TRENTON, N.J. (Legal Newsline) – A three-judge panel for the Superior Court of New Jersey has ruled that people residing outside of the state can request public records.
In a May 16 ruling, Appellate Division Judge Susan Reisner said Harry Scheeler of North Carolina is entitled to Cape May City records after a Superior Court judge ruled two years ago he wasn’t because he lived in another state. Judges Richard Hoffman and Jessica Mayer joined in the ruling.
The appellate court concluded that the right to request records under the New Jersey Open Public Records Act (OPRA) isn’t limited to “citizens” of New Jersey “because OPRA is to be construed broadly to achieve the Legislature’s over-arching goal of making public records freely available.”
Reisner said in her opinion that the “Legislature's general intent was to make New Jersey government records open to the public, rather than expressing an intent to limit access to only New Jersey residents or domiciliaries."
The opinion covers three consolidated cases - two were brought by Scheeler and one by the Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights Under Law. Scheeler was seeking access to records for Atlantic and Cape May counties and the committee sought documents relating to Atlantic City School enrollment and disciplinary data.
The appeals court said the plaintiffs have standing.
Reisner noted in her opinion that the “Legislature arguably created an ambiguity in N.J.S.A. 47:1A-1” when using the term “citizens of this State.”
“Bearing in mind the context in which the phrase ‘citizens of this State’ is used, the terms the Legislature used in the rest of OPRA, and considering the statute’s history and purpose, we cannot conclude that the Legislature intended to preclude out-of-state residents from making OPRA requests,” she wrote.