North Dakota Office of Attorney General
08/31/2026 | Press release | Distributed by Public on 08/31/2026 14:28
The North Dakota Attorney General issued a summary opinion to Morton County
31 Aug The North Dakota Attorney General issued a summary opinion to Morton County
August 31, 2026
Media Contact: Suzie Weigel, 701.328.2210
SUMMARY OPINION
Karen Jordan requested an opinion from this office under N.D.C.C. § 44-04-21.1 asking whether Morton County failed to respond to an open records request in violation of N.D.C.C. § 44-04-18.
On September 20, 2023, Karen Jordan emailed the Morton County Treasurer (Treasurer) requesting copies of property tax notices. The email was not initially received because it was filtered into a junk folder. Ms. Jordan sent a follow-up email at 10:36 p.m. on October 11, 2023, and the Treasurer provided the requested records "as soon as [ she received]" the follow-up email on October 16, 2023.
When a public entity receives a request for records, it must, within a reasonable time period, either provide the records or explain why the records are not being provided. Here, the Treasurer did not receive the initial request due to an unintended junk email filter and provided the requested records within a reasonable time after receiving the follow-up request. Accordingly, Morton County did not violate the open records law.
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