Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Public Records topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Commissioners update public-records policy, direct staff to create consistent fee schedules
Summary
The Weston County commission approved a technical update to its public-records designee and discussed establishing uniform, department-level fee schedules and clearer processing steps to reduce delays and disputes over public-records requests.
The Weston County Board of Commissioners voted on Feb. 18 to amend a prior resolution on public-records requests by replacing a named person with the county attorney as the designated public-records contact; the change was described as a technical cleanup of a 2019 resolution.
Commissioners spent extended time reviewing how records requests are handled, why some requests were rejected and how requester costs are estimated. County staff and the clerk explained that the typical procedure is for a requester to fill out a standardized public-records request form, the county attorney (or designee) acknowledges receipt, the custodian (department) estimates search and production time/fees, and the requester can accept or petition the state ombudsman if dissatisfied.
The board discussed recurring problems that have led to rejected vouchers and delays: (1) invoices submitted as “statements” rather than invoice documents, (2) requests sent to the county before hospitals or insurers had finished their billing cycles, and (3) inconsistent department charge schedules that produce widely varying cost estimates. Commissioners and staff agreed that clearer guidance and a published fee schedule per department would reduce disputes and improve transparency.
Commissioner remarks and staff input focused on three practical fixes: (a) require suppliers and partner counties to submit itemized invoices with invoice numbers (not “statements”), (b) expect hospitals and providers to bill primary insurers before forwarding invoices to the county so the county receives requests after insurer adjudication (commonly a 60–90 day lag), and (c) adopt a standard departmental fee schedule (hourly search rates, per-page copy costs) and publish it on the county website. County staff said they would gather fee proposals from departments, circulate them for review and return a recommended fee schedule and amending resolution at the next meeting.
The board also noted the statutory exceptions that can exempt records from disclosure (personnel files, investigatory records, trade secrets) and directed staff to ensure requesters receive clear notices about timelines, cost estimates and the ombudsman option.
Why it matters: Public-records requests are time sensitive and can become contentious if offices do not follow a consistent process. The commissioners approved a technical update to the county’s designated public-records contact and asked staff to create clear, department-level fee schedules and to document request timelines to reduce future disputes.
What’s next: Staff will solicit and compile department fee schedules and return a proposed, published schedule and revised administrative guidance for the board to consider at the next meeting.
