The Mississippi Ethics Commission has dismissed a public records complaint The Dispatch filed against the Columbus Convention and Visitors Bureau earlier this year.
In July, The Dispatch filed a public records complaint after the CVB charged more than $300 for a one-page document in response to a public records request.
A Dispatch reporter submitted a public records request to CVB Executive Director Nancy Carpenter for certain payroll records, including names and salaries of employees, as well as whether they are full- or part-time, on May 31. It also requested records that would indicate any staffing cuts, as of May 31, and how much money they would save the CVB annually.
On June 4, the CVB provided an estimate for $488.30 to fulfill the records, which included $175.80 for accountant services, $100 for financial assistant work, $32.50 for paraprofessional fees and $180 in attorney fees. The attorney fees were removed after The Dispatch notified the CVB that the newspaper was not seeking any information that needed to be redacted, and the fee for the request was lowered to $308.30, which the newspaper agreed to pay.
However, in its communications with the CVB, the newspaper noted that “we are not asking the CVB to create new documents” and that it was only seeking “records pertaining to” certain payroll and staffing information.
On Jul. 9, the CVB provided a one-page document with several tables that The Dispatch, in its complaint, argued did not properly fill the request. The Dispatch also contended that the number of people involved in filling the request and the amount the newspaper was charged for a one-page document was egregious.
The CVB argued that providing the information “was not as straightforward as hitting a button to print ‘a list'” and that the information was not available in a list format that could be copied or printed. It also argued the accountant charged for less than one hour of time to review the records and that the requested amount included neither the attorney or executive director’s time.
The Ethics Commission’s decision, authored by Executive Director Tom Hood, notes that the body has previously decided that a public entity may create a new record in response to requests for employee name and wage information.
“…When name and wage information is requested from a public body, in lieu of collecting and redacting personnel records, a public body, in its discretion, may create a new record responsive to the request,” Hood wrote. “In doing so, the CVB did not violate the Public Records Act.”
However, the Commission has also previously noted that a public body should seek the consent of the requestor to ensure they are not seeking the underlying records of the new document.
Hood also pointed to a statute that says a public body can charge and collect fees for the “actual cost of searching, reviewing and/or duplicating and, if applicable, mailing copies of public records.” He further noted the time included must be for the lowest-level employee or contractor competent to respond to the request and that a public body can never charge more than the “actual cost” of filling the request.
“Based on the record, the actual costs incurred by CVB in responding to the request appear entirely reasonable,” Hood wrote.
Dispatch Publisher Peter Imes said the newspaper will learn from the decision.
“We’ll know how to better phrase our requests from now on,” Imes said. “The idea that it costs hundreds of dollars to learn something as basic as the positions and salaries of a taxpayer-funded organization is ridiculous.”
Alex Holloway was formerly a reporter with The Dispatch.
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