The Colorado Office of Economic Development and International Trade (OEDIT) is committed to transparency and open government. The following policy specifies how the Colorado Open Records Act (“CORA”) (§ 24-72-201 to 206, C.R.S.) will be applied to help ensure OEDIT complies in all respects with CORA and meets all constitutional and statutory duties to the people of Colorado in an orderly and expeditious manner. This policy is not intended to be duplicative of CORA or supersede state law.

This policy applies to OEDIT only. This policy applies solely to records requests where OEDIT is the custodian of records pursuant to CORA. Other state agencies may have different CORA policies.

Submitting a CORA Request and Timelines

OEDIT will only accept records requests made in writing via e-mail sent to gov_oeditrequest@state.co.us. Records requests or requesters that cite the federal Freedom of Information Act will be treated as though they were made pursuant to the Colorado Open Records Act.

When responding to a records request, OEDIT shall make every effort to respond within three working days as required by § 24-72-203(3)(b), C.R.S. OEDIT can issue up to a seven-working-day extension if it finds extenuating circumstances exist, as described in § 24-72-203(3)(b), C.R.S. The three working-day response time begins the first working day following receipt of the request. A request received after 12 p.m. or any day OEDIT is officially closed will be considered received as of the following working day.

OEDIT will pause the statutory timeline for responding to a CORA request when waiting for the requester to provide clarification, approve a cost estimate for requests that include compliance costs, or provide payment. A request will be considered closed on the 10th business day after receiving no communication from the requester.

Office Procedure for Handling Records Requests

The Senior Communications Manager will respond to and manage all CORA requests; in the case that the Senior Communications Manager is out of office, the Chief Marketing Officer or other appointed designee will respond to and manage CORA requests.

All records requests made of OEDIT shall be immediately provided to the Senior Communications Manager. All OEDIT staff possessing records responsive to specific requests for information must inform the Senior Communications Manager as soon as possible and provide them promptly when requested. 

No employee of OEDIT may modify, redact or omit any records they are required to provide in response to an open records request pursuant to this policy, unless instructed to do so by the Senior Communications Manager and legal counsel. 

OEDIT staff should never assume a document is exempt from CORA. The Senior Communications Manager or his/her/their appointed designee will consult with OEDIT executive staff and the Attorney General’s Office before making a final determination. The Senior Communications Manager, or his or her designee handling the request, will coordinate these legal consultations on behalf of OEDIT staff. Decisions about the applicability of CORA to particular writings will be made by the Senior Communications Manager and OEDIT executive staff in consultation with legal counsel.

Provision of Responsive Documents

OEDIT will transmit digital records digitally, pursuant to C.R.S. 24.72.203(3.5)(a)(III), unless otherwise requested by the requester. When responsive records cannot be easily or cost-effectively provided electronically to a requester, OEDIT will work with the requester to schedule a time to inspect the records in person. OEDIT is open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. OEDIT may grant exceptions where OEDIT, requesters or the records produced require special accommodations.

Fees for Document Retrieval, Review, Copies and Release of Records

When a substantial request is made requiring the use of more than one hour of staff time to research, retrieve, review, locate, compile or produce records, OEDIT will charge the requester for all copying expenses and reasonable, actual costs associated with cumulative staff time in accordance with § 24-72-205(5)(a), C.R.S. and applicable law.

When researching, retrieving, reviewing, locating, compiling and producing records consumes more than one hour of staff time, work by multiple staff members will be aggregated and OEDIT will charge $33.58 per hour for all staff time after the first hour, including the use of third-party contractors. OEDIT will charge $0.25 per page for all documents produced in a paper format in response to a CORA request. Any costs charged to a requester shall not exceed the actual cost of producing the records, in accordance with § 24-72-205(5)(a), C.R.S., and applicable law.

For requests where more than one hour of staff time will be consumed, OEDIT will provide a requester with advance notice and an estimate of compliance costs. For requests that include compliance costs, OEDIT will begin work only after receiving approval for a cost estimate. The statutory timeline will be paused when waiting for approval of a cost estimate. Once records have been located, compiled and reviewed, such costs must be paid in full before the production of records unless alternative arrangements have been made. The statutory timeline will be paused when waiting for receipt of payment.

The Format of Records Produced

The Colorado Open Records Act guarantees that all public records must be open for inspection by any person at reasonable times, except as provided in CORA or as otherwise specifically provided by law (§ 24-72-201, C.R.S.). CORA does not guarantee access to public records in a specific format. When the production or review of records in a specific format would interfere with the regular discharge of duties of OEDIT employees (§ 24-72-203(1)(a), C.R.S.) or levy an undue burden upon OEDIT, the legal counsel will determine the appropriate format for the records to be produced. 
OEDIT may require that members of the public or press only be allowed to review copies of documents when the custodian of records determines that allowing access to originals could interfere with the regular discharge of duties of OEDIT or its staff or production of original records could jeopardize the condition of the records.

Last Updated: January 4, 2024