Planning board to trial password-protected access for application documents after scam invoices

The Township of Washington Planning Board agreed to a trial of password-protected access to online planning application pages after staff reported multiple incidents where public application materials were used to send scam invoices to applicants.

Heather Henry, a representative from the town’s IT department, demonstrated an example that requires credentials to view the 'current applications' page and explained that each application is created as a separate web page that can be scoped so an applicant or designated users have access only to their own documents. Henry said she has been creating separate pages for applications since the COVID-era change in practice and that she can issue and revoke credentials for specific users.

Board members raised concerns about how to vet requestors and whether credentials could be misused. The chair said the reported problem involved people mining public information and sending invoices to applicants; the clerk noted "maybe 3 or 4" incidents since November. Attorney Rula Matina advised that OPRA (Open Public Records Act) governs public-record rights but that access rules for the planning-board web pages could be established by the board because the online access was implemented during COVID.

Members discussed options including issuing credentials to board members, giving applicants single-application access, and a trial in which the town temporarily disables public online access to see whether demand requires a different approach. The board agreed that planning-board members would receive credentials and that residents seeking documents can still file an OPRA request or make an in-person appointment with the clerk to view records.

The clerk will inform the zoning board to coordinate consistent practice across boards, and IT staff will set up credentials for planning-board members. The board asked the clerk to monitor effects during the trial and report back if issues arise.

"So the general public can no longer see the current applications or the individual applications unless they have credentials," Heather Henry said while demonstrating the protected page. Attorney Rula Matina clarified that OPRA rights are distinct and that the board may set rules for online access.

The board set no specific trial length in the meeting record; members asked the clerk to coordinate with the zoning board and to report back if residents raise access concerns.