Municipal Clerk’s Office

Elizabeth Brandsness, RMC

Municipal Clerk/Deputy Administrator

973-835-0143 ext. 238

clerk@pomptonlakes-nj.gov

OPRA

The Open Public Records Act (OPRA) is a State statute that replaced the “Right to Know Law” which governs the public’s access to government records in New Jersey.  OPRA was enacted to give the public greater access to records maintained by public agencies in New Jersey by balancing the public’s interest in government records, respect for personal privacy, and the efficient process of government. The law is compiled in the statutes as N.J.S.A. 47:1A-1 et seq.

 Historically, when responding to certain OPRA requests, a Borough employee’s home address and phone number may have been disclosed. 

Daniel’s Law

Daniel’s Law was passed as an amendment to the OPRA with the intent of protecting certain people in public service by allowing for a mechanism whereby certain covered persons could request that their home address and phone number not be disclosed. Public employees covered by Daniel’s Law include former, active and retired judicial officers, prosecutors, and members of law enforcement and their immediate family member’s residing in the same household (“Covered Persons”).

The Office of Information Privacy (OIP) was created to facilitate the State’s implementation of Daniel’s Law. The  OIP’s online portal  was launched on July 12, 2022. Any Covered Person who seeks to have this personal information redacted from a public record must apply to the OIP. Once an employees request has been approved by the OIP, the Township will then redact any information covered by Daniel’s Law when responding to an OPRA request. 

The DCA and OIP suggest any interested Covered Person   establish an account on the MY New Jersey website if they do not already have one. They will use their MY NJ Log in to access the Portal.  While most active Covered Persons already have such accounts, retired or formerly active Covered Persons may not.  Taking this step now will allow Covered Persons to submit their requests. The OIP can be reached at nj.gov/dca/oip or by email at OIP@dca.nj.gov