(a) The general manager of the fund designates the fund's director of administrative services, whose business address is at the State University Plaza, P.O. Box 1946, Albany, NY 12201, as records access officer. Such records access officer shall have the duty of coordinating the fund's response to public requests for access to records; provided, however, that the public shall not be denied access to records through officers and employees of the fund who have in the past been authorized to make records or information available to the public.

(b) Any person wishing to inspect and/or obtain a copy of any record of the fund, other than a payroll record, may make application to said records access officer. Such application shall be made either orally or in writing; provided, however, that the records access officer may require any such person to confirm his request in writing, except that no such written request shall be required for records that have been customarily available from the fund without a written request therefor.

(c) The written application form shall be prescribed by the records access officer. Blank forms may be obtained from the records access officer either personally on any workday at the fund's office, or by mail addressed to him. Completed forms may be submitted to the records access officer either personally at the fund's office on any workday, or by mail addressed to him at such office.

(e) The records access officer shall respond promptly to a request for records and, except under extraordinary circumstances, his response shall be made no more than five workdays after receipt of the request for inspection; provided, however, if for any reason more than five workdays are required to produce the records requested, the records access officer shall acknowledge receipt of the request within five workdays after the request is received and advise the applicant with a brief explanation of the reason for delay and an estimate of the date production or denial of the records will be forthcoming. If access to records is neither granted nor denied within 10 workdays after the date of acknowledgment of receipt of a request for records, the request may be construed as a denial of access that may be appealed.

(f) Upon request therefor, the records access officer shall certify that a transcript of a record of the fund is a true copy thereof, or, as the case may be, that he does not have possession of the records requested or that the same cannot be found after diligent search.