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Stanley council reinstates public-records fee structure in 4-1 vote amid staff concerns
Summary
After staff described operational burdens from 13 requests (plus three more the day of the meeting) and estimated IT costs, the council voted 4-1 to reinstate a public-records fee with $18/hour after the first hour and special IT and legal fees; Council Member Sweeney opposed.
The Stanley Town Council voted 4-1 on May 5 to reinstate a public-records fee structure, reversing an earlier removal of a paywall. Council Member Corey Kelly led the item and said the council had intended to review the removal after 90 to 120 days.
Town Clerk Olga McGinnis and Finance Director Belinda Robinson told the council responding to complex records requests requires coordination across multiple departments and diverts staff from core duties. McGinnis said IT estimates run at least two hours per complex request at $150 per hour. The clerk noted the town had received 13 records requests since the paywall was removed, with three additional requests received the day of the meeting; one request dated to Jan. 1, 2020 and covered six broad categories related to grocery retail recruitment.
Town Manager Steven Denton said fulfilling requests had placed substantial stress on salaried staff. The Town Attorney summarized that state statute permits charging reasonable fees for public-records production; Council Member Brendan Sweeney cited an interpretation from the School of Government suggesting staff time during normal business hours cannot be billed, but the council did not resolve the legal interpretation at the meeting.
After debate the council agreed to reinstate the prior fee structure: the first hour free, then $18.00 per hour for staff time, plus special fees for IT and legal costs. The motion passed 4-1, with Sweeney opposed.
