OPRA | How to Request Government Records?

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align="left"><a class="leftnavPrimaryOff" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20141022032803/http://www.nj.gov/grc/public/citizens/">Public Information</a></td></tr><tr><td> </td></tr><tr><td colspan="2" width="0" valign="top" align="left"><a class="leftnavPrimaryOff" href="/web/20141022032803/http://www.nj.gov/opra/eo26/">EO26 Details</a></td></tr><tr><td> </td></tr></table>  </td> <td align="left" valign="top"><p style="padding:0px; margin:0px;"><a name="top"></a></p> <h1>How to Request Government Records?</h1> <div class="mainText"><p><table cellspacing="0" cellpadding="2" width="100%" border="0"> <tbody> <tr> <td valign="top" align="left"> <p>The State of New Jersey welcomes you to OPRA Central, the state's official OPRA website. It is designed to provide information about public records and to help you access them. Below you will find a brief explanation on how to use OPRA Central to search for public records maintained by state agencies.</p> <p><strong>The</strong> <b>most important thing about getting the access to the correct public record is to know which state agency holds the records you are seeking.</b> An OPRA records request is not considered complete unless it is submitted to the custodian who is in charge of the record.</p> <p>If you don't know the specific organization that has the information you are seeking, the following are some suggestions to help. Please review all of them to determine the ones that can help you best. Once you find it, you can <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20141022032803/https://www.state.nj.us/dca/opra/startopra.html">submit a request for the information</a>.</p> <p>If you know the department or agency that has them, click the link for <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20141022032803/http://www.nj.gov/opra/state_agency_web_index.htm">the alphabetical listing of all state agencies</a> and then choose the one you want and click the link. It will take you to their home page or a special page they created for OPRA matters. Look for the "OPRA" logo to link directly to their public records information. By reviewing the web site and OPRA page, you can determine if the records you seek are already available online or if you must submit a request for them.</p> <p>Another option is to review the Statewide <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20141022032803/http://www.state.nj.us/faqs/">Frequently Asked Questions</a> site. This location is organized by subject and can help you determine the organization that has the information you seek.</p> <p>If you are new to the State's web site, you might want to take a few minutes to navigate the <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20141022032803/http://www.state.nj.us/">State's home page.</a> It includes a number of listings that can help you find information. Watch for the OPRA logo and click it to find information on information agencies have on their web sites.</p> <p>Another way to find information is to review our <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20141022032803/http://www.nj.gov/opra/state_activity.html">alphabetical listing of topics of interest and services offered by State Agencies</a>. These links will also bring you to an Agency web page where you can determine if the records you seek are available online or if you must request them from the agency directly.</p> <p>Here are the links you will need:</p> </td> </tr> </tbody> </table> <table cellspacing="0" cellpadding="2" border="0"> <tbody> <tr> <td width="1%"> <p><img height="1" src="https://web.archive.org/web/20141022032803im_/http://www.nj.gov/opra/include_images/transparent.gif" width="1"></p> </td> <td width="99%"> <p><img height="1" src="https://web.archive.org/web/20141022032803im_/http://www.nj.gov/opra/include_images/transparent.gif" width="1"></p> </td> </tr> <tr> <td colspan="2"> <p><br> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20141022032803/http://www.nj.gov/opra/state_agency_web_index.html">Alphabetical Listing Of All State Agencies</a></p> </td> </tr> <tr> <td colspan="2"> <p>Click the above link to get to an alphabetical listing of State Agencies.</p> </td> </tr> <tr> <td colspan="2"> <p><br> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20141022032803/http://www.nj.gov/opra/state_activity.html">Agency Web Information Index</a></p> </td> </tr> <tr> <td colspan="2"> <p>Click the above link to get to an alphabetical listing of topics of interest and services offered by State Agencies.</p> </td> </tr> <tr> <td colspan="2"> <p><br> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20141022032803/http://www.state.nj.us/faqs/">State Frequently Asked Questions</a></p> </td> </tr> <tr> <td colspan="2"> <p>Click here to review our FAQ of information about State government activities.</p> </td> </tr> <tr> <td colspan="2"> <p><br> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20141022032803/http://www.state.nj.us/">State's Home Page</a></p> </td> </tr> <tr> <td colspan="2"> <p>Click this link to get to the State's home page and use it's tools to find information.</p> </td> </tr> <tr> <td colspan="2"> <p><br> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20141022032803/https://www.state.nj.us/dca/opra/startopra.html" target="new">Submit a request for a record</a></p> </td> </tr> <tr> <td colspan="2"> <p>Click here to link to the OPRA Central Records Request Form.</p> </td> </tr> <tr> <td colspan="2"> <p><br> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20141022032803/http://www.nj.gov/opra/highered.html">Education Links</a></p> </td> </tr> <tr> <td colspan="2"> <p>Click here to link to a page of Links to Public Research Universities, State Colleges and Universities, Community Colleges, and K-12 Schools.</p> </td> </tr> </tbody> </table> </p></div> <div class="mainText"><p></p></div> </td> </tr> </table> </td> </tr> <tr> <td>  <table width="700" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" border="0"> <tbody> <tr> <td> <img width="1" height="10" alt=" " src="/web/20141022032803im_/http://www.nj.gov/opra/include_images/transparent.gif"/> </td> </tr> <tr> <td width="15"> <img width="8" src="/web/20141022032803im_/http://www.nj.gov/opra/include_images/transparent.gif"/> </td> <td width="698"> <a class="bottomText" href="/web/20141022032803/http://www.nj.gov/nj/privacy.html">privacy notice</a> | <a class="bottomText" href="/web/20141022032803/http://www.nj.gov/nj/legal.html">legal statement</a> </td> </tr> <tr> <td> <img width="1" height="1" alt=" " src="/web/20141022032803im_/http://www.nj.gov/opra/include_images/transparent.gif"/> </td> <td> <img width="1" height="1" alt=" " src="/web/20141022032803im_/http://www.nj.gov/opra/include_images/transparent.gif"/> </td> </tr> </tbody> </table>  </td> </tr> <tr> <td>  <font face="Times New Roman" size="1">Updated: 01/10/2011</font>  </td> </tr> </table> </body> </html>

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OPRA | How to Request Government Records?