1.01.110 Open Records

(a) Open Records: The following categories of information are "open" and available to Tribal members:

(1) The names and titles of employees of the Tribe;

(2) Job postings;

(3) Census data regarding population (not membership);

(4) Salary, bonuses and benefits received by elected or appointed officials of the Tribe:

(5) Human resource policy manuals;

(6) Tribal Court opinions or court decisions (subject to redaction of confidential or minor information);

(7) Tribal ordinances, policies and resolutions and amendments thereto;

(8) Publicly filed organizing documents of any Saint Regis Mohawk Tribal entity (i.e. charters);

(9) Annual financial audits, all financial disclosures that have been deemed open to Tribal Members;

(10) Minutes of Tribal Council open meetings, as per TCR 2011-55;

(11) List of eligible voters (can only be viewed in the clerk's office from Caucus to election and only for purposes of verifying voter eligibility);

(12) Statistical data of Tribal members (numbers only); and

(13) Election candidate lists, voting results.

(b) Public Records: The following information is deemed "Public" and is available to the general public.

(1) Laws and Policies

(2) Company and/or business names

(3) Newsletters

(4) Policies and procedures such as personnel policy and court procedures.

(5) Sex offender registry

(6) Media Releases and publications

Tribal government business often includes matters relating to Tribal business enterprises. The purpose of these exceptions is to address the non-disclosure of certain business records, records of a sensitive nature, or situations where the Tribal members' right to access is outweighed by the Tribe's interest in keeping such records confidential.

The following shall be exempt from disclosure and inspection shall not be granted:

(1) Proposals and bids for any contract or agreement, including information which if it were disclosed would frustrate procurement or give an advantage to any person proposing to enter into a contract or agreement with the Tribe, until an award or final selection is made and after deletion of the portions which are exempt from disclosure under this law. Information prepared by or for the body in preparation of a bid solicitation shall be exempt until an award or final selection is made;

(2) Contracts or other agreements which specifically prohibit disclosure of the content of the contract or agreement to third parties;

(3) Any and all records related to: contracts containing a confidentiality or nondisclosure provision; any proposed contracts or employment related contracts;

(4) Any personally identifiable information including medical, financial, personnel records or similar files or information, including but not limited to Tribal enrollment numbers, social security numbers.

(5) Privileged attorney-client information or attorney work product and all related records.

(6) Records of law enforcement agencies, prosecution, or regulatory agencies that deal with detection and investigation of crimes.

(7) Matters specifically exempted from disclosure by applicable federal, state, or tribal statute or law.

(8) Any records containing proprietary information, trade secrets or information that would be deemed privileged in litigation;

(9) Drafts, notes, recommendations, memoranda and other records in which opinions are expressed, or policies or actions are formulated;

(10) Inter-office communications relating to proposals or matters which have not been introduced for consideration in an open meeting. This includes: Inter-office memorandums, personal notes, drafts, communications with staff and other records which relate to ongoing matters or works in progress currently being performed;

(11) Records that would reveal the exact location of archaeological sites;

(12) Records related to security and community safety;

(13) Any court records that would otherwise not be disclosed by the court, any records that have been sealed, any documents or records protected by attorney client privilege;

(14) Records or information for which disclosure would jeopardize the functioning of the Tribal government or an entity partly or wholly owned by the Tribe;

(15) Geological and geophysical information and data, including maps, concerning wells;

(16) Any information related to higher education and student records; and

(17) Value of rare books or collections