§ 5-14-3-3 — Right to inspect and copy public agency records or recordings; electronic data storage; use of information for commercial purposes; contracts

Indiana § 5-14-3-3

• Jurisdiction: Indiana
• Title 5: STATE AND LOCAL ADMINISTRATION
• Art. 14: PUBLIC RECORDS AND PUBLIC MEETINGS
• Ch. 3: Access to Public Records

Text

(a) Any person may inspect and copy the public
records of any public agency during the regular business hours of the
agency, except as provided in section 4 of this chapter. A request for
inspection or copying must:
(1) identify with reasonable particularity the record being
requested; and
(2) be, at the discretion of the agency, in writing on or in a form
provided by the agency.
No request may be denied because the person making the request
refuses to state the purpose of the request, unless such condition is
required by other applicable statute. If a request is for inspection or
copying of a law enforcement recording, the request must provide the
information required under subsection (i).
(b) A public agency may not deny or interfere with the exercise of
the right stated in subsection (a). If the public agency does not deny the
request, within a reasonable time after the request is received by the
agency the public agency shall either:
(1) provide the requested copies to the person making the request;
or
(2) allow the person to make copies:
(A) on the agency's equipment; or
(B) on the person's own equipment.
(c) Notwithstanding subsections (a) and (b), a public agency may or
may not do the following:
(1) In accordance with a contract described in section 3.5 of this
chapter, permit a person to inspect and copy through the use of
enhanced access public records containing information owned by
or entrusted to the public agency.
(2) Permit a governmental entity to use an electronic device to
inspect and copy public records containing information owned by
or entrusted to the public agency.
(d) Except as provided in subsection (e) and subject to subsection
(j), a public agency that maintains or contracts for the maintenance of
public records in an electronic data storage system shall make
reasonable efforts to provide to a person making a request a copy of all
disclosable data contained in the records on paper, disk, tape, drum, or
any other method of electronic retrieval if the medium requested is
compatible with the agency's data storage system. This subsection does
not apply to an electronic map.
(e) A state agency may adopt a rule under IC 4-22-2, and a political
subdivision may enact an ordinance, prescribing the conditions under
which a person who receives information on disk or tape under
subsection (d) may or may not use the information for commercial
purposes, including to sell, advertise, or solicit the purchase of
merchandise, goods, or services, or sell, loan, give away, or otherwise
deliver the information obtained by the request to any other person for
these purposes. Use of information received under subsection (d) in
connection with the preparation or publication of news, for nonprofit
activities, or for academic research is not prohibited. A person who
uses information in a manner contrary to a rule or ordinance adopted
under this subsection may be prohibited by the state agency or political
subdivision from obtaining a copy or any further data under subsection
(d).
(f) Notwithstanding the other provisions of this section, a public
agency is not required to create or provide copies of lists of names and
addresses (including electronic mail account addresses) unless the
public agency is required to publish such lists and disseminate them to
the public under a statute. However, if a public agency has created a
list of names and addresses (excluding electronic mail account
addresses), it must permit a person to inspect and make memoranda
abstracts from the list unless access to the list is prohibited by law. The
lists of names and addresses (including electronic mail account
addresses) described in subdivisions (1) through (3) may not be
disclosed by public agencies to any individual or entity for political
purposes and may not be used by any individual or entity for political
purposes. In addition, the lists of names and addresses (including
electronic mail account addresses) described in subdivisions (1)
through (3) may not be disclosed by public agencies to commercial
entities for commercial purposes and may not be used by commercial
entities for commercial purposes. The prohibition in this subsection
against the disclosure of lists for political or commercial purposes
applies to the following lists of names and addresses (including
electronic mail account addresses):
(1) A list of employees of a public agency.
(2) A list of persons attending conferences or meetings at a state
educational institution or of persons involved in programs or
activities conducted or supervised by the state educational
institution.
(3) A list of students who are enrolled in a public school
corporation if the governing body of the public school corporation
adopts a policy:
(A) with respect to disclosure related to a commercial purpose,
prohibiting the disclosure of the list to commercial entities for
commercial purposes;
(B) with respect to disclosure related to a commercial purpose,
specifying the classes or categories of commercial entities to
which the list may not be disclosed or by which the list may not
be used for commercial purposes; or
(C) with respect to disclosure related to a political purpose,
prohibiting the disclosure of the list to individuals and entities
for political purposes.
A policy adopted under subdivision (3)(A) or (3)(B) must be uniform
and may not discriminate among similarly situated commercial entities.
For purposes of this subsection, "political purposes" means influencing
the election of a candidate for federal, state, legislative, local, or school
board office or the outcome of a public question or attempting to solicit
a contribution to influence the election of a candidate for federal, state,
legislative, local, or school board office or the outcome of a public
question.
(g) A public agency may not enter into or renew a contract or an
obligation:
(1) for the storage or copying of public records; or
(2) that requires the public to obtain a license or pay copyright
royalties for obtaining the right to inspect and copy the records
unless otherwise provided by applicable statute;
if the contract, obligation, license, or copyright unreasonably impairs
the right of the public to inspect and copy the agency's public records.
(h) If this section conflicts with IC 3-7, the provisions of IC 3-7
apply.
(i) A request to inspect or copy a law enforcement recording must
be in writing. A request identifies a law enforcement recording with
reasonable particularity as required by this section only if the request
provides the following information regarding the law enforcement
activity depicted in the recording:
(1) The date and approximate time of the law enforcement
activity.
(2) The specific location where the law enforcement activity
occurred.
(3) The name of at least one (1) individual, other than a law
enforcement officer, who was directly involved in the law
enforcement activity.
(j) This subsection applies to a public record that is in an electronic
format. This subsection does not apply to a public record recorded in
the office of the county recorder. A public agency shall provide an
electronic copy or a paper copy of a public record, at the option of the
person making the request for the public record. This subsection does
not require a public agency to change the format of a public record.

Legislative History

As added by P.L.19-1983, SEC.6. Amended by P.L.54-1985, SEC.2; P.L.51-1986, SEC.1; P.L.58-1993, SEC.2; P.L.77-1995, SEC.3; P.L.173-2003, SEC.4 and P.L.261-2003, SEC.6; P.L.22-2006, SEC.1; P.L.1-2007, SEC.29; P.L.2-2007, SEC.100; P.L.134-2012, SEC.17; P.L.58-2016, SEC.2; P.L.171-2018, SEC.2; P.L.64-2023, SEC.2.