1.0 PREAMBLE
Pursuant to the fundamental philosophy of the American constitutional form of government, it is declared to be the public policy of the government of McLean County that all persons are entitled to full and complete information regarding the affairs of government and the official acts and policies of those who represent them as public officials and public employees. The access to this information is not intended to be used to violate individual privacy, nor to further a commercial enterprise, nor to disrupt the duly-undertaken work of any public body independent of the fulfillment of any of rights of the people to access information. McLean County is committed to safeguarding the privacy of its citizens.

2.0 DEFINITIONS

Cookies
A cookie is a line of text with a server address and identification number which is stored on a computer. Cookies are by themselves not harmful and do not contain information other than that which an individual has voluntarily entered. They are not applications or virus spreaders. They may be used to track where the user goes on a website or to pass information from one page to the next so that the user does not have to enter redundant information every time a form is completed. If the user chooses to not allow cookies on their computer, there are some applications on the County website which may not function.

County
As used in this document, "County" shall refer to the employees and representatives of the government of McLean County, Illinois.

3.0 PRIVACY STATEMENT
Information collected and received through the County website may become public record and therefore subject to disclosure under the Illinois Freedom of Information Act. It is therefore the policy of McLean County that any personal information provided to the County, including, but not limited to, name, address, telephone number, drivers license number, Social Security Number and email address will not be sold or rented to any entity or individual or disclosed to unauthorized entity or individual. The release of personal information by the departments and agencies under the control of the County Board shall be limited to authorized State of Illinois government agencies, to authorized County departments, to authorized department contractors or grantees, and as mandated by Illinois law or court order.

4.0 PERSONAL INFORMATION AND CHOICE
"Personal information" is information about an individual that is readily identifiable to that specific individual. Personal information includes personal identifiers such as an individual's name, address, phone number, drivers license number and Social Security number. A domain name or Internet Protocol address is not considered personal information. The County does not collect personal information about an individual unless that individual chooses to voluntarily participate in an activity that asks for information (e.g., sending an e-mail or participating in a survey). If an individual chooses not to participate in these activities, that choice will in no way affect that individual's ability to use any other feature of the McLean County websites. If personal information is requested on the website or volunteered by the user, State law and the federal Privacy Act of 1974 may protect it. However, this information is a public record once an individual has provided it, and may be subject to public inspection and copying if not protected by federal or state law.

5.0 POLICIES FOR INDIVIDUALS UNDER 13 YEARS OF AGE
The County is committed to complying fully with the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act. Accordingly, any user under the age of 13 is not authorized to provide the County with personally identifying information, and the County will not use any such information in the County's database or other data collection activities. The County appreciates cooperation with this federally mandated requirement. Users are cautioned that the collection of personal information volunteered by children on-line or by e-mail will be treated the same as information given by an adult and may be subject to public access.

6.0 WEB LOGS
The County analyzes website logs to continually improve the value of the materials available on the County's site. Website logs are not personally identifiable, and the County makes no attempt to link them with the individuals that browse the County website.

7.0 INFORMATION RETAINED AND HOW IT IS USED
If, during a visit to the McLean County website, an individual just browses or downloads information, the following information about that visit will be retained: 1. The Internet Protocol address (not the e-mail address). Unique IP addresses are counted to determine the number of visitors to each web page during specific time frames. Analysis of the number of visitors helps to determine how, where or if the page will be delivered in the future. 2. The type of web browser used (Internet Explorer, Netscape, etc.). Web pages do not always display the same on every type or version of web browser and thus must be coded for appropriate access.

8.0 CORRESPONDENCE
If during a visit to the McLean County websites an individual participates in a survey or send an e-mail, the following additional information will be collected: 1. E-mail correspondence: The e-mail address and contents of the e-mail. The County may use an e-mail to respond appropriately. This may be to address issues identified by a user, to further improve the County's website, or to forward the e-mail to another agency for appropriate action. 2. Surveys : Any information volunteered in response to a survey is used for the purpose designated. The information collected is not limited to text characters and may include audio, video, and graphic information formats that have been provided.

9.0 LINK DISCLAIMER

9.1 Linking to the County's Pages
An individual may link to any page on McLean County's website without permission. The County recommends that an individual confine these links to the home page or to the home pages of specific departments. Other pages may be removed or contain time-sensitive data that is no longer valid.

9.2 Disclaimer for External Links
The McLean County website contains links to other related World Wide Web Internet sites and resources. The County is not responsible for the contents of any off-site pages referenced. The user specifically acknowledges that McLean County is not liable for the defamatory, offensive, or illegal conduct of other users, links, or third parties and that the risk of injury from the foregoing rests entirely with the user. Links from the County's web pages on the World Wide Web to other sites do not constitute an endorsement from the County. These links are provided as an information service only. It is the responsibility of the web surfer to evaluate the content and usefulness of information obtained from other sites. Since the County is not responsible for the availability of these outside resources or their contents, an individual should direct any concerns regarding any external link to its site administrator or webmaster.

9.3 Requesting a link
An individual may request a link be made to an organization or business on the County's main links page. Links are subject to review, and the County reserves the right to reject any link. Links likely to be granted access are those which provide useful information about McLean County, participate in the economic development of McLean County or provide material and/or educational services to McLean County.

9.4 Disclaimer of Endorsement
The County is a distributor of content sometimes supplied by third parties and users. Any opinions, advice, statements, services, offers, or other information or content expressed or made available by third parties, including information providers, users, or others, are those of the respective author(s) or distributor(s) and do not necessarily state or reflect those of the County and shall not be used for advertising or product endorsement purposes. Reference herein to any specific commercial products, process, or service by trade name, trademark, manufacturer, or otherwise, does not constitute or imply its endorsement, recommendation, or favoring by the County.

10.0 LEGAL NOTICES
Access to the McLean County website is provided subject to the following terms and conditions. Please read these terms carefully as use of these sites constitutes acceptance of all of the following terms and conditions:

10.1 Disclaimer of Liability
Neither McLean County Government nor any of its Board members, officers, agents or employees shall be held liable for any improper or incorrect use of the information described and/or contained herein and assumes no responsibility for anyone's use of the information. In no event shall the County's website or its Board members, officers, agents or employees be liable for any direct, indirect, incidental, special, exemplary, or consequential damages (including, but not limited to, procurement or substitute goods or services; loss of use, data, or profits; or business interruption) however caused and on any theory of liability, whether in contract, strict liability, or tort (including negligence or otherwise) arising in any way out of the use of this system, even if advised of the possibility of such damage. This disclaimer of liability applies to any damages or injury, including but not limited to those caused by any failure of performance, error, omission, interruption, deletion, defect, delay in operation or transmission, computer virus, communication line failure, theft or destruction or unauthorized access to, alteration of, or use of record, whether for breach of contract, torturous behavior, negligence or under any other cause of action.

10.2 Disclaimer of Warranties and Accuracy of Data
Although the data found using the McLean County access systems have been produced and processed from sources believed to be reliable, no warranty, expressed or implied, is made regarding accuracy, adequacy, completeness, legality, reliability or usefulness of any information. This disclaimer applies to both isolated and aggregate uses of the information. The County provides this information on an "as is" basis. All warranties of any kind, express or implied, including but not limited to the implied warranties of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, freedom from contamination by computer viruses and non-infringement of proprietary rights are disclaimed. Changes may be periodically made to the information herein; these changes may or may not be incorporated in any new version of the publication. If an individual has obtained information from any of the County's web pages from a source other than the County pages, that individual should be aware that electronic data can be altered subsequent to original distribution. Data can also quickly become out of date. It is recommended that careful attention be paid to the contents of any data associated with a file, and that the originator of the data or information be contacted with any questions regarding appropriate use. If an individual finds any errors or omissions, the County encourages the reporting of them to via e-mail.

10.3 Disclaimer of Duty to Continue Provision of Data
Due to the dynamic nature of the Internet, resources that are free and publicly available one day may require a fee or restricted access the next, and the location of items may change as menus, home pages, and files are reorganized. The user expressly agrees that use of the County's website is at the user's sole risk. The County does not warrant that the service will be uninterrupted or error free. The documents and related graphics published on this server could contain technical inaccuracies or typographical errors. Changes are periodically added to the information herein. The County and/or its respective agencies and programs may make improvements and/or changes in the information and/or programs described herein at any time.

10.4 Security
The County, as developer and manager of this website, has taken several steps to safeguard the integrity of its communications and computing infrastructure, including but not limited to authentication, monitoring, auditing, and encryption. Security measures have been integrated into the design, implementation and day-to-day practices of the entire County operating environment as part of its continuing commitment to risk management.
This information should not be construed in any way as giving business, legal, or other advice, or warranting as fail proof, the security of information provided via County supported websites

10.5 Choice of Law
Construction of the disclaimers above and resolution of disputes thereof are governed by the laws of the State of Illinois and the policies of the McLean County Board. The laws of the State of Illinois, USA, shall apply to all uses of this data and this system. By use of this system and any data contained therein, the user agrees that use shall conform to all applicable laws and regulations and user shall not violate the rights of any third parties.