What RCW 42.56 requires
Washington's Public Records Act requires agencies to respond to records requests within 5 business days: either by producing the records, providing an estimate of when they will be ready, or denying the request with a legal basis.
DCYF routinely misses this deadline.
What happens when they miss it
Each day of delay after the deadline is a separate violation. Advocates who track these violations carefully and document them build the strongest foundation for formal complaints and litigation.
How GCWAI automates enforcement
When you submit a PRR through GCWAI, the system:
- Timestamps the submission and calculates the 5-business-day response window
- Sends an alert on day 4 if no response has been logged
- Flags the violation automatically on day 6
- Generates a formatted complaint for the Attorney General's office or court filing
Manual tracking in a spreadsheet misses violations. GCWAI does not.