Requesting information of public interest

Any person, natural or legal, Romanian or foreign, may request information of public interest from the school, that is, information concerning the school’s activity or resulting from its activity (Articles 2 and 6 of Law no. 544/2001 on free access to information of public interest). You do not have to explain why you need the information.

Before making a request, check the list of information published proactively: the information may already be on the website.

01How to submit a request

You can request information:

• verbally, at the school office, during opening hours (Monday – Friday, 8:00 – 16:00). If possible, you will receive the information on the spot; if not, you will be asked to submit a written request;
• in writing, at the school’s registered office: Str. Gării nr. 138, sat Reteag, com. Petru Rareș, jud. Bistrița-Năsăud, postcode 427220, directly at the school office or by post;
• by email, to scoalaionpopreteganul@yahoo.com. A request sent by email cannot be rejected because it does not bear a handwritten signature (Article 15 of the rules approved by Government Decision (HG) no. 123/2002).

Every request is registered. After registration, the school informs you of the registration number and date, directly or by email. For requests sent by post, the number is provided on request.

Requests are addressed to the school office, which registers them and forwards them to the person responsible for dealing with them.

02What the request must contain

In accordance with Article 6(3) of the Law, the written request contains:

• the name of the school: Școala Gimnazială „Ion Pop Reteganul” Reteag;
• the information you are requesting, described as specifically as possible so that it can be identified;
• your surname and first name and your signature (the signature is optional for requests sent by email);
• the postal address or email address at which you wish to receive the reply.

You may also specify the form in which you would like the reply: by email, by email in an editable format or on paper. Use of the model below is optional; a written request in another form cannot be refused for that reason.

03Model request

The model below is the standard form in Annex no. 4 to the methodological rules approved by Government Decision no. 123/2002, as subsequently amended. You can copy it into an email or a document.

To: Școala Gimnazială „Ion Pop Reteganul” Reteag

Registered office: Str. Gării nr. 138, sat Reteag, com. Petru Rareș, jud. Bistrița-Năsăud

Date: ……….

Dear Sir/Madam,

I hereby submit a request under Law no. 544/2001 on free access to information of public interest, as subsequently amended and supplemented. I wish to receive a copy of the following documents (please list the documents or information requested as specifically as possible): ……….

I wish the requested information to be provided to me:

• by email, at the address ……….
• by email in an editable format, at the address ……….
• on paper, at the address ……….

I am willing to pay the costs of copying the requested documents (if copies in written form are requested).

Thank you for your attention,

Signature of the applicant (optional): ……….

Surname and first name of the applicant: ……….

Address at which the reply is requested / email: ……….

Occupation (optional): ……….

Telephone (optional): ……….

04Time limits for replies

Time limits run from the date on which the request is registered (Article 7 of Law no. 544/2001 and Articles 16 and 21 of the implementing rules).

The day of registration and the day on which the time limit expires are not counted. If the last day of the time limit is a non-working day, the time limit is extended to the first working day.

05Costs

Access to information of public interest is free of charge. If you request paper copies, you pay only the cost of copying, set by decision of the head teacher, of at most 0.05% of the national minimum wage per page (Article 9 of the Law and Article 18 of the implementing rules).

The cost of copies is communicated on request, in accordance with the law.

06If your request is refused

If you are refused the information, either explicitly or through the absence of a reply within the time limit, you have two remedies, which you may use one after the other:

1. An administrative complaint, addressed to the head teacher of the school, within 30 days of the date on which you learned of the refusal (Article 21 of the Law and Articles 32–34 of the implementing rules). The complaint may also be sent by email. You will receive a reasoned reply within 15 days of registration. If the complaint is well founded, the reply also includes the information originally requested.
2. A complaint to the court, to the administrative litigation section of the tribunal in whose jurisdiction you are domiciled or in whose jurisdiction the school’s registered office is located (Tribunalul Bistrița-Năsăud, the Bistrița-Năsăud Tribunal), within 30 days of the expiry of the time limit for a reply (Article 22 of the Law). The complaint is heard as a matter of urgency and is exempt from stamp duty.

07Model administrative complaint

The model below combines the standard forms in Annexes no. 5 (negative reply) and no. 6 (no reply within the time limit) to the implementing rules. Keep the option that fits your situation.

To: Școala Gimnazială „Ion Pop Reteganul” Reteag, for the attention of the head teacher

Registered office: Str. Gării nr. 138, sat Reteag, com. Petru Rareș, jud. Bistrița-Năsăud

Date: ……….

Dear Sir/Madam,

I hereby submit an administrative complaint under Law no. 544/2001 on free access to information of public interest, as subsequently amended and supplemented, since in respect of request no. ………. of ……….

• option 1: I received a negative reply, on ………., from ………. (name of the official);
• option 2: I did not receive the requested information within the legal time limit.

The documents of public interest requested were the following: ……….

The requested documents fall within the category of information of public interest for the following reasons: ……….

I hereby request that the decision to refuse to communicate, or not to transmit within the legal time limit, the information of public interest requested in writing or in electronic format be reconsidered, as I consider that my right to information under the law has been infringed.

Thank you for your attention,

Signature of the applicant: ……….

Name and address of the applicant: ……….

Telephone: ……….

08Legal basis

• Law no. 544/2001 on free access to information of public interest, as subsequently amended and supplemented;
• Government Decision no. 123/2002 approving the Methodological Rules for the application of Law no. 544/2001, as amended by Government Decision no. 478/2016 and Government Decision no. 830/2022.