The following record types are considered exempt from disclosure pursuant to the referenced Statute, Regulation, Rule, or other law. The New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection will refer to these exemptions by Statute or other law in its responses to a submitted Open Public Records Act record request.
The Department has correlated the below citations with the General Records Council’s (GRC) list of 24 Exemptions from Disclosure. See www.nj.gov/grc/public/exempt.
OPEN PUBLIC RECORDS ACT (N. J. S. A. 47-1A1 et seq.) |
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nowrap> Expectation of Privacy |
- A public agency has a responsibility and an obligation to safeguard from public access a citizen's personal information with which it has been entrusted when disclosure thereof would violate the citizen's reasonable expectation of privacy
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Creating A Record |
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- Pursuant to the definition of a Government Record, a State Agency does not have to provide a record that does not exist or create a record in response to requests. This was recognized by the court in Mag Entertainment, LLC v. Division of Alcoholic Beverage Control, 375 N.J. Super 537 (App. Div. March 2005).
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Deliberative |
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- The definition of a Government Record shall not include inter-agency or intra-agency advisory, consultative, or deliberative material.
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Legislative Records |
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- information received by a member of the Legislature from a constituent or information held by a member of the Legislature concerning a constituent, including but not limited to information in written form or contained in any e-mail or computer data base, or in any telephone record whatsoever, unless it is information the constituent is required by law to transmit
- any memorandum, correspondence, notes, report or other communication prepared by, or for, the specific use of a member of the Legislature in the course of the member's official duties, except that this provision shall not apply to an otherwise publicly-accessible report which is required by law to be submitted to the Legislature or its members
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Medical Examiner Records |
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- any copy, reproduction or facsimile of any photograph, negative or print, including instant photographs and videotapes of the body, or any portion of the body, of a deceased person, taken by or for the medical examiner at the scene of death or in the course of a post mortem examination or autopsy made by or caused to be made by the medical examiner except:
- when used in a criminal action or proceeding in this State which relates to the death of that person,
- for the use as a court of this State permits, by order after good cause has been shown and after written notification of the request for the court order has been served at least five days before the order is made upon the county prosecutor for the county in which the post mortem examination or autopsy occurred,
- for use in the field of forensic pathology or for use in medical or scientific education or research, or
- for use by any law enforcement agency in this State or any other state or federal law enforcement agency;
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riminal investigation |
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- Criminal investigatory records
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class="exemptNote">Victim’s records |
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- Victims' records, except that a victim of a crime shall have access to the victim's own records
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Trade Secrets & Proprietary info |
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- Trade secrets and proprietary commercial or financial information obtained from any source. For the purposes of this paragraph, trade secrets shall include data processing software obtained by a public body under a licensing agreement which prohibits its disclosure
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Attorney Client Privilege |
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- Any record within the attorney-client privilege. This paragraph shall not be construed as exempting from access attorney or consultant bills or invoices except that such bills or invoices may be redacted to remove any information protected by the attorney-client privilege
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Computer Security |
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- Administrative or technical information regarding computer hardware, software and networks which, if disclosed, would jeopardize computer security
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Building Security |
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- Emergency or security information or procedures for any buildings or facility which, if disclosed, would jeopardize security of the building or facility or persons therein
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class="exemptNote">Security measures and Techniques |
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- Security measures and surveillance techniques which, if disclosed, would create a risk to the safety of persons, property, electronic data or software
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class="exemptNote">Advantage to Bidders |
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- Information which, if disclosed, would give an advantage to competitors or bidders
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Public Employee Related |
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- Information generated by or on behalf of public employers or public employees in connection with any sexual harassment complaint filed with a public employer or with any grievance filed by or against an individual or in connection with collective negotiations, including documents and statements of strategy or negotiating position
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Risk Management |
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- Information which is a communication between a public agency and its insurance carrier, administrative service organization or risk management office
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Court Orders |
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- Information which is to be kept confidential pursuant to court order
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class="exemptNote">Honorable Discharge Certificates |
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- Any copy of form DD-214, or that form, issued by the United States Government, or any other certificate of honorable discharge, or copy thereof, from active service or the reserves of a branch of the Armed Forces of the United States, or from service in the organized Militia of the State, that has been filed by an individual with a public agency, except that a veteran or the veteran's spouse or surviving spouse shall have access to the veteran's own records
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Personal Identifying Info |
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- That portion of any document which discloses the social security number, credit card number, unlisted telephone number or driver license number of any person; except for:
- use by any government agency, including any court or law enforcement agency, in carrying out its functions,
- or any private person or entity acting on behalf thereof
- or any private person or entity seeking to enforce payment of court-ordered child support; except with respect to the disclosure of driver information by the Division of Motor Vehicles as permitted by section 2 of P.L.1997, c.188 (C.39:2-3.4); and
- except that a social security number contained in a record required by law to be made, maintained or kept on file by a public agency shall be disclosed when access to the document or disclosure of that information is not otherwise prohibited by State or federal law, regulation or order or by State statute, resolution of either or both houses of the Legislature, Executive Order of the Governor, rule of court or regulation promulgated under the authority of any statute or executive order of the Governor.
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Higher Education Exceptions |
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A government record shall not include, with regard to any public institution of higher education, the following information, which is deemed to be privileged and confidential:
- Pedagogical, scholarly and/or academic research records and/or the specific details of any research project conducted under the auspices of a public higher education institution in New Jersey, including, but not limited to research, development information, testing procedures, or information regarding test participants, related to the development or testing of any pharmaceutical or pharmaceutical delivery system, except that a custodian may not deny inspection of a government record or part thereof that gives the name, title, expenditures, source and amounts of funding and date when the final project summary of any research will be available;
- test questions, scoring keys and other examination data pertaining to the administration of an examination for employment or academic examination;
- records of pursuit of charitable contributions or records containing the identity of a donor of a gift if the donor requires non-disclosure of the donor's identity as a condition of making the gift provided that the donor has not received any benefits of or from the institution of higher education in connection with such gift other than a request for memorialization or dedication;
- valuable or rare collections of books and/or documents obtained by gift, grant, bequest or devise conditioned upon limited public access;
- information contained on individual admission applications; and
- information concerning student records or grievance or disciplinary proceedings against a student to the extent disclosure would reveal the identity of the student.
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- When federal law or regulation requires the submission of biotechnology trade secrets and related confidential information, a public agency shall not have access to this information except as allowed by federal law.
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Biotechnology Exemption |
- A public agency shall not make any biotechnology trade secrets and related confidential information it has access to under this act available to any other public agency, or to the general public, except as allowed pursuant to federal law.
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Notwithstanding the provisions of P.L.1963, c.73 (C.47:1A-1 et seq.) or the provisions of any other law to the contrary, where it shall appear that a person who is convicted of any indictable offense under the laws of this State, any other state or the United States is seeking government records containing personal information pertaining to the person's victim or the victim's family, including but not limited to a victim's home address, home telephone number, work or school address, work telephone number, social security account number, medical history or any other identifying information, the right of access provided for in P.L.1963, c.73 (C.47:1A-1 et seq.) as amended and supplemented shall be denied.
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Limits to Convicts |
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A government record containing personal identifying information which is protected under the provisions of this section may be released only if the information is necessary to assist in the defense of the requestor. A determination that the information is necessary to assist in the requestor's defense shall be made by the court upon motion by the requestor or his representative.
- Notwithstanding the provisions of P.L.1963, c.73 (C.47:1A-1 et seq.) as amended and supplemented, or any other law to the contrary, a custodian shall not comply with an anonymous request for a government record which is protected under the provisions of this section.
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Notwithstanding the provisions of P.L.1963, c.73 (C.47:1A-1 et seq.) as amended and supplemented, where it shall appear that the record or records which are sought to be inspected, copied, or examined shall pertain to an investigation in progress by any public agency, the right of access provided for in P.L.1963, c.73 (C.47:1A-1 et seq.) as amended and supplemented may be denied if the inspection, copying or examination of such record or records shall be inimical to the public interest; provided, however, that this provision shall not be construed to allow any public agency to prohibit access to a record of that agency that was open for public inspection, examination, or copying before the investigation commenced. Whenever a public agency, during the course of an investigation, obtains from another public agency a government record that was open for public inspection, examination or copying before the investigation commenced, the investigating agency shall provide the other agency with sufficient access to the record to allow the other agency to comply with requests made pursuant to P.L.1963, c.73 (C.47:1A-1 et seq.).
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Ongoing Investigations |
- Notwithstanding the provisions of P.L.1963, c.73 (C.47:1A-1 et seq.), as amended and supplemented, the following information concerning a criminal investigation shall be available to the public within 24 hours or as soon as practicable, of a request for such information:
- where a crime has been reported but no arrest yet made, information as to the type of crime, time, location and type of weapon, if any;
- if an arrest has been made, information as to the name, address and age of any victims unless there has not been sufficient opportunity for notification of next of kin of any victims of injury and/or death to any such victim or where the release of the names of any victim would be contrary to existing law or Court Rule. In deciding on the release of information as to the identity of a victim, the safety of the victim and the victim's family, and the integrity of any ongoing investigation, shall be considered;
- if an arrest has been made, information as to the defendant's name, age, residence, occupation, marital status and similar background information and, the identity of the complaining party unless the release of such information is contrary to existing law or Court Rule;
- information as to the text of any charges such as the complaint, accusation and indictment unless sealed by the court or unless the release of such information is contrary to existing law or court rule;
- information as to the identity of the investigating and arresting personnel and agency and the length of the investigation;
- information of the circumstances immediately surrounding the arrest, including but not limited to the time and place of the arrest, resistance, if any, pursuit, possession and nature and use of weapons and ammunition by the suspect and by the police; and
- information as to circumstances surrounding bail, whether it was posted and the amount thereof.
- Notwithstanding any other provision of this subsection, where it shall appear that the information requested or to be examined will jeopardize the safety of any person or jeopardize any investigation in progress or may be otherwise inappropriate to release, such information may be withheld. This exception shall be narrowly construed to prevent disclosure of information that would be harmful to a bona fide law enforcement purpose or the public safety. Whenever a law enforcement official determines that it is necessary to withhold information, the official shall issue a brief statement explaining the decision.
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Record Access |
- The custodian of a government record shall permit the record to be inspected, examined, and copied by any person during regular business hours; or unless a government record is exempt from public access by: P.L.1963, c.73 (C.47:1A-1 et seq.) as amended and supplemented; any other statute; resolution of either or both houses of the Legislature; regulation promulgated under the authority of any statute or Executive Order of the Governor; Executive Order of the Governor; Rules of Court; any federal law; federal regulation; or federal order.
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Pursuant to the Open Public Records Act and the State of New Jersey General Records Council Advisory Opinion # 2006-01, the following standards must be adhered to when submitting a record request under N.J.S.A. 47:1A-1 et seq. Failure to adhere to these standards will result in the Department denying your request after an attempt has been made to rectify the matter with you to no result. |
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Valid Request |
- While an Open Public Records Act records request should be on the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection's official Government Records Request form, if the request is not, it must identify the request is being made under OPRA and contain the same requirements as specified under N.J.S.A. 47:1A-5.f.
- An Open Public Records Act records request must request with specificity government records and not information.
- An Open Public Records Act records request must contain a “brief description” of the records sought. See Bent v. Twp. Of Stafford Police Dept., N.J. Super. 30, 33 (App. Div. 2005).
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Substantially Disrupt Agency Operations |
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If a request for access to a government record would substantially disrupt agency operations, the custodian may deny access to the record after attempting to reach a reasonable solution with the requestor that accommodates the interests of the requestor and the agency.
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The provisions of this act, P.L.2001, c.404 (C.47:1A-5 et al.), shall not abrogate any exemption of a public record or government record from public access heretofore made pursuant to P.L.1963, c.73 (C.47:1A-1 et seq.); any other statute; resolution of either or both Houses of the Legislature; regulation promulgated under the authority of any statute or Executive Order of the Governor; Executive Order of the Governor; Rules of Court; any federal law; federal regulation; or federal order.
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class="exemptNote">Executive Privilege |
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The provisions of this act, P.L.2001, c.404 (C.47:1A-5 et al.), shall not abrogate or erode any executive or legislative privilege or grant of confidentiality heretofore established or recognized by the Constitution of this State, statute, court rule or judicial case law, which privilege or grant of confidentiality may duly be claimed to restrict public access to a public record or government record.
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Access to Personnel & Pension Records |
Notwithstanding the provisions of P.L.1963, c.73 (C.47:1A-1 et seq.) or any other law to the contrary, the personnel or pension records of any individual in the possession of a public agency, including but not limited to records relating to any grievance filed by or against an individual, shall not be considered a government record and shall not be made available for public access, except that:
- an individual's name, title, position, salary, payroll record, length of service, date of separation and the reason therefor, and the amount and type of any pension received shall be a government record;
- personnel or pension records of any individual shall be accessible when required to be disclosed by another law, when disclosure is essential to the performance of official duties of a person duly authorized by this State or the United States, or when authorized by an individual in interest; and
- data contained in information which disclose conformity with specific experiential, educational or medical qualifications required for government employment or for receipt of a public pension, but not including any detailed medical or psychological information, shall be a government record.
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- Following Exempted pursuant to N.J.S.A. 47:1A-9; GRC Exemption No. 23 - |
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Except as otherwise provided by law or when essential to the performance of official duties or when authorized by a person in interest, an instrumentality of government shall not disclose to anyone other than a person duly authorized by this State or the United States to inspect such information in connection with his official duties, personnel or pension records of an individual, except that the following shall be public:
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Personnel and Pension Records |
- An individual’s name, title, position, salary, payroll record, length of service in the instrumentality of government and in the government, date of separation from government service and the reason therefor; and the amount and type of pension he is receiving;
- Data contained in information which disclose conformity with specific experiential, educational or medical qualifications required for government employment or for receipt of a public pension, but in no event shall detailed medical or psychological information be released.
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Procurement Records of Surveillance Equipment & Investigatory Services |
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Procurement documents of any State department or agency, concerning surveillance equipment and investigatory services, when disclosure of the equipment type and the subject matter of the services could make known to the target of an investigation the fact that an investigation is in progress.
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Procurement Records of Alarm Systems |
- Procurement documents of any State department or agency; concerning installation of intrusion and detection alarm systems, when disclosure could facilitate illegal entry.
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Procurement Records of Computer Systems |
- Procurement documents of any State department or agency, concerning studies of computer system security, including final reports, when disclosure could facilitate fraudulent use of the information.
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Domestic Security |
- Any government record where the inspection, examination or copying of that record would substantially interfere with the State's ability to protect and defend the State and its citizens against acts of sabotage or terrorism, or which, if disclosed, would materially increase the risk or consequences of potential acts of sabotage or terrorism.
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Job Applicants Info |
- No public agency shall disclose the resumes, applications for employment or other information concerning job applicants while a recruitment search is ongoing. The resumes of successful candidates shall be disclosed once the successful candidate is hired. The resumes of unsuccessful candidates may be disclosed after the search has been concluded and the position has been filled, but only where the unsuccessful candidate has consented to such disclosure.
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Harassment & Hostile Environment Records |
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Records of complaints and investigations undertaken pursuant to the Model Procedures for Internal Complaints Alleging Discrimination, Harassment or Hostile Environments in accordance with the State Policy Prohibiting Discrimination, Harassment and Hostile Environments in the Workplace adopted by Executive Order No. 106 (Whitman 1999), whether open, closed or inactive.
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Individual Info |
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Information relating to medical, psychiatric or psychological history, diagnosis, treatment or evaluation;
- Information in a personal income or other tax return;
- Information describing a natural person's finances, income, assets, liabilities, net worth, bank balances, financial history or activities, or creditworthiness except as otherwise required by law to be disclosed.
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Examination Material |
- Test questions, scoring keys and other examination data pertaining to the administration of an examination for public employment or licensing.
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Another Departments Records |
- Records of a department or agency in the possession of another department or agency when those records are made confidential by a regulation of that department or agency adopted pursuant to N.J.S.A. 47:1A-1 et seq. and Executive Order No. 9 (Hughes 1963), or pursuant to another law authorizing the department or agency to make records confidential or exempt from disclosure.
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Offsite Records |
- Records of a department or agency held by the Office of Information Technology (OIT) or the State Records Storage Center of the Division of Archives and Records Management (DARM) in the Department of State, or an offsite storage facility outside of the regular business office of the agency. Such records shall remain the legal property of the department or agency and be accessible for inspection or copying only through a request to the proper custodian of the department or agency.
- In the event that records of a department or agency have been or shall be transferred to and accessioned by the State Archives in the Division of Archives and Records Management, all such records shall become the legal property of the State Archives, and requests for access to them shall be submitted directly to the State Archives.
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(a) |
The documents, files, data and other records of the Department that are listed below shall not be deemed to be government records subject to public access pursuant to OPRA. Such records shall not be available for inspection, examination or copying by members of the public or by any other individual except authorized members and employees of the Department or except as provided by order of the Governor of the State, a court or tribunal of competent jurisdiction, or applicable law:
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Mediation Proceedings |
- Records relating to mediation proceedings conducted by or on behalf of the Department, except that any records that were open for public inspection, examination or copying prior to mediation shall continue to be available for public inspection, examination or copying during and after mediation. Final agreements resulting from mediation shall be available for public inspection, examination or copying.
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Identify of a Complainant |
- Records that reveal the identity of a complainant;
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Threatened & Endangered Species |
- Portions of records containing the precise location of endangered and/or threatened animal species or endangered plant species or plant species of concern.
- Notwithstanding paragraph (a)3 above:
- The Department shall disclose the precise location of endangered and/or threatened animal species, endangered plant species or plant species of concern to the owner of land upon which the animal or plant species has been located.
- If the Department denies or issues any permit or approval, where any of the aforementioned actions is the subject of a challenge in any administrative or judicial forum, the applicant, or any other person with a constitutional or statutory right to a hearing on that action by the Department, may request, and the Department shall provide, only those Department records containing the location(s) of endangered and/or threatened animal species, endangered plant species or plant species of concern relied upon by the Department to make any of the denials, approvals, or determinations.
- Prior to providing the records containing the location(s) of endangered and/or threatened animal species, endangered plant species or plant species of concern under (1)or (2) above, the Department shall redact the name(s) of the person(s) who provided the information contained in the records provided under (1) or (2) above if the Department determines that the person(s) providing such information did not provide this information in the course of his or her employment with the State of New Jersey.
- If the Department determines that disclosure under (a)3i above likely to create a substantial risk of harm, theft, or destruction to the species or habitats or the area or place where the species or habitats are located, the Department may require the recipient of the information to state in writing prior to access to the records that he or she shall keep the precise location of endangered and/or threatened animal species, endangered plant species or plant species of concern confidential.
- For the purposes of (a)3, the term “endangered and/or threatened animal species” shall have the meaning(s) of the terms “endangered” and/or “threatened” as these terms are defined at N.J.A.C. 7:25-4.1. The term “endangered plant species” shall have the meaning of “endangered species” as the term is defined at N.J.A.C. 7:5C-1.4. The term “plant species of concern” shall have the meaning as set forth at N.J.A.C. 7:5C-3.1.
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Terrorism & Homeland Security Concerns |
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(b) |
The Department shall withhold any record if the Department determines that the inspection, examination or copying of that record would substantially interfere with the State’s ability to protect and defend the State and its citizens against acts of sabotage or terrorism, or which, if disclosed, would materially increase the risk or consequences of potential acts of sabotage or terrorism. Such records include, but are not limited to:
- Any inventory of enforcement resources, including standard operating procedures, compiled and any policies or plans compiled by the Department pertaining to the mobilization, deployment, or tactical operations involved in responding to emergencies, including employee emergency contact information;
- Information related to a nuclear power plant, which, if disclosed, would jeopardize the public health, safety and welfare or the security of the plant;
- Listing of Low Level Radioactive Waste generators including amounts of waste generated and shielding designs for sources of radiation;
- National defense related information from Lockheed Martin’s Aegis Radar System facility;
- Environmental Emergency Procedures detailing plans such as emergency procedures for wastewater treatment facilities pursuant to New Jersey Pollutant Discharge Elimination rules, N.J.A.C. 7:14A-6.12(D);
- Inundation maps submitted as part of Emergency Action Plans pursuant to Dam Safety Standards, N.J.A.C. 7:20-1.7(f) and 1.11(i);
- Discharge Prevention Containment and Countermeasures and Discharge Cleanup Removal Plans and related general site plans; and
- Radioactive Materials Licenses issued by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission and advisories issued by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission that address lessons learned, security or enforcement issues.
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Green Acres & Natural Lands Trust Land Acquisitions |
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(c) |
Information related to Green Acres and Natural Lands Trust land acquisitions, program offerings and active projects, including appraisals, valuations and title investigations shall be made available for public inspection, examination and copying no later than 48 hours before formal action is to be taken on any land transaction, program offering or active project unless the land transaction, program offering or active project is actively under negotiation, a binding contract has not been executed, or disclosure of the information would jeopardize the land transaction, program offering or active project. An active project is one that has been initiated within two years of the date of appraisal.
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Mag Entertainment, LLC v. Division of Alcoholic Beverage Control, 375 N.J. Super 537 (App. Div. March 2005)
In this decision the court reaffirmed that "the Government Records Council (Council), ...has explained that ‘OPRA does not require record custodians to conduct research among its records for a requestor and correlate data from various government records in the custodian's possession.'
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Research & requests for Info |
Gannett N.J. Partners v. Middlesex, 379 N.J. Super 205 (App. Div. July 2005)
OPRA does not authorize a party to make a blanket request for every document a public agency has provided another party in response to an OPRA request… (or non-OPRA request such as a subpoena).
"In addition, such a request seeks access not merely to public records but also into the nature and scope of a third party's inquiry to a government agency." (i.e. Information) |
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Reda v. Township of West Milford, GRC Case No. 2002-58 (January 17, 2003)
An individual sought information regarding a municipality's liability settlements but did not request any specific record. In rejecting the request, the Council noted that OPRA only allows requests for records, not requests for information, and therefore, it is ‘incumbent on the requestor to perform any correlations and analysis he may desire. |
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class="exemptNote">Copyright Protected |
Any records that meet the definition of government record pursuant to N.J.S.A. 47:1A-1 and is copyright protected shall not be permitted to be reproduced in any manner. The records will be made available for an internal inspection only. |