CalREDIE database document

Thank you for contacting the California Department of Public Health (CDPH) to obtain public records.
Your Public Records Act (PRA) request dated April 20, 2020, is being processed.  Reference Number P008676-042020 has been assigned for tracking purposes.  Please refer to this reference number for use when accessing the CDPH Public Records Center Portal to monitor the progress of your request.
CDPH strives to answer all requests for public records in as timely a manner as possible.  Under California law, CDPH must respond to your inquiry no later than ten calendar days from receipt of the request to notify you whether records will be disclosed.   Note that some records are exempted from disclosure.  If the requested records are exempt, we will inform you in writing as to why.
The Public Records Act (see Govt. Code §6250 et. seq.) provides that CDPH may extend the response period for up to 14 calendar days should it be necessary to search for records located at off-site facilities or if the request involves a voluminous amount of records.  We will notify you within 10 days of receipt of your request if a 14-day extension is necessary.  If fees are involved, CDPH will need to collect the fees before releasing the records.  However, there is typically no fee for records released electronically through the Public Records Center Portal.
The 10- and 14-day response periods are to allow CDPH time to determine how long it will take to disclose the requested records.  Depending on the number of records requested or other factors, a response may take longer.  CDPH will do its best to provide documents on a rolling basis as they become available and to keep you informed as to the timing and type of records to be released.

California Department of Public Health

April 30, 2020 RE: Public Records Act Request, Reference Number P008676 Dear Ben Welsh, On April 20, 2020, the Department of Public Health (CDPH) received your request for the following records under the Public Records Act: A copy of all documentation, database dictionaries and other information that describes the design and operations of the CalREDIE database. CDPH is in the process of gathering and reviewing the requested records.  As you are aware, California is currently in a declared state of emergency. CDPH staff are working on COVID-19 seven days a week and CDPH cannot pull staff from these vital activities. Your request will take extra time to fulfill because of this emergency and because of the need to:
To search for and collect the requested records from field facilities or other establishments separate from the office processing the request.
To search for, collect, and appropriately examine a voluminous amount of separate and distinct records demanded in a single request.
To consult with another agency having substantial interest in the request or among two or more components of the agency having substantial subject matter interest.
In the case of electronic documents, to compile the public records through programming language or a computer program, or to construct a computer report to extract the public records. Consequently, CDPH is exercising its authority under Government Code section 6253(c), to extend the time to reply to a Public Records Act request.  By 5/14/2020, CDPH will notify you as to its determination of whether records will be disclosed and, if not, the basis for the determination.  CDPH will do its best to provide documents on a rolling basis as they become available and to keep you informed as to the timing and type of records to be released. We thank you for your patience and look forward to providing you the documents as quickly as possible during this emergency. Thank you, Matt Conens

May 14, 2020 RE: Public Records Act Request, Reference Number P008676 Dear Ben Welsh, The California Department of Public Health (CDPH) received your Public Records Act request on 4/20/2020 for: A copy of all documentation, database dictionaries and other information that describes the design and operations of the CalREDIE database. The CalREDIE data dictionary can be found on our website at https://www.cdph.ca.gov/Programs/CID/DCDC/CDPH%20Document%20Library/CalREDIE-Data-Dictionary-FALL-2018.pdf . General information about CalREDIE  can be found at: https://www.cdph.ca.gov/Programs/CID/DCDC/Pages/CalREDIE.aspx . Under Government Code 6254.19, the Public Records Act does not require disclosure of records that would reveal vulnerabilities to, or otherwise increase the potential for an attack on, an information technology system of a public agency. The California Reportable Disease Information Exchange (CalREDIE) is a secure system that the California Department of Public Health has implemented for electronic disease reporting and surveillance. CDPH will not provide records relating to the design and operations of CalREDIE pursuant to Government Code 6254.19. This concludes the CDPH response to your request. Thank you, Matt Conens