Freedom of Information Law
The Freedom of Information Law (FOIL) pertains to the public's right to gain access to government records.
There is no initial fee to make a FOIL request. Requesters are charged for search time (after two hours). You may make a specific statement in your request limiting the amount of fees you are willing to pay. If you do not state a specific fee limit, we will assume that you are willing to pay all fees incurred while processing your request.
We will notify you if:
- your fees will exceed the limit
- your estimated fees exceed $250.00
You may receive the opportunity to narrow your request in order to reduce the fees, or you may be asked to confirm your commitment to pay the estimated amount.
Process
Within five business days of the receipt of a FOIL request for a record reasonably described, we will send you a response either: making such record available; denying such request in writing, or furnishing an acknowledgment of the receipt of such request. If you have not received an acknowledgment within five business days, please contact the Town Clerk at (585) 340-8629.
An acknowledgment will provide you with an estimate of when the records you request will be available, which shall be reasonable under the circumstances of the request. This date is determined by the number of documents you request, their format, their availability, the time it takes to redact any information that cannot be disclosed pursuant to FOIL, the time it takes to assemble the documents, and other factors.
If the records you request require a fee to be paid, you will be notified prior to the records being released to you. Unless a different fee is otherwise prescribed by statute, Public Officers Law §87(1) authorizes an agency to charge a fee for copies of records, or the actual cost of reproducing a record. In determining the actual cost of producing a record, an agency may include only:
- an amount equal to the hourly salary attributed to the lowest paid agency employee who has the necessary skill required to prepare the requested record(s), if at least two hours of agency employee time is needed to prepare a copy of the record(s) requested;
- the actual cost of the storage devices or media provided to the person making the request in complying with such request.
| FOIL Fees | |
| Material | Fee |
| Paper up to 9" x 14" | $ 0.25 |
| Maps | $ 3.00 |
| DVD | Call |
| CD | Call |
| Flash Drive * | $ 5.00 |
| * Or customer provided NEW flash drive in sealed packaging | |
Records are available for inspection, by appointment only. You may schedule an appointment for in-person inspection of records by calling (585) 340-8628.
Right to Appeal
Under provisions of the Public Officers Law you may appeal a FOIL determination. If you desire to submit such an appeal, you must do so within 30 days of the response to your FOIL request. Please include a copy of the original request for records and a copy of the FOIL response you received along with your appeal letter.
Freedom of Information Law (FOIL) requests to inspect or obtain a copy of a public record can be completed in person at the Town Clerk’s Office or electronically using the online form. The electronic request will be acknowledged in five business days. For additional assistance please call (585) 340-8629.Helpful Tips
For more information about FOIL, please visit the New York State Committee on Open Government’s website.
When submitting a FOIL request:
- Be as specific as possible in describing the requested records. Include relevant dates, names, descriptions, etc. Specify whether you would like to inspect the records or have copies of the records sent to you.
- If records are available, specify how you want them sent, i.e., via US mail, email or fax. We may choose to send the records by U.S. mail, if you have requested a large volume of records, for security or other important reasons. We will notify you of any charge for reproducing such records before they are sent to you.
- Include your email, mailing address, and fax number, as well as a telephone number where you can be reached during business hours, if it is necessary to clarify your request.
- Please note that the agency is not required to create a new record in response to FOIL requests.