Public Records Request

Public Records Request

Florida Public Records Law, Chapter 119, Florida Statutes, requires that our office permit inspection and examination of public records maintained by this office “…any reasonable time, under reasonable conditions, and under supervision..” Consistent with our responsibilities as a public office, it is the policy of this office to fully comply with our statutory obligations.   Accordingly, we will make a good faith effort to assure a full and expeditious response for records maintained by this agency.

Contact Information

Pam Haglund, Public Records Coordinator
Office of the State Attorney, 14th Judicial Circuit
P.O. Box 1040
421 Magnolia Avenue
Panama City, FL    32402-1040
Phone:  (850) 872-4473  (Ext. 1110)
Email: PublicRecords@sa14.fl.gov
Facsimile:  (850) 747-5863

Disclaimer

Under Florida law, email addresses are public records.  If you do not want your email address released in response to a public-records request, do not send electronic mail to this entity.  Instead, contact this office by phone or in writing.

 

In implementing this policy, the following procedures apply:

  • You do not have to give your name, explain why you are making a request or make your request in writing. However, written requests with the name and address of the person requesting the records are recommended to the requestor to ensure proper compliance with the request.  Please provide at least one method of contact.
  • Requests to inspect or copy active or inactive files, shall be logged and acknowledged in order to ensure compliance.
  • If the nature or volume of public records to be inspected or copied requires the use of clerical assistance of more than thirty (30) minutes, a special service charge will be billed at a rate of $15.00 per hour (this includes locating, assembling, redacting and/or copying the material).
  • If, in the sole discretion of this office, the nature or volume of public records to be inspected or copied requires the use of attorney assistance, a special service charge will be billed at a rate of $19.00 per hour for attorney supervisory assistance.
  • If, in the sole discretion of this office, the nature or volume of public records to be inspected or copied requires the use of other supervisory assistance of information technology resources, a special service charge will be billed at the rate of $22.00 per hour.
  • If, in the sole discretion of this office, the nature or volume of public records to be inspected or copied requires the use of other senior level supervisory attorney assistance, a special service charge will be billed at the rate of $48.00 per hour for senior level supervisory attorney services.
  • This office reserves the right to impose a special service charge of $15.00 per hour for clerical staff to supervise the inspection of public records to safeguard the records from theft, loss or destruction.
  • The cost for other types of copies will be determined at the time of the request as these charges are limited to the actual cost of duplication. Actual cost of duplication is defined as “the cost of the material and supplies used to duplicate the public records, but does not include the labor cost and overhead cost associated with such duplication.”   [§119.011(1) F.S.]
  • Requests for copies (electronic or hard copies) will be honored after a deposit is received. The documents will be prepared for inspection or copying only upon receipt in full of the deposit.  The amount of the deposit will be determined as follows:  the number of pages (if applicable) and material in the requested file(s) will be counted and costs calculated at the established rate.  Clerical, Information Technology (IT) and supervisory attorney time will be estimated based on the amount of time anticipated in counting the documents, removing exempt or confidential documents/information and mailing or distributing the documents.  If the total costs exceeds the deposit paid, the requestor must pay the remaining balance prior to this office producing the records.  If, upon completion of the records request, it is determined that the total cost to produce the records is less than the deposit paid, this office will refund the overpayment.  Refunds may take up to 6 to 8 weeks.
  • Money order or cashier checks are the preferred method of payment; however, exact cash payments in appropriate denominations will be accepted. The Office of State Attorney will not accept payment of more than ten dollars ($10.00) in coinage and cannot provide change.  Personal checks are not accepted.  Payment will be accepted from attorneys using law firm checking accounts.  All payments are non-refundable.  If you fail to pay the charges indicated on the final invoice for any reason, this office can require payment of a past due amount before fulfilling a new request.  Payments must be made payable to STATE OF FLORIDA and should be sent to contact information listed above.
  • Established media organizations may expedite receipt of documents, files or other records maintained by this office by agreeing in writing to pay the above-described costs within thirty (30) days on a form drafted by this office. Said Request for Deferred Payment of Inspection/Copy Charges shall remain in effect until such time as this office receives written revocation of the authorization.   This office will revoke the privilege of deferred payment should a media organization be more than sixty (60) days delinquent in payment for documents or other records previously provided.
  • Exceptions to this policy must be approved in writing by the State Attorney or Chief Assistant State Attorney.

Material Costs:

One-sided copy:  $.15 per page; Double-sided copy:  $.20 per page (no charge will be assessed for copies ten(10) pages or less)
CD-ROMs:  $.30 each
DVD:  $.38 each

 

Reducing Costs and Limiting Charges:

  • Labor costs can be reduced significantly if requests include keywords as opposed to “all documents or emails.” Similarly, narrowing a request to certain individual or divisions can greatly reduce the use of extensive labor.
  • We will help direct you to free, online sources whenever possible.
  • Consider refining your request for documents to provide better results and reduce unnecessary or duplicative costs.