Prescott Valley clerk: town handled about 1,100 public-records requests last year; new platform aims to speed responses

Fatima Fernandez, Prescott Valley’s town clerk, said the town implemented a records-tracking platform last year and handled about 1,100 public records requests over the previous year, a sharp increase from earlier years. "We literally just implemented it last year, called Just FOIA," Fernandez said, noting the system is used by the police department for records while her office oversees town records.

Fernandez said the volume and variety of records—emails, reports, documents—create processing demands that require both staff time and system support. "When you have 20,000 records to review, then it's gonna take quite some time for us to release those records," she said, stressing that each record must be reviewed individually.

To reduce delays, Fernandez urged requesters to be specific: provide time frames, keywords or named individuals. "A lot of requests that we've been receiving are pretty much open ended," she said. Narrower requests, she said, let staff locate and produce responsive records faster.

Fernandez said the town previously received far fewer requests and pointed to the platform as part of the office’s effort to respond efficiently. She also said the clerk’s office oversees the public-records process even though individual departments create records daily.

The town clerk’s office is also working to improve records access through a records-management platform overhaul and by expanding self-service portals so residents can search for agendas, ordinances and resolutions online without submitting formal requests. Fernandez said the goal is to increase transparency while managing staff workloads.

This is an evolving operational change for the clerk’s office; Fernandez described the platform rollout and backlog pressures as ongoing issues requiring continued staff and system attention.