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Delray Beach city attorney requests small boost for outside counsel as office reports 31 active cases
Summary
City Attorney outlined staffing, public records workload and a modest increase for outside counsel during the May 6 Delray Beach City Commission workshop, reporting 31 active litigation matters and 2,309 public records requests so far this year.
City Attorney presented the office’s 2025-26 budget request Tuesday to the Delray Beach City Commission, citing personnel costs as the largest portion of the request and a modest increase for outside legal counsel.
The City Attorney told commissioners, “So far, we have 31 active litigation cases. We've drafted approximately 25 ordinances working with other departments in the city. We've reviewed over a hundred contracts this year. We've opened 2,309 public records requests, and I thought it was great to note that the average number of days that those have been open is 3.43.”
The office described its staffing as including one senior assistant city attorney, two assistant city attorneys, a public safety adviser who works with police, fire and code, an office manager and two executive legal secretaries (one part time). The City Attorney said the office uses outside counsel for matters not covered by insurance—employment, commercial and real estate matters—and requested a small increase to that line item. “That budget just went up by $2,500,” the City Attorney said.
On public records workload, the City Attorney said the city’s public records management coordinator handles the volume and that staff are cross-trained. She explained the law’s cost-recovery rule for public records: “What the law says is it doesn't really matter who works on the public records request. You always have to take the lowest paid member of the department.” The coordinator’s salary was described as “somewhere between $60,000 and $70,000.”
Commissioners asked whether the proposed increase for outside counsel was sufficient; a commissioner noted the requested increase was “0.05, less than 0.5%,” and the City Attorney said she tries to increase that line each year to remain prepared for potential rate changes and unanticipated litigation.
No formal vote or action was taken during the workshop presentation. City staff said the presentation is part of the commission’s multi-meeting budget review; additional budget discussions are scheduled for May 20 and a preliminary aggregate budget snapshot is planned for the June 10 workshop.
