Issue link: https://newsleader.uberflip.com/i/166173
Sarasota News Leader September 6, 2013 Page 51 Reid advised the commissioners that he could send a bill retroactively to Ramirez if they wished, even though he understood she was not notified in advance that she would be charged for the staff time. Pruitt confirmed the latter assertion. "So if we have 10 people walk in at the same time, we've got to give each of them a conference room and put an employee in with them and do exactly what [Ramirez] did that day," Barbetta said. "That makes absolutely no sense whatsoever. That person needs to be billed." Mason told her colleagues, "I think that we need to establish a policy to address [such sitCounty Attorney Stephen DeMarsh advises the uations]. … We're not trying to prohibit peoboard on a matter. Photo by Norman Schimmel ple from accessing public records. But what posit. If the staff time was less than anticiwe want to do is make sure we have some pated, Hines said, the member of the public compensation for the amount of time staff has would have the extra money returned. to spend on just that …" Barbetta also reiterated that he wanted to see When Hines asked DeMarsh whether he felt a copy of the bills given to Ramirez and rethe board should follow the Alachua County ceipts for payments she had made for public policy and charge for any request that takes records requests over the past six months. more than 30 minutes of staff time, DeMarsh "Because I'm hearing from other people in the responded, "I don't think you need to be very community who have made public records redetailed." quests, and they've had to pay from day one," Reid would revise the county policy and bring he pointed out. "So they're talking to me about it back to the commission for review and ap- selective enforcement." proval, DeMarsh noted. In response to a question from Reid, Pruitt said she could provide the board with the exact amount of time Ramirez spent reviewing the records. She also could provide the documentation of charges and receipts from the past public records requests Ramirez had made, she added. "It's very clear that this commission as a whole is saying that this type of charge needs to be added" as a matter of policy, Hines responded, referring to staff time to stay with someone reviewing records. Charges could be posted on the county website, he said, and the policy could make it clear that if a specific expense When Barbetta asked whether Ramirez had would be high, the county could require a de- any outstanding charges, Pruitt replied, "No."