Public Records Requests

The City Recorder 's Office is responsible for fulfilling Public Records Requests in accordance with Oregon's Public Records Laws.

Complete the Public Record Request Form and submit to the City Recorder:

In-Person:
Molalla City Hall
117 N. Molalla Avenue
Molalla, OR 97038

Via US Postal Mail:
PO Box 248
Molalla, OR 97038

Via Email:
Christie Teets, CMC, City Recorder
recorder@cityofmolalla.com

Upon receipt of a Public Records Request:

The City shall reply within five business days from the date the request was received and confirm whether the City is the custodian of the requested records and/or provide details in the event additional time is needed to fulfill a response.
(ORS 192.324(1)(2))
The City shall complete its response as soon as it is practicable and without unreasonable delay. (ORS 192.329(1); ORS 192.329(5))
It is the City’s policy, in accordance with State Law, to recover its actual costs for retrieval of documents not immediately available or requiring staff research. (ORS 192.324(4))
The City may furnish records without charge or a reduced fee if its determined that making the record available benefits the general public. (ORS 192.324(5))
Should additional time be required, the City Recorder will notify the requester with an estimated completion date.

Public Records are subject to fees for copying and all requests are handled with transparency and efficiency to ensure compliance with state regulations.

Public Records: Essential Information

What is a Public Record?

A Public Record includes any writing relating to the conduct of the public’s business prepared, owned, used or retained by a public body, regardless of physical form or characteristics.
A “writing” is defined as: handwriting, typewriting, printing, photographing and every means of recording, including letters, words, pictures, sounds or symbols or combination thereof, and all papers, maps, files, facsimiles or electronic recordings. Writing also includes information stored on computer tape, microfiche, films or videotape and virtually any other method of recording information. Public records may be in ‘machine readable or electronic form’.

How soon must the City respond to a request for Public Records?

The City's Records Custodian, the City Recorder's Office, must acknowledge receipt of the request within 5-business days, and must provide the requested document(s) within 10-business days after acknowledgement. If the Records Custodian is on leave when the request is submitted, the City will respond as soon as practicable.

Which Public Records are exempt from disclosure?

In Oregon, the Public Records Law is a Disclosure Law, rather than a confidentiality law.
Exemptions are contained in ORS 192.501 & 192.502, and are applied on a case-by-case basis.

What can the City charge for providing copies of Public Records?

A public body is allowed to charge for the actual cost in making the record(s) available, including staff time to search for the records. The City has adopted three levels of requests:

Level 1: requests are provided at no charge
Level 2: requests are $25.00 plus per-page fees
Level 3: requests will be all actual costs to reproduce.

Please see the Public Records Request Fillable(PDF, 192KB) | Public Records Request Form(PDF, 273KB) and Administrative Policy (Page 2 of the Public Records Request Form) for more information.

How do I make a Public Records Request?

Complete the Public Record Request form below and submit to the City Recorder: