Resident urges Hammond City to require addresses for recipients of public funds; attorney says name and amount are required

A resident urged the Hammond City Redevelopment Commission on Aug. 4 to require that people who receive city-funded payments disclose their addresses as part of the public record. "They're getting public money. It should be should be made available to the public," the resident said during the public-comment period.

Attorney Westland responded that, under the city's legal guidance, the core legal requirement is disclosure of the recipient's name and the amount of public funds received, not the recipient's address. "I think legally, what's required is the name and the amount," the attorney said, while noting the commission could adopt a local policy requiring additional information.

The exchange came after several agenda items in which the commission approved payments under city programs and purchase agreements. Residents voiced concern that some applicants or recipients had asked the commission to withhold street addresses when those agreements were presented. Attorney Westland pointed out that once an agreement is included in an agenda package it generally becomes a public record and could be requested under the Indiana Access to Public Records Act.

Commission members said they would take the question under advisement and consider whether to adopt an explicit policy requiring additional disclosure. The chair said the matter would be reviewed with legal counsel and that the commission could require address information as a condition of receiving funds if it chose to adopt that policy.

Next steps: the attorney’s guidance will be recorded and the commission may place a proposal on a future agenda if members wish to adopt a policy altering the information required from program recipients.