1. A. Grant of Request.

   1. (1) If the custodian decides to grant a request for inspection, the custodian shall produce the public record for inspection:

      1. (a) Immediately; or
      2. (b) Within a reasonable time period, not to exceed 30 days after the date of the request, if that period is needed to retrieve the public record and conduct any necessary review.

   2. (2) If the custodian reasonably believes that it will take more than 10 working days to produce the public record, the custodian shall indicate in writing or by electronic mail within 10 working days after receipt of the request:

      1. (a) The amount of time that the custodian anticipates it will take to produce the public record;
      2. (b) An estimate of the range of fees that may be charged to comply with the request for public records; and
      3. (c) The reason why it will take more than 10 working days to produce the records.

2. B. Denial of Request. If the custodian decides to deny a request for inspection, the custodian shall:

   1. (1) Deny the request within 30 days after the request; and
   2. (2) Immediately notify the applicant of the denial.

3. C. If a request is denied, the custodian shall provide the applicant, at the time of the denial or within 10 working days, a written statement that gives:

   1. (1) The reasons for the denial, including, for records denied under General Provisions Article, §4-343, Annotated Code of Maryland, a brief explanation of:

      1. (a) Why the denial is necessary, i.e., why disclosure of the public record would be contrary to the public interest; and
      2. (b) An explanation of why redacting information would not address the reasons for the denial;
   2. (2) The legal authority for the denial;
   3. (3) Without disclosing the protected information, a brief description of the undisclosed record(s) that will enable the applicant to assess the applicability of the legal authority for the denial; and
   4. (4) Notice of the remedies available for review of the denial.

4. D. If a requested public record is not in the custody or control of the person to whom application is made, that person shall, within 10 working days after receipt of the request, notify the applicant:

   1. (1) That the person does not have custody or control of the requested public record; and

   2. (2) If the person knows:

      1. (a) The name of the custodian of the public record; and
      2. (b) The location or possible location of the public record.

5. E. Any time limit imposed by §§A—C of this regulation may be extended:

   1. (1) With the consent of the applicant, for an additional period of up to 30 days; and
   2. (2) For the period of time during which a dispute initiated by the applicant is pending before the Public Access Ombudsman.

Authority: General Provisions Article, §§4-101—4-601; Labor and Employment Article, §9-309(a); Annotated Code of Maryland

Effective date: March 15, 2004 (31:5 Md. R. 451)

Chapter recodified from COMAR 14.09.09, Public Information Act Requests, to COMAR 14.09.16, Public Information Act Requests, effective March 3, 2014 (41:4 Md. R. 304)

Regulation .03B amended effective March 16, 2015 (42:5 Md. R. 487)

Regulation .13 amended effective March 16, 2015 (42:5 Md. R. 487)

Chapter revised effective October 18, 2021 (48:21 Md. R. 890)