Valley officials perform better than rest of state

It wasn't always easy to get copies of public records.
VINDICATOR STAFF REPORT
Government and school officials from the Mahoning Valley don't always comply with Ohio's public-records law, but they typically performed better than officials in other parts of the state when asked recently for public records.
That's what reporters from The Vindicator and Akron Beacon-Journal found April 21 when they sought public records in the Valley as part of the statewide public records audit of the Ohio Coalition for Open Government. A Vindicator reporter also sought public records in Austintown and Boardman in conjunction with the audit. The Vindicator was the only Valley newspaper asked to participate in the audit.
The reporters, who didn't identify themselves as members of the press when making requests, were given unconditional access to public records by local government and school officials 66 percent of the time. Statewide, that figure was 53 percent.
In addition, Valley officials told reporters they had to give their name and profession to review records sought in about 9 percent of the requests. That figure was 17 percent across the state.
Ohio's public records law does not require those requesting records to give their name, fill out a form, identify their employer or tell officials how the records will be used. The law gives anyone the right to walk into a public office during business hours and inspect public records.
What was involved
Reporters in the Valley asked to review a total of 25 records from Mahoning, Trumbull and Columbiana County government officials, as well as local government and school officials and police in Youngstown, Warren, Austintown, Boardman and Lisbon.
Of those 25, two records didn't exist, and two requests were not included in the final tally because the reporter was recognized by an official. Reporters received 14 of the remaining records unconditionally.
Two of the record requests were granted after reporters gave their name and said they were with the press.
Officials denied five requests, including Vindicator Staff Writer Sherri L. Shaulis' request to see police incident reports in Austintown. A police secretary told Shaulis she needed to give a reason to see the reports, adding, "It's public record, but we need to know."
"Why this employee chose to do this on this particular day is unbeknownst to me," said police Lt. Mark Durkin. "It was an error on her part."
Durkin said police are working to address why Shaulis was denied the reports. He noted that police employees attend classes about the public records law that are held by the state attorney general's office.
Records also were denied to a reporter in Lisbon, where a school district secretary told Vindicator Staff Writer Ian Hill that he couldn't see records without the approval of schools Superintendent Don Thompson. Hill had asked to review a phone bill and a record showing the superintendent's compensation.
The secretary said Thompson was in a meeting and would not be available until after lunch.
Thompson later said Hill most likely caught the secretary off-guard, and added, "to be honest with you, we have very, very few public records requests." He said he has reviewed the district's public records policy with the secretary.
Here's the problem
But the school district policy does not comply with state law, said Cleveland Atty. David Marburger, an expert on Ohio's public records and open meetings laws who also assisted with the statewide audit. Marburger represents The Vindicator in public-records disputes. The policy requires a person to give at least three days' advance notice to review records.
State law does not require advance notice to review records, Marburger said. Thompson said the policy was created for the school board by a Coshocton law firm.
In Warren, Beacon-Journal Staff Writer Jim Carney also asked to review a school district phone bill and a record showing the superintendent's compensation.
Carney said a secretary in the district treasurer's office asked him if he was with the press, and then told him that he had to submit his request in writing and supply his name and address. He was told that the records would be mailed to him within 24 hours.
Carney said he received the records in the mail a week later.
"We really went to all lengths to fulfill his request," schools Treasurer Phil Butto said.
Butto added that the district requires written requests so it can document what records were sought and when the request was filed. The documentation is useful when people contend they received the wrong records or that they did not receive the records in a reasonable amount of time, he said.
Youngstown mayor
In Youngstown, Mayor George McKelvey demanded that Vindicator Staff Writer Norman Leigh give his name and profession before approving a request to review an expense report. The mayor also called Vindicator editors to confirm Leigh was a reporter, and he audiotaped his conversation with Leigh.
An expense report for a trip Mc-Kelvey had taken to Columbus in 2002 was faxed to the Vindicator later in the day. The mayor said he didn't bill the city for many expenses. Boardman school officials also asked Shaulis for her name and profession before granting her request for records.
Officials from the Mahoning, Trumbull and Columbiana county commissioners' offices granted requests to review meeting minutes without conditions. Record requests also were granted by Austintown, Boardman, Lisbon and Warren officials, Youngstown and Warren police, and Austintown school officials.
Getting copies of those records, however, wasn't always an easy task. Leigh was told that to get copies of records from the Mahoning County commissioners, he would have to go to three county offices in two buildings: the commissioners' office on the second floor of the administration building, where he'd get an invoice for the copies; the auditor's office on the first floor of the courthouse, where the invoice would get stamped; and then across the courthouse hall to the treasurer's office, where he would pay 5 cents per page for the copies and get a receipt.
He would then have to take the receipt back to the commissioners' office in the administration building and show it to county officials to get the copies.
Explanation
Joe Caruso, assistant county administrator, noted that money is not kept in the commissioners' office, so people paying for copies would not be able to get change if needed. He added that the multistep process helps ensure there are checks and balances when the county receives money.
Caruso also said, however, that the county may consider streamlining the process.
Though Hill had to go to only one building -- the police department -- to get copies of a police report in Lisbon, he also had to pay $5 for that one-page copy, the highest rate paid by those conducting the audit in the state. The law says a government agency can charge only for the cost of producing the copy.
When asked about the charge in Lisbon, a police secretary told Hill, "Well, here we charge $5." Lisbon Mayor Michael Lewis later said he would address the issue with police.