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Ri judiciary smart search5/24/2023 ![]() Records of Family Court proceedings: This refers to files of juvenile proceedings, adoptions, child custody, and illegitimate births.Records subject to client/attorney or doctor/patient privilege: This includes all communications and medical information relating to a client or patient.However, personnel records can be requested by a potential employer or current one with the permission of the employee. Personnel and other personal identifiable records: This relates to certain information of government employees, employees of contractors/subcontractors considered to be private by state or federal laws and which may constitute an inexcusable invasion of personal privacy if disclosed.Trade secrets: This includes financial or commercial information of a confidential or privileged nature submitted or collected from corporations, firms, or persons.Records that are unavailable to the public according to Section 38-2-2 of the Rhode Island APRA include: Record custodians may withhold part of the entire document from the requester if a reasonable portion of the record is publicly available or deny access to the whole document if there is no reasonable amount of disclosable information. The Rhode Island APRA prevents access to some government-generated documents or information that could infringe on personal privacy or endanger an individual, public safety, or an agency's operations. What is Exempted Under the Rhode Island Public Record Law? The custodian may require requesters to provide a consent form signed by the record subject or valid government-issued ID from persons with tangible interests or direct claims. However, requesters may have to go through a slightly more complex dissemination procedure to access certain documents like criminal records or vital records (Rhode Island death records, birth certificates, and marriage records) that have partly limited access. Requirements may differ but often involve providing record descriptions and paying the necessary fees for searching, duplicating, certifying, or mailing the records. Members of the public who desire to do a background check can obtain data from websites that provide public records in Rhode Island. Additionally, the APRA mandates record custodians to create procedures for accessing documents and make this information readily available to the public by posting it on their websites or other platforms. ![]() Section 38-2-3 of the APRA permits “every person or entity” the right to inspect and copy nonexempt records maintained by a public body. Who Can Access Rhode Island Public Records? This law was first passed in 1979 and has been notably revised in 1991, 1998, and 2008. The Rhode Island Access to Public Records Act law ensures that members of the public can access public records of government bodies at all levels in Rhode Island. While some records can be accessed from free public data search, obtaining a hard copy may require a fee to process. The APRA exempts some documents or information from public access, and custodians may withhold or redact these from requesters. However, not all government-generated records are available to the public. These agencies shall make non-confidential records available to persons or entities for inspection or duplication in a preferred format, as long as it is not too tasking. The Rhode Island APRA covers records generated by county, city, or state-run agencies and some quasi-public agencies responsible for maintaining documents of public business. Public records in Rhode Island include non-confidential materials like books, letters, electronic data processing records, maps, tape recordings, photographs, films, computer-stored data, and other forms of materials created or collected in relation to an agency's official business. Essentially, the act ensures that any individual can submit public records act requests to government agencies. Individuals and entities have the right to access government-generated documents and information that are not private by nature or deemed exempted by law. ![]() As per the Rhode Island Access to Public Records Act (APRA), records maintained or stored by public bodies is available to the public.
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