Skip to content
Providence Housing Authority

Our Access to Public Records Act (APRA) Policy

The Providence Housing Authority (“PHA”) provides access to public records upon request and in compliance with the Access to Public Records Act (“APRA”), R.I. Gen. Laws §§ 38-2-1 et seq.
  1. Public Records Officer
    The PHA’s designated Public Records Officer is Jacqueline Martinez, who may be contacted at:
  2. Requesting Public Records
    To request access to public records, please submit your written request:
    • If by email, to: records@provhousing.org
    • If by mail or Dropbox, to:
      Providence Housing Authority – Administrative Offices
      100 Broad Street
      Providence, RI 02903

    When requesting records, we encourage you to utilize the PHA’s Public Records Request Form, but use of the form is not required. If you choose not to use the form, please be sure that your request specifies the records you are requesting, whether you seek in-person access or copies of the records, and whether you prefer electronic or hard copies of records. If you are requesting copies of records, please specify whether you would like to pick them up in person or, alternatively, where you would like the PHA to send the copies.

    You do not need to explain the reason(s) for your request, nor do you need to provide personally identifiable information about yourself.

    If the PHA cannot determine the precise records sought through your request, the PHA will contact you for clarification of your request. The PHA’s response to your request may be delayed pending clarification.

  3. Response

    Records we can release can either be mailed, faxed, or emailed to you, or you may pick them up on a designated date.

    If the records requested are public (as defined in RIGL § 38-2-2), we will generally provide access to them within ten (10) business days. Please note, however, that there may be circumstances in which the PHA requires additional time.

    If the PHA requires more than ten (10) business days to respond to your request, we will notify you of the need for additional time, the reason such additional time is needed, and the amount of time needed, which may be up to an additional twenty (20) business days.

    Please note that the APRA does not require the PHA to respond to a request for information that does not constitute a “public record” under APRA, nor does it require the PHA to reorganize, consolidate, or compile data not maintained by the PHA in the form requested. Due to the administrative burden that would be associated with responding to these types of requests, as a matter of policy, the PHA will generally decline such requests.

  4. Costs

    The PHA charges fifteen cents ($0.15) per page for paper copies of public records. If the PHA anticipates that the time required to respond to your request will exceed one (1) hour, the PHA may also charge a search and retrieval fee of fifteen dollars ($15.00) per hour for each hour after the first hour. The PHA will notify you of the anticipated fee before beginning the search and retrieval process, along with options for payment. Please note that the PHA’s deadline to provide access to such records will be tolled pending receipt of payment.

    If the actual search and retrieval costs are less than the PHA’s estimate, we will refund you the balance. If the actual costs exceed the estimate, the PHA reserves the right to charge the unpaid difference as a condition of providing access to the records.

  5. Public Records

    Please note that the PHA is permitted, and in some cases required, to withhold certain records from public disclosure. Examples of records that may not be publicly releasable include: attorney-client privileged communications, personnel records, medical records, personal individually identifiable records that would constitute an unwarranted invasion of personal privacy if released, closed-session meeting minutes that have been sealed by a vote of the Board of Commissioners, records regarding labor negotiations and collective bargaining strategy, investigatory records, preliminary drafts, notes, work products, and tax returns, among many others. For a complete list of records that are “non-public” under the APRA, please see R.I. Gen. Laws § 38-2-2(4).

  6. Redaction

    Although a document may constitute a public record, there may be some information contained in the document that may be non-public and, therefore, exempt from disclosure. In the event a document contains some information that is public, and other information that is non-public, the PHA will redact the non-public information from the document. The PHA will notify you if it withholds a record in its entirety on the basis that it does not contain any reasonably segregable information that is releasable.

  7. Denial of Access

    If the PHA denies your APRA request in whole or in part, then, within ten (10) business days, it shall provide to you its specific reasons for the denial and specify the procedures for you to appeal the denial. To appeal a denial, please contact Melissa Sanzaro, Executive Director, Providence Housing Authority, 100 Broad Street, Providence, RI 02903. A final determination of the appeal shall be made within ten (10) business days after you submit your request to appeal the denial.