1. (a) Definitions. The following words and terms, when used in this section, shall have the following meanings, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise.

   1. (1) Commissioner--The Consumer Credit Commissioner.
   2. (2) Department--The Office of Consumer Credit Commissioner.
   3. (3) Readily available information--Public information that already exists in printed form, or information that is stored electronically, and is ready to be printed or copied without requiring any programming, but not information that requires more than 30 minutes to prepare for release as a result of required redaction for the purpose of deleting information that is confidential by law.
   4. (4) Standard-size copy--A printed impression on one side of a piece of paper that measures up to 8 1/2 inches by 14 inches. A piece of paper that is printed on both sides shall be counted as two copies.
2. (b) The request. Upon receipt of a written request from a requesting party, including another state or federal agency, which clearly identifies the public records requested to be copied or examined pursuant to Chapter 552 of the Government Code (the Texas Open Records Act), the agency shall make every reasonable effort to provide the information in the manner requested as quickly as possible without disruption of normal business activities, provided that information that is confidential by law will not be provided except under court order, Attorney General directive, or other legal process. All inquiries will be treated equally. Fees imposed by this section may be waived or reduced in the discretion of the Consumer Credit Commissioner, provided that no fee will be charged for requests for less than ten standard-size copies.

3. (c) Copy and service charges.

   1. (1) A charge of $.10 per page will be made for standard-size copies of readily available information.
   2. (2) For standard-size copies of more than 50 pages of readily available information, a charge of $15 per hour of personnel time spent locating, copying, and preparing the information for delivery or inspection, plus $3.00 per hour for overhead, shall be added to the copy charges specified by paragraph (1) of this subsection.
   3. (3) For standard-size copies of information that is not readily available, a charge of $15 per hour of personnel time spent locating, copying, redacting confidential information, and preparing the information for delivery or inspection, plus $3.00 per hour for overhead, plus $.50 per minute of computer time (if applicable) shall be added to the copy charges specified by paragraph (1) of this subsection.
   4. (4) If certification of copies is requested, an additional charge of $5.00 per document will be added to the computed fee.
   5. (5) The cost for non-standard-size copies shall be determined by reference to any recommended standards promulgated by the General Services Commission, Title 1, §§111.61-111.71.
   6. (6) If the anticipated charges under this subsection plus anticipated charges under subsection (d) of this section exceed $100, the agency may require cash prepayment equal to the total anticipated charges prior to release of the requested information.

4. (d) Delivery charges.

   1. (1) U.S. mail. When copies are required to be mailed, the cost of postage will be added to the computed fee.
   2. (2) Expedited delivery. When copies are required to be sent by overnight delivery service or other expedited delivery, the cost of the service will be added to the computed fee unless the requestor arranges to pay the delivery charges directly.
   3. (3) Faxing. The charge for faxing copies is $.10 per page for local telephone delivery, $.50 per page for telephone delivery within the same area code, and $1.00 per page for telephone delivery to a different area code. The agency may refuse to fax more than 20 pages of information and may require another form of delivery.
5. (e) Inspection of records. Records access for purposes of inspection will be by appointment only and will only be available during regular business hours of the agency. If the safety of any public record or the protection of confidential information is at issue, or when a request for inspection would be unduly disruptive to the ongoing business of the office, physical access may be denied and the option of receiving copies at the usual fees shall be provided.
6. (f) Department coordinator. The open records coordinator for the agency is the Commissioner or designee.

Source Note:The provisions of this §82.2 adopted to be effective October 11, 1994, 19 TexReg 7594.