§ 1850.10 Fees.
(a) Generally. Except as provided elsewhere in this section, the Records Management Officer shall assess fees where applicable in accordance with this section for search, review, and duplication of records requested. The Records Management Officer shall also have authority to furnish documents without any charge or at a reduced charge if disclosure of the information is in the public interest because it is likely to contribute significantly to public understanding of the operations or activities of the government and is not primarily in the commercial interest of the requester.
(b)
(1) Fee schedule; waiver of fees. The fees applicable to a request for Council records pursuant to § 1850.5 are set forth in the following uniform fee schedule:
| Service | Rate |
|---|---|
| (i) Manual search | Actual salary rate of employee involved, plus 16 percent of salary rate to cover benefits. |
| (ii) Computerized search | Actual direct cost, including operator time. |
| (iii) Duplication of records: | |
| (A) Paper copy reproduction | $0.05 per page. |
| (B) Other reproduction (e.g., computer disk or printout, microfilm, microfiche, or microform) | Actual direct cost, including operator time. |
| (iv) Review of records (including redaction) | Actual salary rate of employee involved, plus 16 percent of salary rate to cover benefits. |
(2) Search. (i) The Council shall charge search fees for all requests, subject to the limitations of paragraph (b)(5) of this section. The Records Management Officer shall charge for time spent searching for responsive records, even if no responsive record is located or if the Records Management Officer withholds records located as entirely exempt from disclosure. Search fees shall equal the direct costs of conducting the search by the Council employee involved, plus 16 percent of the salary rate to cover benefits.
(ii) For computer searches of records, the Council will charge requesters the direct costs of conducting the search. In accordance with paragraph (f) of this section, however, the Council will charge certain requesters no search fee and certain other requesters are entitled to the cost equivalent of two hours of manual search time without charge. These direct costs include the costs attributable to the salary of an operator/programmer performing a computer search.
(3) Duplication. The Council will charge duplication fees to all requesters, subject to the limitations of paragraph (b)(5) of this section. The fee for a paper photocopy of a record (no more than one copy of which need be supplied) is 5 cents per page. The Records Management Officer will charge the requester for the direct costs, including operator time, of making copies produced by computer, such as tapes or printouts. The Records Management Officer will charge a requester the direct costs of providing other forms of duplication.
(4) Review. The Council will charge review fees to requesters who make a commercial use request. Review fees generally are limited to the initial record review, i.e., the review done when the Records Management Officer determines whether an exemption applies to a particular record at the initial request level. The Council will not charge a requester for additional review at the administrative appeal level. Review fees consist of the direct costs of conducting the review by the Council employee involved, plus 16 percent of the salary rate to cover benefits.