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Opinion

Opinion By: Gregory D. Stumbo, Office of Attorney General; Michelle D. Harrison, Assistant Attorney General

Open Records Decision

At issue in this appeal is whether the actions of the Environmental and Public Protection Cabinet, Office of Insurance relative to the request of Barbara Schwarz for any records relating to her, Mark C. Rathbun, Mark de Rothschild, Scientology, the Church of Scientology or its deceased founder, L. Ron Hubbard, or former President Dwight David Eisenhower, violated the Kentucky Open Records Act. On May 17, 2004, Ms. Schwarz simultaneously appealed from comparable determinations by the six public agencies, including the Office of Insurance, to which she submitted identical requests in November 2003. Having reviewed the record in its entirety and considered the arguments of both parties, we conclude that 04-ORD-090, a copy of which is attached hereto and incorporated by reference, is controlling. Because the Office of Insurance does not possess any records that are responsive to Ms. Schwarz's request and affirmatively indicated as much to her in a timely response, the Office has fulfilled its obligation under the Open Records Act.

A party aggrieved by this decision may appeal it by initiating an action in the appropriate circuit court pursuant to KRS 61.880(5) and KRS 61.882. Pursuant to KRS 61.880(3), the Attorney General should be notified of any action in circuit court, but should not be named as a party in that action or in any subsequent proceeding.

LLM Summary
The decision addresses an appeal by Barbara Schwarz regarding the response of the Environmental and Public Protection Cabinet, Office of Insurance to her open records request. The request sought records relating to various subjects and individuals. The Office of Insurance had responded that no records were found, and this decision concludes that the Office has met its obligations under the Kentucky Open Records Act by affirmatively indicating the absence of responsive records in a timely manner. The decision follows the precedent set in 04-ORD-090, which is deemed controlling.
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Requested By:
Barbara Schwarz
Agency:
Office of Insurance
Type:
Open Records Decision
Lexis Citation:
2004 Ky. AG LEXIS 97
Cites:
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