Chapter §6.5 Developing a Reasonable Time Estimate

• Jurisdiction: Washington

§6.5 DEVELOPING A REASONABLE TIME ESTIMATE

The agency must provide its initial response within five days. When the agency cannot complete its response within that five-day period and needs no clarification, the agency can take a "reasonable" amount of time to complete the request, but must provide this "reasonable" time estimate to the requestor.

(1) Preliminary steps

The agency must provide its initial response within five business days. When the agency cannot provide a complete response within five days and does not need clarification, the agency must provide a reasonable time estimate. That estimate, however, only needs to be for the first installment, as opposed to an estimated date for the completion of the entire request. Hikel v. City of Lynnwood, 197 Wn.App. 366, 375, 389 P.3d 677 (2016); Hobbs v. State, 183 Wn.App. 925, 936, 943, 335 P.3d 1004 (2014). Nevertheless, an agency may still want to include an estimated completion date in an effort to supply the requestor with additional information. RCW 42.56.100.

Comment: With some larger requests, the completion date may be fairly speculative at an early stage, in which case an exact completion date is not required. It will often be a best practice, however, to include some broad time range for completing the request. To avoid setting unrealistic expectations, the agency will often want to advise the requestor of the speculative nature of the estimate. The agency may also want to let the requestor know when it expects to be able to provide a firmer estimate.

Practice Tip: The PRA only requires an "estimate," and the agency may revise and extend the estimate, as long as the extension is "reasonable." Andrews v. Wash. State Patrol, 183 Wn.App. 644, 652, 334 P.3d 94 (2014) ("the legislature did not include a provision requiring an agency to disclose records within its initial estimated response date."). Agencies should strive to provide any revised time estimate before the initial estimate expires, although unlike the initial five-day deadline, non- compliance with reasonable time estimates may not amount to an independent PRA violation. Id. at 653 (the PRA "does not envision a mechanically strict finding of a PRA violation whenever timelines are missed."). In some cases, it may also make sense to discuss the extension with the requestor, who may agree to it.

Practice Tip: For requestors. If a requestor needs a particular record by a particular date, the requestor should make a separate request for just that record. If the requestor has already made other requests, the requestor should ask the agency to prioritize the new request to ensure the most prompt response.

In Zink v. City of Mesa {Zink II), 162 Wn.App. 688, 715-16,256 P.3d 384 (2011), review denied, 173 Wn.2d 1010 (2012), the court held that the city did not violate the PRA when it waited until after a council meeting to provide an agenda in response to a PRA request because the agenda was requested along with numerous other records at the same time, and the PRA does not require an agency to respond to requests in any particular order. Factors to consider when developing the estimate are described below. Any estimate may be revised but may be subject to court challenge. Because a reasonable time estimate must be provided to the requestor within five business days, agency staff has to develop, very quickly, a basic understanding of what is being requested and the effort that will be required to comply.

Practice Tip: Agencies should not use a "form" letter with a predetermined reasonable time estimate. A reasonable time estimate requires a unique determination, based on the particulars of a specific request. If challenged, the agency will have the burden of proving its estimate was reasonable based on a particular request, which will be difficult if a predetermined estimate is used. RCW 42.56.550(2) (setting burden of proof); WAC 44-14-04003(6) (cautioning against the use of predetermined estimates).

Practice Tip: The PRA only requires an "estimate," and the agency may revise and extend the estimate, as long as

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