APRA

The Office of the Lieutenant Governor has established the following procedures regarding inspection and copying of public records under R.I. General Laws § 38-2-1 et seq., commonly known as the Access to Public Records Act or APRA.

• A request can be made in person between the hours of 8:30 AM and 4:30 PM, or by letter or email by using the Public Records Request Form. If you do not provide any identifying or contact information you must contact the Public Records Officer to obtain a request number so that we may respond to your request.
• The Access to Public Records Act allows ten (10) business days within which to respond to a public records request. This time period can be extended to twenty (20) business days if the voluminous nature of the request, the number of request for records pending, or the difficulty in searching for and retrieving or copying the requested records is such that additional time is necessary.
• Any denial of the right to inspect or copy records, in whole or in part, will be made to you in writing, and will include the reason(s) for the denial and the procedures for appealing the denial.
• The cost per copied page is fifteen cents ($0.15). The hourly cost for a search and/or retrieval is fifteen dollars ($15.00) per hour. There is no charge for the first hour of a search and/or retrieval.
• The text of the Access to Public Records Act is available online.

Public Records Officer

State House, Room 116

Providence, RI 02903