Timeframes

Compared to open records laws in other states, Colorado open records laws require a relatively quick response from the custodian. The response times will depend on the scope of your request, and whether the records you seek are in “active use or storage.” This section of the guide first describes the timeframes in which the custodian is required to respond under CORA and under CCJRA, and then suggests strategies for dealing with delayed responses.

4.1 Timeframes for requests under CORA
If the records are available, they should be provided immediately. If the records are available (not in active use or storage, as described below), then the records should be open for inspection, or copied, immediately and without delay, at reasonable times during the business day.

If the records are not immediately available, the agency should provide them within 3 to 7 business days. If the records are in active use, storage, or are otherwise not readily available, the custodian should provide them to you within 3 business days, unless extenuating circumstances exist, in which case the custodian may take up to 7 business days to copy the records or make them available for inspection. If the custodian believes that extenuating circumstances exist, he or she must provide you with a written statement within 3 business days of receiving the request explaining why an extension of time is necessary. CORA permits the custodian to request an extension of up to 7 days on the following grounds: 

• Your request is so vague that the custodian cannot identify all the documents requested within 3 business days;
• Your request is very broad and the agency is unusually and exceptionally busy with an impending deadline, and therefore cannot process the request within 3 business days;
• You’ve requested legislative records while the state legislature is in session; • Your request is so broad that the custodian cannot gather the records within 3 business days.

If the custodian requests more than 3 days to process your request, he or she should identify one of the grounds above in a written statement explaining why the extension is needed, and tell you when the records will be made available. No extension of any kind is permitted if your request is only for a single, specifically identified document.

If the agency doesn’t have the records you are seeking, they should tell you immediately. If the agency is not in custody of the records you are asking for, CORA requires the custodian to notify you “forthwith,” or immediately. If the custodian knows where to find the records you are seeking, the custodian should tell you where the records are located.

4.2 Timeframes for requests under CCJRA
If the records are available, they should be provided immediately. Like CORA, under CCJRA if the records are available (not in active use or storage, as described below), then the records should be open for inspection or copying immediately, at reasonable times during the business day.

If the records are not immediately available, the agency should provide them within 3 to 7 business days. CCJRA is silent as to a precise timeframe in which the custodian is required to provide a response to a request for criminal justice records. As CORA notes, however, 3 business days is “presumed” to be a “reasonable time” for a response under Colorado open records laws. If you do not receive any response to a request for criminal justice records within 3 days, you should contact the custodian and ask her or him to explain why the request is taking more than 3 days, and to specify a date when the records will be available.

If the agency doesn’t have the records you are seeking, they should tell you immediately or forward your request. If the agency is not in custody of the records you are asking for, CCJRA requires the custodian to notify you “forthwith,” or immediately. If the custodian knows where to find the records you are seeking, the custodian should tell you where the records can be obtained. In addition, if the criminal justice records you are seeking are not held with the local agency itself, but rather with a “central repository” like the Colorado Bureau of Investigation, then the agency is required to forward your request on to that other agency and notify you that the request has been forwarded.

4.3 Dealing with delay
Colorado’s open records laws protect your right to a quick response to your request. Locating records, however, can take time even for the most diligent custodian. Unless you have reason to believe the custodian is unreasonably delaying a response to your request or your need for the record is especially urgent, there is little purpose served by refusing to agree to a reasonable timeframe for production – even if it exceeds the timeframes proscribed under Colorado open records laws. The following guidelines may help you consider how to deal with a delayed response.

Count the days correctly. The timeframes in Colorado’s open records laws count only “working” or business days, which does not include holidays or weekends. Also keep in mind that if you send a request by mail, it may have taken a couple of days to reach the custodian. Likewise, if the custodian is sending you a response by mail, that will take a couple of days to get to you. Sending your request by email, fax, or by mail with a return receipt requested is the easiest way to keep track of the exact date your request was received.

Plan ahead. The best way to avoid a delay that significantly interferes with your need for public records is to plan ahead. If you know that you are going to need records by a certain date in order for a city council meeting, research paper due date, legislative committee meeting, statute of limitations, or some other deadline, submit your request far enough in advance to allow for some flexibility in case the custodian requests extra time or refuses to respond in a timely fashion. If your request is especially broad or complicated, make sure to factor in even more additional time.

If urgent circumstances arise, tailor your request accordingly. In some cases, an urgent need for public records will arise that you could not have planned for in advance. In these cases, try to narrow and focus your request to specific, identifiable documents whenever possible. As noted above, the custodian is not permitted any extension of time to respond to a request for a single, specifically identified public record governed by CORA. You may also consider contacting the custodian in advance to give them advance warning of your request, explain the need for a quick response, and develop a plan to obtain the documents you want in the quickest amount of time possible.

Consider alternatives to expedite the request. Requesting to inspect records (discussed in Section 3.2), rather than waiting for copies to be made, may be a quicker way to review the information if you have an urgent need to obtain the information. Likewise, if your request contains several different requests, you could also consider working with the custodian to prioritize records you need most urgently.

If the custodian requests an extension beyond 7 days, do not unreasonably deny the request. Under Colorado open records laws, the custodian has the right to extend the timeframe to produce records up to 7 business days if exigent circumstances exist. In some cases, the custodian may call and request an extension of time even where exigent circumstances do not exist, or ask for more than 7 days to produce the records. Unless you cannot agree to an extension because of the urgency of the request, work with the custodian to choose an alternative reasonable timeframe for production. Keep in mind that if you refuse to agree to an extension and custodian is still unable or unwilling to produce the records within the 7‐day period, your only recourse to obtain the records more quickly will be a lawsuit.

If a custodian requests an extension and you have no objection, you should ask the custodian to commit to a specific date for the production of the records, rather than granting an open‐ended extension. If the conversation occurs orally, send a written confirmation to the custodian that notes the new date by which the records will be produced.

Make a written record any time the agency refuses to respond. Once you have confirmed that your request has been received, if the custodian does not respond in any fashion within 3 business days, send an additional written request documenting the custodian’s lack of response. If the custodian does not respond after 7 business days, send another written request documenting the lack of response. If you have received no response at all after 14 business days, you should send a final written communication stating as follows: “On the following dates [DATES], I sent written requests for public records. I have confirmed that these requests were received by your agency. To date, however, I have not received any response. It has now been 14 business days since my first request was sent. I interpret your lack of response as a complete denial of my request. If I do not hear from you within 1 business day, I will conclude that my request has been denied in whole.”

After you send this statement, consider the options in Sections 5.4 & 6.0. You should follow the same steps above if, after you make initial arrangements with a custodian to extend a deadline for production, the custodian subsequently misses that new deadline.