|
Asbury Park
Press
NJ court upholds
$1,900 fee for public records
By JEFFREY GOLD, AP
from app.com on the Web, April 29, 2008
NEWARK, N.J. -- A state
appellate court on Monday upheld a charge of nearly $1,900 for government
records sought by a freelance journalist because several lawyers were needed to
compile the documents.
The journalist, Janon Fisher, challenged the fee, but the panel said it was
reasonable. The court said the state Attorney General's Office had good
reasons to assign five lawyers to retrieve and review e-mails and computer files
sought under the state's Open Public Records Act.
The office "reasonably determined that those attorneys could identify the
records responsive to the OPRA request and any privileged parts of those records
more expeditiously and reliably than clerical staff," the panel said in a 3-0
decision.
Fisher's lawyer, Ed Barocas, legal director of the state chapter of the American
Civil Liberties Union, said they were disappointed and were considering their
options.
"We still have many hurdles to overcome to achieve transparent government in New
Jersey," Barocas said in a statement.
The Attorney General's Office said it was pleased the court determined the
matter was handled appropriately.
Lawyers spent 52.5 hours to search thousands of e-mails and numerous files to
locate the documents, according to the attorney general's office. The
total cost, $1,877.93, was determined by multiplying the hours by the hourly
rate of the lowest-salaried deputy attorney general, or $35.77 an hour.
Their actions were in response to a 2004 request from Fisher for records
relating to the assignment of deputy attorneys general to the Government Records
Council, a state agency that handles disputes over access to government records.
Fisher also sought records addressing complaint response times and backlogs, and
correspondence between the attorney general's office and the governor's office
"regarding staffing of the GRC, the processing of OPRA requests and any OPRA
exemptions."
The appellate panel found that in addition to copying costs, OPRA allows public
agency to impose a "special services charge" if production of the records
involves "an extraordinary expenditure of time and effort."
Such a charge must be reasonable and "based upon the actual direct cost" of
accommodating the request, the court found.
Fisher's request took the state attorneys nearly two years, including the review
of more than 15,000 e-mails and computer files, the attorneys said.
The appellate court said it was appropriate for two assistant attorneys general
and three deputy attorneys general to perform the work, noting "attorney e-mails
may involve highly sensitive materials that should not be seen even by other
employees of the public agency."
|
