Spartanburg County School District Four conducts public business
in an open and public manner and makes it possible for the public to
have access to public records in accordance with the South Carolina Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) found in the South Carolina Code of Laws, Title 30 — Public Records, Chapter 4.
The
FOIA provides the public with access to a public agency’s existing
records that are not subject to an exemption under the law.
Section
30-4-20(c) of the FOIA defines a “public record” as “all books, papers,
maps, photographs, cards, tapes, recordings, or other documentary
materials regardless of physical form or characteristics prepared,
owned, used, in the possession of, or retained by a public body.”
Certain
categories of documents such as personnel records; student records;
tests and examinations used to evaluate student or employee performance;
records relating to the security of students, staff, or property;
records protected from disclosure under attorney-client privilege; and
executive session materials are exempt from disclosure under Section
30-4-40.
Please note that South Carolina law (FOIA Section 30-4-50)
prohibits the obtaining or use of public records for commercial
solicitation.
All requests for information under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) must be submitted in writing to the district’s Superintendent. You may send your request by letter to Dr. W. Rallie Liston, Spartanburg County
School District Four, 118 McEdco Road, Woodruff, SC 29388.
Deadlines — In accordance with the Freedom of Information
Act, for current records, the district has 10 business days (excluding
weekends and legal public holidays) to determine if the record requested
is publicly available under the FOIA. Following
notification of the determination to the person making the request, or,
if a deposit has been requested and has been paid, the district then
has 30 calendar days to actually produce the records responding to the
FOIA request.
For records that are more than 24 months old,
the district has 20 business days (excluding weekends and legal public
holidays) to determine if the information requested is publicly
available and 35
calendar days after notifying the requestor of its determination or,
after a requested deposit has been paid, to actually produce the
records.
All
deadlines may be extended by mutual agreement of the requester and the
district and this agreement shall not be unreasonably withheld.
Required information — Please include all information listed below in the FOIA request:
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Your full name
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Full address including street, city, state and zip code
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Email address
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Telephone number
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A detailed description of the public records you are requesting
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Date of request
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Organization
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Signed statement that the information will not be used for commercial solicitation
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Justification if requesting reduction in or waiver of fees
Fees — Section 30-4-30(B) of the FOIA allows
the district to charge reasonable fees for the search, retrieval, or
redaction of records. The fees must represent the lowest possible cost
and cannot exceed the actual cost of producing the requested records. If it is determined by the district that the information requested is primarily benefiting the general public, the district may reduce or waive the fee.
A
deposit not to exceed 25 percent of the total reasonably anticipated
costs for production of the records will be required prior to searching
for or making copies of records. This
includes, but is not limited to, charges for staff time and the cost of
searching, retrieving, redacting and copying records. Any applicable fees must be paid prior to receipt of the requested records.
The law does not require the district to generate or create records that do not exist.
The
requester has the right to receive an electronic transmission of the
public record, if those records are in an electronic format. If records
are not in electronic format and the district agrees to produce them in
electronic format, the district may charge for the staff time required
to transfer the documents to electronic format. Fees may be charged for search time, but no copy charges will apply to records transmitted in an electronic format.
Once
the district receives a written FOIA request, the district will provide
the requester with an estimate of the costs. The requester must send a
deposit of 25 percent of the estimated
cost before the district will begin the process of producing the
records requested. The remaining balance of the cost must be paid at the
time of production of the records.
Spartanburg District Four uses the following fee structure for filling FOIA requests: