Opinion
Opinion By: Andy Beshear, Attorney General; James M. Herrick, Assistant Attorney General
Open Records Decision
The issue presented in this appeal is whether the Kentucky State Reformatory ("KSR") violated the Open Records Act in its disposition of two open records requests by inmate Robert McKinney. For the reasons stated below, we find no violation of the Act.
Mr. McKinney's appeal to this office was dated August 11, 2017, and received on August 18, 2017. His first open records request, dated August 1, 2017, was to inspect two grievances he had filed during June 2017. The record on appeal establishes that Mr. McKinney was granted inspection of these grievances on August 17, 2017. Since access to those records has been granted, that portion of this appeal is now moot. 13-ORD-001; 04-ORD-046; 03-ORD-087; OAG 91-140.
Mr. McKinney's second request, dated August 4, 2017, was to "receive" the "grievance number(s)" for three complaints he had made on June 22 and 27 and July 10, 2017. On appeal, he complains that a response was not made within the three business days permitted under KRS 61.880(1). The facility correctly points out that KRS 197.025(7) allows five days, excluding weekends and legal holidays, to respond to an open records request. Since KSR received the request on August 7, 2017, and issued a response on August 8, 2017, it responded well within the allowable time.
KSR further argues that Mr. McKinney's request was for information (grievance numbers) rather than access to public records. The Kentucky Open Records Act addresses requests for records, not for information. 03-ORD-028. Requests for information are outside the scope of open records law and an agency is not obligated to honor a request for information. 02-ORD-88; KRS 61.870 et seq . Even assuming, however, that Mr. McKinney was requesting records containing the grievance numbers he sought, KSR explained in its August 8 response that "[a]fter a thorough search by staff, no grievance numbers exist." A public agency cannot afford a requester access to a record that it does not have or that does not exist. 99-ORD-98. The agency discharges its duty under the Open Records Act by affirmatively so stating. 99-ORD-150. Accordingly, we find no violation of the Act.
A party aggrieved by this decision may appeal it by initiating 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 must be notified of any action in circuit court, but should not be named as a party in that action or in any subsequent proceeding.