Wisconsin Statutes & Annotations
Chapter 19 - General duties of public officials.
19.34 - Procedural information; access times and locations.

19.34 Procedural information; access times and locations.
(1) Each authority shall adopt, prominently display and make available for inspection and copying at its offices, for the guidance of the public, a notice containing a description of its organization and the established times and places at which, the legal custodian under s. 19.33 from whom, and the methods whereby, the public may obtain information and access to records in its custody, make requests for records, or obtain copies of records, and the costs thereof. The notice shall also separately identify each position of the authority that constitutes a local public office or a state public office. This subsection does not apply to members of the legislature or to members of any local governmental body.
(2)
(a) Each authority which maintains regular office hours at the location where records in the custody of the authority are kept shall permit access to the records of the authority at all times during those office hours, unless otherwise specifically authorized by law.
(b) Each authority which does not maintain regular office hours at the location where records in the custody of the authority are kept shall:
1. Permit access to its records upon at least 48 hours' written or oral notice of intent to inspect or copy a record; or
2. Establish a period of at least 2 consecutive hours per week during which access to the records of the authority is permitted. In such case, the authority may require 24 hours' advance written or oral notice of intent to inspect or copy a record.
(c) An authority imposing a notice requirement under par. (b) shall include a statement of the requirement in its notice under sub. (1), if the authority is required to adopt a notice under that subsection.
(d) If a record of an authority is occasionally taken to a location other than the location where records of the authority are regularly kept, and the record may be inspected at the place at which records of the authority are regularly kept upon one business day's notice, the authority or legal custodian of the record need not provide access to the record at the occasional location.
History: 1981 c. 335; 2003 a. 47; 2013 a. 171.
NOTE: 2003 Wis. Act 47, which affects this section, contains extensive explanatory notes.

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