeding that amount, please provide an itemized estimate distinguishing actual reproduction cost, certification fees, and any special service charge.

If a special service charge is proposed, please identify the extensive information-technology resources or extensive clerical or supervisory assistance required and show how the charge reflects actual qualifying technology or labor cost. Please do not include the agency's cost of separating confidential from nonconfidential information.

[OPTIONAL DISCRETIONARY REQUEST: Please waive or reduce fees to the extent agency policy permits because [DETAILS]. This does not assert a general statutory fee-waiver right.]

4. Prompt Production and Any Withholding

Please permit inspection at reasonable times and furnish copies as promptly as possible under N.C.G.S. § 132-6(a).

If any record contains confidential information, please separate that information at agency cost and provide the nonconfidential material under § 132-6(c). If any record or portion is withheld, please provide a written explanation identifying the specific statutory or other legal basis and how it applies.

[FOR A COMPUTER-DATABASE REQUEST: If this request is denied, please provide the explanation required by § 132-6.2(c) and, because this letter asks for it, reduce the explanation to writing as promptly as possible.]

Thank you for your assistance.

Respectfully,

[REQUESTER NAME]
[TITLE / ORGANIZATION, IF ANY]
[DATE]

POST-SUBMISSION AND ENFORCEMENT NOTES

• Keep the record: Preserve the request, proof of receipt, agency communications, links, estimate, special-service calculation, payment, production, and withholding explanation.
• No fixed general deadline: The statutory standard is copies “as promptly as possible.” Delay disputes depend on the circumstances; do not insert an unsupported numerical deadline into the request. § 132-6(a).
• Fee mediation: A requester who believes a fee is unfair or unreasonable may ask the State Chief Information Officer or designee to mediate. § 132-6.2(b).
• Voluntary and mandatory mediation: Parties may mediate before suit. After a Chapter 132 action is filed, the requester must initiate mediation no later than 30 days after responsive pleadings are filed, unless the parties waive mediation in writing as provided by statute. N.C.G.S. § 7A-38.3E.
• Court action: A person denied inspection or copies may seek an order compelling access in the appropriate division of the General Court of Justice, subject to compliance with § 7A-38.3E. The action receives an immediate hearing and priority in later proceedings. § 132-9(a).
• Attorney fees: A substantially prevailing disclosure-seeking party receives reasonable attorney fees attributable to the records, subject to statutory reasonable-reliance exceptions. The court may impose some or all fees personally on an official who knowingly or intentionally participated in a violation, subject to the attorney-advice protection. § 132-9(c).
• Bad-faith or frivolous suit: If the court finds the enforcement action was brought in bad faith or was frivolous, it must award the public agency a reasonable attorney fee as costs. § 132-9(d).
• Get legal advice promptly: Confidentiality provisions, online-access sufficiency, special service charges, mediation, venue, and fee exposure are fact-sensitive.

CURRENT OFFICIAL SOURCES

• North Carolina General Assembly — N.C.G.S. § 132-1
• North Carolina General Assembly — N.C.G.S. § 132-6
• North Carolina General Assembly — N.C.G.S. § 132-6.2
• North Carolina General Assembly — N.C.G.S. § 132-9
• North Carolina General Assembly — N.C.G.S. § 7A-38.3E