Northland Pioneer College (NPC) is a political subdivision of the State of Arizona. As such, Public records of NPC or the college will be open for inspection as provided by the Arizona public records law, A.R.S. §§ 39-121 to 39-128. Requests received under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), which applies only to federal agencies, will be treated as a public record request under Arizona State law.
“Public record” means any public record or other matter, whether in paper, electronic or other form, that is in the custody of NPC or an NPC official, employee or agent, as these terms have been interpreted by the Arizona courts. Public records include:
- Records reasonably necessary to provide knowledge of all activities undertaken by NPC employees in the furtherance of their duties.
- Records received or created by NPC employees that have a substantial nexus to the NPC’s activities.
Public records do not include records that relate solely to personal matters that have no relation to official duties, even if the records are held in an NPC office or computer system.
Arizona’s Public Record Law does not require NPC to:
- Obtain or create a new record;
- Create new report formats; or
- Convert a record to a different medium or format from that in which it is maintained.
The college President has delegated centralized primary responsibility for providing access to public records requests to the Vice President for Administrative Services (VPAS). The VPAS will work with college employees or departments to provide the requested information.
Public Record Request Form
All requests for public records must be in writing. The Public Record Request Form should be completed to expedite the release of the requested record. Submit the completed form to the appropriate office via U.S. mail or by email to one of the following:
1. By U.S. mail to:
Northland Pioneer College
Office of Vice President for Administrative Service
PO Box 610
Holbrook, AZ 86025
2. By email to PublicRecordRequest@npc.edu
Commercial or Non-Commercial Purpose
All persons requesting inspection and/or copying of public records must state whether the records are being requested for a commercial purpose. If the records are requested for a commercial purpose, the requester must provide a statement, verified by the requester, setting forth the commercial purpose for which the materials will be used. See below for additional information related to commercial requests.
“Commercial purpose” means the use of a public record for the purpose of sale or resale or for the purpose of producing a document containing all or part of the copy, printout or photograph for sale or the obtaining of names and addresses from public records for the purpose of solicitation or the sale of names and addresses to another for the purpose of solicitation or for any purpose in which the purchaser can reasonably anticipate the receipt of monetary gain from the direct or indirect use of the public record.
Public Record Request Process
Upon receipt of a completed Public Record Request Form describing an identifiable record or records, NPC will promptly respond to the request and communicate with the requestor to arrange for inspection or payment for copies.
The time for response will vary for each request and may be impacted by several factors, including but not limited to:
- The size and scope of the request;
- The difficulty and/or extent of the search required to locate and/or identify the records requested;
- The review of the records located to determine if the record is responsive to the request, if it may be disclosed, or if it contains information that must be redacted prior to disclosure; and/or
- The need to have the request and/or records reviewed by legal counsel.
Access to a public record will be denied if its disclosure is prohibited by federal or state law, or if it is determined that disclosure would “invade the privacy of a person” or may “lead to substantial and irreparable private or public harm” and these interests outweigh the public’s right to know. If access will be delayed or denied, NPC will inform the requester of the reason for the delay or denial of access.
NPC will restrict access to inspection only of a public record that is protected from copying or other reproduction by the federal copyright law.
If a public record contains some material that is not subject to disclosure, NPC will redact such material and make the redacted copy available to the requester such material in the record as is subject to disclosure.
Inspection and Costs
Public records may be viewed at NPC at no cost to the requestor by making an appointment with the Office of the Vice President for Administrative Services. Appointments will be scheduled during regular office hours.
A fee shall be levied on all paper or electronic copies of requested records. No fee will be charged for records requested pursuant to A.R.S. §§ 39-122 or 39-127, as may be amended. Payment in full, including applicable postage charges, must be received by NPC before any copies will be released.
The standard charge for non-commercial public records is $.25 per side for 8.5" x 11", black and white copies and $1.00 per page for a fax. If records are to be mailed, the cost of postage will also be paid by the requestor. If the college determines it is more efficient to provide documents electronically, either email or a USB drive, the cost of the documents of $.25 will still apply and an additional charge for a USB drive will be assessed based on current costs.
NPC shall determine the charge for each commercial public records request, which shall include:
A. A portion of NPC’s cost to obtain the original or copies of the documents, printouts or photographs requested.
B. A reasonable fee for the cost of time, materials, equipment and personnel in producing such reproduction.
C. The value of the reproduction on the commercial market as best determined by NPC.
Based on Policy #1235; New 11/25/19
