Web Policy

Accessibility Policy

Through its Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI), the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) is promoting a high degree of Web access for people with disabilities. In coordination with organizations around the world, WAI is pursuing Web accessibility through five primary areas of work: technology, guidelines, tools, education and outreach, and research and development. To help support the WAI, the Department of Charitable Gaming is complying with W3C guidelines for Web accessibility.

Document Accessibility Notice

Hard copy documents are available for those unable to access or view the downloadable files on this web site. Simply contact the Department of Charitable Gaming by e-mail, by FAX at 804-786-1079, or by mail at:
Department of Charitable Gaming
James Monroe Building
101 N 14th Street, 17th Floor
Richmond, Virginia 23219

Disclaimer

The Department of Charitable Gaming provides links to many web sites that are not controlled, maintained, or regulated by the DCG or any organization affiliated with the DCG, and as such the DCG is not responsible for the content of those web sites. Use of information obtained from those web sites is voluntary, and reliance on that information should only be undertaken after an independent review of its accuracy. Reference at those web sites to any specific commercial product, process, or service by trade name, trademark, or otherwise does not constitute or imply endorsement, recommendation, or favoring by the Department of Charitable Gaming.

Linking Policy

This web portal may contain hypertext links to external web sites and pages containing information created and maintained by public and private organizations other than the Department of Charitable Gaming. These hypertext links may be created by the Department of Charitable Gaming if it determines that establishing the external link will be consistent with assisting or furthering the purpose of this web portal, which is to significantly and diligently promote public service to citizens and businesses by:

Expanding business and citizen access to government services and government information;

Offering an easy and convenient process for these groups to conduct transactions with State government online;

Accelerating the development and delivery of an increased volume of quality, online government services;

Improving the level of customer service from State government;

Extending electronic government services to citizens of cities and county government.

In addition, hypertext links may be created by the Department of Charitable Gaming for informational purposes where the linked external web site will provide useful and valuable information to visitors to this web portal, or where the linked external web site is required or authorized by law.

The Department of Charitable Gaming, in its sole discretion, will determine whether the external web site meets the purpose of this web portal or for the specified informational purposes. The inclusion of a hypertext link to an external web site is not intended as an endorsement of any product or service offered or referenced on the linked web site, the organizations sponsoring said web site, or any views that might be expressed or referenced in the web site.

Hypertext links to external web sites and pages may be removed or replaced at the sole discretion of the Department of Charitable Gaming, at any time without notice.

In the event you discover problems with or have concerns regarding the format, accuracy, timeliness or completeness of a linked external web site, please contact the organization responsible for the linked external web site -- the Department of Charitable Gaming does not control nor is it responsible for any linked external web sites, pages, or content.

Downloads and Plug-ins

The Department of Charitable Gaming provides content in several formats that may require plug-ins, or separate browser components, to properly view. All required plug-ins are free to use. If your browser or assistive technology can not view the content using the plug-in, please contact the Webmaster for an alternate version of the content.

Privacy Policies

The following represents practices and procedures of the Department of Charitable Gaming. The DCG reserves the right to change these practices and procedures at any time without prior notice. The following is not intended and should not be interpreted as a contract of any nature, either stated or implied.

Individuals who visit the DCG web site are important to us. Because visitors to our Web site are important, we do not capture personal information about them without their permission. We endeavor to ensure that we collect only the minimum amount of information needed to meet the purpose for which the network was created.

The DCG may be required to collect personal information, such as a user's name and address, because of legal requirements or in order to provide customer services. In doing so we are subject to the requirements for administering information systems as established in the Government Data Collection and Dissemination Practices Act, Chapter 38 of Title 2.2 of the Code of Virginia. Pages that appear after you click on a link may be controlled by a different agency or entity, whose practices are not under the DCG control.

Fostering and maintaining the public's trust is a cornerstone of the DCG. We appreciate the trust and confidence that you place in us by providing requested personal information.

Use, collection, and retention of customer information at the Department of Charitable Gaming - For each visitor, we collect information about the Internet Protocol (IP) address, type of browser used, the date and time of the visit, and the IP addresses of the locations to which the visitor linked during his or her visit to our Web site. This information is strictly used for statistical reporting purposes.

Use of "Cookies" - "Cookies" are small files either stored on a server or sent back to a visiting computer. In certain applications user information is stored as "cookies" of the type that are then sent back and stored on the user's computer. Any application or web page that uses cookies will identify itself as such. This information is handled in the same way as other user information obtained by the DCG. No user information is gathered through cookies except for that needed to run the specific application.

Restrictions on the disclosure of customer information - We do not sell or rent our subscribers’ information to any outside company or organization. We do not reveal specific information about subscribers or other personally identifiable data to unaffiliated third parties for their independent use, except if required to do so by the Virginia Freedom of Information Act or other law.

Protection of information via established security procedures - We maintain security standards and procedures regarding unauthorized access to customer information to prevent unauthorized removal or alteration of data.

Maintenance of accurate information - We have established procedures to ensure that information is as accurate and current as is practical to enable us to conduct business with you. Although we strive to do things right the first time, we also respond to requests to correct inaccurate information in a timely manner.

Limiting employee access to information - Our network manager is instructed to limit employee access to personally identifiable information to only those employees who need access in order to perform their assigned duties. The network manager is instructed to enforce with its staff their responsibilities in protecting subscriber’s information.

Privacy issues relating to the Federal Child Privacy Act - The Federal Child Privacy Act regulates Web site's collection of personal information on users under 18 years of age. We do not intentionally collect such information on anyone we know to be less than 18 years of age. If such information is inadvertently obtained, the minor's parent or legal guardian may contact the DCG for a description of the specific types of personal information collected from the child and the options available to them under law to ensure their child's safety.

Changes - The Department of Charitable Gaming reserves the right to change this privacy policy as necessary.

Freedom of Information Act (FOIA)

The Virginia Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), § 2.2-3700 et. seq. of the Code of Virginia, guarantees citizens of the Commonwealth and representatives of the media access to public records held by public bodies, public officials, and public employees.

A public record is any writing or recording -- regardless of whether it is a paper record, an electronic file, an audio or video recording, or any other format -- that is prepared or owned by, or in the possession of a public body or its officers, employees or agents in the transaction of public business. All public records are presumed to be open, and may only be withheld if a specific, statutory exemption applies.

The policy of FOIA states that the purpose of FOIA is to promote an increased awareness by all persons of governmental activities. In furthering this policy, FOIA requires that the law be interpreted liberally, in favor of access, and that any exemption allowing public records to be withheld must be interpreted narrowly.

Your Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) Rights

You have the right to request to inspect or receive copies of public records, or both.

You have the right to request that any charges for the requested records be estimated in advance.

If you believe that your Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) rights have been violated, you may file a petition in district or circuit court to compel compliance with the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA).

Making a Request for records from the Department of Charitable Gaming (the Department)

You may request records by U.S. Mail, fax, e-mail, in person, or over the phone. The Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) does not require that your request be in writing, nor do you need to specifically state that you are requesting records under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA).

From a practical perspective, it may be helpful to both you and the person receiving your request to put your request in writing. This allows you to create a record of your request. It also gives us a clear statement of what records you are requesting, so that there is no misunderstanding over a verbal request. However, we cannot refuse to respond to your FOIA request if you elect to not put it in writing.

Your request must identify the records you are seeking with "reasonable specificity." This is a common-sense standard. It does not refer to or limit the volume or number of records that you are requesting; instead, it requires that you be specific enough so that we can identify and locate the records that you are seeking.

Your request must ask for records or documents. Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) gives you a right to inspect or copy records; it does not apply to a situation where you are asking general questions about the work of the Department.

You may choose to receive electronic records in any format used by the Department in the regular course of business.

For example, if you are requesting records maintained in an Excel database, you may elect to receive those records electronically, via e-mail or on a computer disk, or to receive a printed copy of those records.

If we have questions about your request, please cooperate with staff's efforts to clarify the type of records that you are seeking, or to attempt to reach a reasonable agreement about a response to a large request. Making a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request is not an adversarial process, but we may need to discuss your request with you to ensure that we understand what records you are seeking.

To request records from the Department, you may direct your request to Betty Bowman. She can be reached by mail at the Department of Charitable Gaming, James Monroe Building, 101 N 14th St, 17th Floor, Richmond, VA 23219; by phone at (804) 786-3015; by fax at (804) 786-1079; or by e-mail at Betty.Bowman@DCG.Virginia.gov. You may also contact her with questions you have concerning requesting records from the Department. In addition, the Freedom of Information Advisory Council is available to answer any questions you may have about the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA). The Council may be contacted by e-mail at foiacouncil@leg.state.va.us, or by phone at (804) 225-3056 or [toll free] 1-866-448-4100.

The Department's Responsibilities in Responding to Your Request

The Department must respond to your request within five working days of receiving it. "Day One" is considered the day after your request is received. The five-day period does not include weekends or holidays.

The reason behind your request for public records from the Department is irrelevant, and we cannot ask you why you want the records before we respond to your request. The Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) does, however, allow the Department to ask you to provide your name and legal address.

The Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requires that the Department make one of the following responses to your request within the five-day time period:
We provide you with the records that you have requested in their entirety.

We withhold all of the records that you have requested, because all of the records are subject to a specific statutory exemption. If all of the records are being withheld, we must send you a response in writing. That writing must identify the volume and subject matter of the records being withheld, and state the specific section of the Code of Virginia that allows us to withhold the records.

We provide some of the records that you have requested, but withhold other records. We cannot withhold an entire record if only a portion of it is subject to an exemption. In that instance, we may redact the portion of the record that may be withheld, and must provide you with the remainder of the record. We must provide you with a written response stating the specific section of the Code of Virginia that allows portions of the requested records to be withheld.

If it is practically impossible for the Department to respond to your request within the five-day period, we must state this in writing, explaining the conditions that make the response impossible. This will allow us seven additional working days to respond to your request, giving us a total of 12 working days to respond to your request.

If you make a request for a very large number of records, and we feel that we cannot provide the records to you within 12 days without disrupting our other organizational responsibilities, we may petition the court for additional time to respond to your request. However, the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requires that we make a reasonable effort to reach an agreement with you concerning the production or the records before we go to court to ask for more time.

Costs

You may have to pay for the records that you request from the Department. The Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) allows us to charge for the actual costs of responding to the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests. This would include items like staff time spent searching for the requested records, copying costs, or any other costs directly related to supplying the requested records. It cannot include general overhead costs.

If we estimate that it will cost more than $200 to respond to your request, we may require you to pay a deposit before proceeding with your request.

You may request that we estimate in advance the charges for supplying the records that you have requested. This will allow you to know about any costs upfront, or give you the opportunity to modify your request in an attempt to lower the estimated costs.

Commonly used exemptions
The Code of Virginia allows any public body to withhold certain records from public disclosure. The Department commonly withholds records subject to the following exemptions:

Personnel records § 2.2-3705.1 (1) of the Code of Virginia)

Confidential records of all investigations of applications for permits and of all permittees made by or submitted to the Department § 2.2-3705.3 (1) of the Code of Virginia)

Documents and other information of a proprietary nature furnished by a supplier of charitable gaming supplies to the Department pursuant to subsection E of § 18.2-340.34 (§ 2.2-3705.6 (14) of the Code of Virginia)

Records subject to attorney-client privilege § 2.2-3705.1 (2) or attorney work product § 2.2-3705.1 (3)

Records relating to the negotiation and award of a contract, prior to a contract being awarded (§ 2.2-3705.1 (12))

Copyright

© 2007 Virginia Department of Charitable Gaming - All Rights Reserved. Except for legitimate excerpts customary in review or scholarly publications that fully cite the source material, no part of this Web site may be copied or reproduced by any means, electronic or mechanical, or any other means yet to be developed, without the express written permission of the Virginia Department of Corrections.

Requests
Requests to download or to reproduce and/or republish any materials on this website, should be addressed to: