SECRETARY OF STATE Public Records Information

STATE OF MISSISSIPPI

SECRETARY OF STATE

ERIC CLARK

401 MISSISSIPPI STREET TELEPHONE (601) 359‑1350

POST OFFICE BOX 136 FACSIMILE (601) 359‑1499

JACKSON, MISSISSIPPI 39205‑0136 June 1, 2000

Mr. Steven A. McCaleb

103 Alverado Drive

Long Beach, Mississippi 39560

Dear Mr. McCaleb:

As you requested, I have enclosed a copy of 1). The regulations setting forth procedures and fees for the production of agency records pursuant to the State Public Records Act, and 2). A copy of Chapter 61 ‑ Public Access to Public Records Act, and 2). Please let me know if I may be of further assistance. If you desire to contact me, I can be reached at 601/359‑6373. Thank you for your inquiry.

Sincerely yours,

PAUL M. JOHNSON

Special Projects Officer

PMJ;fs

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REGULATION SETTING FORTH PROCEDURES AND FEES FOR THE PRODUCTION OF

AGENCY RECORDS PURSUANT TO THE STATE PUBLIC RECORDS ACT, AGENCY

SERVICES AND PUBLICATIONS*

REQUEST OF AGENCY RECORDS PURSUANT TO THE STATE PUBLIC RECORDS ACT

A. POLICY

It is the declared public policy of the Office of the Secretary of State ("Agency') to provide

service and information to the people of the State of Mississippi and to all others who request such

service and information, consistent with the provisions of the Mississippi Public Records Act of

1983, MISS. CODE ANN. § 25‑61 ‑ 1, et. seq (Supp. 1983) (“Public Records Act").

B. DEFINITIONS

Identifiable Record: A requested record is identifiable if a reasonably specific description of

the record has been given, such as the date of the record, the subject matter, division or staff person

involved, or other identifier which will permit location or retrieval of the record.

Working Day: A working day is any day other than a weekend, state holiday, federal holiday, or other day on which by executive order the Agency is authorized to be closed.

C. PROCEDURE

Records Available. : All public records of the Agency not otherwise exempt pursuant to § 2561‑9 and § 25 61‑11 of the Public Records Act shall be made available for inspection or copying,

or both pursuant to the procedures outlined below.

Request in Writing: All requests shall be in writing, if possible, and shall request the

disclosure of identifiable records and shall be signed by the person or persons requesting the records,

giving the requester's address and telephone number. This requirement may be waived at the

discretion of an Assistant Secretary of State in order to facilitate the timely release of the information.

Agency Response: Within three (3) days computed from the date of the receipt of the request,

the Agency shall notify the requesting party as to whether the record(s) requested will be disclosed.

If the record is to be disclosed, the Agency shall give an estimate of the total cost, if any, of

Denials: Any denial of a request shall be made by the Assistant Secretary of State for the subject matter work area.

Notice of Request: For the purpose of providing notice of a request for inspection, examination, copying or reproduction to a third party which has submitted trade secrets, confidential commercial or financial information, pursuant to § 25‑61‑9 of the Public Records Act, twenty‑five (25) days from the third party receipt of written notice shall be deemed a reasonable period of time after which the requested record(s) shall be released.

Costs: A fee covering the direct cost of search, review, and reproduction to comply with a request shall be charged, unless the fee is waived pursuant to this regulation, as follows:

I . Reproduction charge per page shall be $0.25 per page. Self‑service shall be $0. 10

3. Records delivered via FAX shall be an additional charge of $5.00 per transmission.

4. Records may be delivered by overnight delivery at an additional charge of $10.00

per delivery. This charge will be waived for customers who provide an account

5. There will be a charge of $2.00 per item for documents retrieved from off‑site storage.

6. On-line access to corporate and uniform commercial code information, through the

SUCCESS program, may be obtained through the State Computer Center. An initial

charge of $250.00 for new accounts shall be charged. Transactions will be billed at

7. Special database printout requests such as listing of all nonprofit corporations; list

of all new corporations; list of corporations with identical designated agents for

service of process; list of corporations with a particular person listed as officer or

director; list of all notary publics, etc. will be calculated on a per‑request basis,

8. All requests for electronic information will be provided via electronic transmission,

diskette, CD‑ROM, or magnetic tape. Costs will be calculated on a per‑request basis,

depending on the volume of information requested and the method of transmission.

A fee of $200.00 per copy will be charged for copies of the Agency's corporate

medium. A fee of $150.00 per copy will be charged for copies of the Agency's

notary public commission database which copy will be supplied in DBASE format

9. For extensive searches and duplication of records, the person making the request may

be allowed to perform the searches and duplication in lieu of it being performed by

staff of the Agency, provided it is done in a non‑disruptive manner and the fee for the

Free Services: There shall be no charge if the record requested is not found, or if it is determined to be exempt from public disclosure. No charge shall be made for staff hours spent in resolving any legal or policy questions concerning the request.

Public Interest 3Ea_iver: Fees established by this regulation may be waived or reduced upon a determination that such waiver or reduction is in the public interest. Persons seeking such waiver or reduction of fees may be required to submit a statement setting forth the intended purpose for which the records are requested or to otherwise indicate how disclosure will primarily benefit the public, and, in appropriate cases, to explain why the volume of records requested is necessary. Determinations pursuant to this section are solely within the discretion of the Agency.

Fees and charges shall be paid by check or money order made payable to the Office of the Secretary of State, or by Visa, MasterCard or cash (exact change). A charge of $5.00 per item will be assessed for checks returned for insufficient funds.

Charges for bound documents, publications, etc. of the Office of Secretary of State shall be as follows:

A. Mississippi Code Annotated and Supplements ‑ Price set by the publisher, Lawyer's Cooperative Publishing Company. State government entities may acquire a discounted set through the publisher.

B. Legislative Session Laws ‑ Price set by the Office of Secretary of State in accordance with applicable statutes. The current cost is $300.00 for hard copies, including extraordinary sessions, and $200.00 for electronic transmission of the same information.

C. General Laws ‑ Price set by the Office of Secretary of State in accordance with applicable

D. House and Senate Journals ‑ Price set by the Office of Secretary of State in accordance with applicable statutes. The current cost for the House Journal is S65.00 per set. The current cost for the Senate Journal is $100.00 per set.

E. Advance Sheets ‑ Price set by the Office of Secretary of State in accordance with applicable

F. Mississippi Official & Statistical Register (fflue Book ‑ Publications provided free of charge

in accordance with applicable statutes. Limited production restricts distribution to one copy per individual. Public school teachers and school children are provided access to copies by the State Department of Education, which purchases 5,000 additional volumes for educational purposes.

G. Mississippi Souvenir Booklet ‑ Publication is provided free of charge to individuals and school children. Limited production restricts distribution to one copy per individual. Teachers are provided up to 30 copies for their classroom. A charge of $1.00 per copy is assessed for commercial distribution.

H. Elected Officials Directo1y ‑ Publication is provided free of charge to individuals. Limited

I. Mississippi State Constitution ‑ Publication is provided free of charge to individuals.

J. Judicial Directory & Court Calendar ‑ Publication is provided free of charge to members of the Mississippi State Bar and the state judiciary. Additional volumes are provided for a nominal charge of S1.50 per volume.

K. Pre‑Advance Sheet Index ‑ Service is provided for a charge of $25.00 per legislative session.

Information includes bills signed into law, long title, effective date, and number of pages.

L. Flays ‑ Mississippi state flags are available to Legislators free of charge upon request. Individuals may purchase 3 by 5 foot cotton or nylon flags from the Office of Secretary of State for $17.50. Flags will be mailed for an additional handling charge of $2.50.

All previously promulgated rules or regulations which are inconsistent with any provisions set forth above are hereby repealed.

*Conflicts between this regulation and existing statutes relating to access to Agency records and fees charged by individual work areas of the Agency shall be resolved in favor of the existing statute.