.... and I am not an exception. So I'm here to ask, would anyone be kind enough to share a copy of Washington Form 284D, Notice of mining Location? I found a spot I'm thinking about claiming
Only website I've been able to find it on wants you to pay for them.
Thank you in advance!
In The State of Washington we have the Public Records Act, which is codified at chapter 42.56 RCW. Per the Act, we have the right to access all public records, unless there is an exemption IN THE ACT (claiming a law other than in the Act will not suffice). If an agency claims an exemption, they must cite the exemption, in writing, and explain how it applies.
There would be no exemption for forms an agency requires you to submit. That would fall to a gross absurdity and would not hold up in any court. That would even apply to forms that had been filled out, since case law states agencies can black out sensitive information, then release the document.
Armed with this knowledge, and if you know which agency you have to file with, you can request a copy of the form from the agency by email. If the agency does not have a standard form, you can request a couple, of their choosing, that have already been submitted.
Auditors can be, to be nice, the bain of those seeking public records. Where a document may only cost fifteen cents at another agency, auditors get away with charging, say, twenty bucks for some records. FORTUNATELY, they cannot charge you for reviewing records, or for photographing them.
Many, if not most agencies have an on-line presence and establish web pages relative to the Public Records Act. It may be you can access a copy of the record by going to the Net pages of the agency you'd file with.
