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Sunshine law survey The Daytona Beach News-Journal conducted this survey to raise awareness of Florida’s open records law and let readers know what they should expect when making a request of a public agency. Newspaper employees who are not reporters or photographers made the requests in late February. To ensure the integrity of the results, they did not disclose the survey or their place of employment. Ideal compliance with the survey protocol, which was based on state law, was courteous, quick and informed access to records. The ideal was not required for an agency to pass, however. Failure was based on several aspects of the law that protect citizens seeking public records from being intimidated or unduly burdened. Specifically, the law does not require citizens to sign or fill out a written form, give a reason for their request, provide identification or narrow their request to specific documents. Citizens also can expect, under the law: an agency employee on duty who can fulfill their request; a fairly smooth process that does not involve being shuttled through a maze of departments or supervisors; no payment of an upfront fee when actual costs are not yet known. If any of the above occurred, or failed to occur as the case may be, even when employees were cooperative, the agency failed. The pass criteria were based on helpful and courteous service that followed the laws requirements. Some leeway was given on the length of time to provide records and other factors potentially open to interpretation. Bottom line: Most public employees in Volusia and Flagler counties wanted to help, but many need to brush up on the law. Here’s a breakdown of how the agencies performed, along with some notes from the News-Journal employees who made the requests: SCHOOL DISTRICTS: Record requested: Copy of superintendent’s contract. PASSED: Volusia County Schools: “The experience seemed to be normal, routine business.” (Failed in 2004) Flagler County School District: Very cooperative. (Passed in 2004) PUBLIC HOSPITALS: Record requested: Hospital’s most recent financial audit. PASSED: Bert Fish Medical Center: Cooperative. Accounting office worker wouldn’t comply with request without approval from the chief financial officer, but obtained that approval within five minutes. (Failed in 2004) FAILED: Halifax Medical Center: Worker in the Division of Internal Audits said a written form was needed because the hospital “likes to keep track” of the people requesting such information. (Passed in 2004) LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCIES: Records requested: Incident reports for all reported thefts in a week’s period. PASSED: Edgewater Police Department: Very cooperative clerk asked a co-worker if she could give the requester the information. “Of course, they are public records” was the response. (Passed in 2004) Flagler Beach Police: “Very easy” (Failed in 2004) Holly Hill Police: “A little hesitant at first… became very cooperative toward the end.” (Failed in 2004) New Smyrna Beach Police: Clerk asked for a reason for the request, but didn’t press when asked if it mattered. “She got the reports, made copies quickly and give me a receipt. I was out the door in 10 minutes.‘ Orange City Police: Very cooperative. Ormond Beach Police: “Helpful and kind.” “Quick and efficient as well.” (Failed in 2004) Ponce Inlet Police: Very cooperative. “No problems, whatsoever.” (Failed in 2004) Port Orange Police: Community service representative was very cooperative, but nearly caused a failure by pressing hard for, though not in the end requiring, a reason before filling the request. (Failed in 2004) South Daytona Police: “Helpful” and “quick” (Passed in 2004) FAILED: Bunnell Police: Required a written and signed form. (Passed in 2004) Daytona Beach Police: “Not cooperative at all. Just kept repeating, ‘no case number, no report.’ ” (Failed in 2004) Daytona Beach Shores Police: The secretary was very cooperative, but all of the dates of birth were redacted from the reports. The law provides no exemption to public records law for dates of birth in police reports. (Failed in 2004) DeLand Police: Office did not appear to have enough staff to handle public requests. Requester was asked to come back the next morning when it would be slower. But the requester called the next morning and was told that wasn’t a good day either and it would Monday (six days from initial request) before she could be helped. “Very polite — but no report.” (Passed in 2004) Flagler County Sheriff’s Office: Requester was told because the office was short-staffed due to illness, it would be a day or two before he could look at a report and several days to get copies. (Passed in 2004) Lake Helen Police: Teen Program Director Dennis Pullen was very cordial and forthcoming and accommodating. But the clerk who has access to the records is a part-timer and had already left for the day at around 12:30 p.m. (Passed in 2004) Oak Hill Police: Required a written request, and for that request to be approved by the police chief. (Failed in 2004) Volusia County Sheriff’s Office: Worker at the Crime Analysis Department on Indian Lake Road west of Daytona Beach refused to comply with request unless requester gave a reason. Also requester was sent from the Sheriff’s Office in downtown DeLand across the street to the Records Department, then to Crime Analysis, where the worker tried to send him back to Records. (Passed in 2004) COUNTY GOVERNMENTS: Records requested: County manager or administrator’s most recent evaluation, or barring that, inspection of his/her personnel file. PASSED: FLAGLER COUNTY: “No problems. Very cordial.” (Passed in 2004) VOLUSIA COUNTY: Very cooperative. (Failed in 2004) CITY/TOWN GOVERNMENTS: Records requested: Copies of any written correspondence, including e-mails, between the city or town manager and the city/town council/commission in the past week, or the most recent if none existed for the last week. PASSED Daytona Beach: Though the person staffing the information desk at the clerk’s office first commented that “open records laws are something,” a resource specialist fulfilled the request attentively and professionally. (Passed in 2004) Daytona Beach Shores: (Passed in 2004) Somewhat uncooperative, but filled the request in five days. DeBary: “An amazingly friendly group of professionals. Getting the records was easy.” (Passed in 2004) DeLand: “Very easy experience.” (Passed in 2004) Deltona: “City employees were pleasant and seemed to have an understanding that they needed to get me this info in a timely manner.” (Passed in 2004) Flagler Beach: “Very cordial. Very cooperative.” (Passed in 2004) Holly Hill: “Mrs. (Virginia) Vainella was very helpful and friendly, gave me more than I asked for.” (Passed in 2004) Lake Helen: “In all, it was a very pleasant experience.” (Passed in 2004) New Smyrna Beach: A $60 fee seemed excessive to the requester and News-Journal editors, but the clerk’s claim that was the actual cost because she spent three hours on the request could not be refuted. Oak Hill: Very cooperative. (Passed in 2004) Ormond Beach: Required a written form, but it did not ask for identifying information. (Passed in 2004) Pierson: Very cooperative. (Passed in 2004) Port Orange: Very cooperative. (Passed in 2004) South Daytona: “While I was waiting for the memo copies, Mr. (City Manager Joseph) Yarbrough offered me coffee.” (Failed in 2004) FAILED Bunnell: Required a written form. (Failed in 2004) Edgewater: Would not fill request without a written and signed form. (Passed in 2004) Orange City: Required the request to be in writing. “Throughout the time I was in their office, I was made to feel like I was bothering the staff… I finally left with no records or desire to go through the hoops to obtain them.” (Passed in 2004) Palm Coast: Required a written and signed form. (Passed in 2004) Ponce Inlet: Required a written and signed form. (Failed in 2004) COMMUNITY COLLEGE: PASSED DAYTONA BEACH COMMUNITY COLLEGE: A requester initially asked for copies of all correspondence between the college and the state Department of Education so far this year. The college failed that test by requiring that the request be narrowed and made through the college’s attorney. College spokesman Glenn Johnston subsequently explained that the request covered hundreds of documents from many departments within the college, some of which might contain confidential information about students. Editors decided to repeat the test, asking instead to inspect the college’s contract with its food service provider. The second requester found the college’s director of business operations, Janet Parish, cooperative and was allowed to inspect the document. (Failed in 2004)
Reproduced courtesy of the Daytona Beach News-Journal. |
