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TagsUnder former law, document copying fees varied widely, with some state departments and agencies allowed to charge residents seeking information up to $10 per page.
The new law (A-559) sets the fees for copies of government records under the Open Public Records Act to 5 cents per letter size page or smaller, and 7 cents per legal size page or larger. It also provides that access to electronic records and non-printed materials will be provided free of charge, but the public agency may charge for the actual costs of any needed supplies such as computer discs.
Assembly Majority Leader Joseph Cryan (D-Union), Assemblyman Upendra Chivukula (D-Somerset) and Assemblywoman Linda Greenstein (D-Middlesex) sponsored the legislation.
"If private businesses were to have the same copying fees as some state agencies, there'd already be a consumer-protection laws in place," Cryan said Monday."Government shouldn't be allowed to charge an arm and a leg, either. There's no reason to overcharge for public information."
"The exorbitant fees some government offices charged act as a deterrent to anyone seeking public information, Chivukula added. "It's plain wrong when high prices can be used to prevent concerned residents from being able to access information."
"Quite simply, government should not be making huge profits on the sale of public information," Greenstein said.
– TOM HESTER SR., NEWJERSEYNEWSROOM.COM
