[nfbmi-talk] Please take legal notice . . .

[Terry D. Eagle]

            Dear Mr. Rodgers and FOIA Coordinator Ms. Haynes,

 

Please take notice.

 

 

Court Orders City To Comply With FOIA [Michigan Capitol Confidential]

 

 

 

Oct. 16, 2013

 

2013/westland

 

 

 

The city of Westland "subverted" Michigan's Freedom of Information Act and
must comply with the law, according to a recent judge's ruling.

 

 

 

"They [Westland officials] were over charging," said William Maze, the
Livonia attorney who sued the city. "Clearly they were doing it to make a
profit."

 

 

 

Maze said the case involved a request for information from the police
department. He said he thought Westland might have set its rates high to
discourage

 

the public from filing FOIA requests.

 

 

 

"They were charging $75 per video (and) $35 for audio," he said of
Westland's FOIA charges. "[For documents] they were charging $5 for the
first and second

 

page and $1 per page thereafter. Or you could pay a flat $45.61 per hour
rate. There was no basis for what they were charging."

 

 

 

The document fees and hourly rate are

 

nearly identical to fees

 

quoted to Michigan Capitol Confidential for a FOIA request it made earlier
this year. The Mackinac Center for Public Policy filed a lawsuit against
Westland

 

claiming those fees violated the state's FOIA law. That case is still
pending.

 

 

 

Maze took the city of Westland to court over its FOIA fees and also its
practice of restricting access to traffic stop videos that are subject to
FOIA.

 

The case was Steven Eugene LaHaine v. City of Westland.

 

 

 

On Aug. 29, Wayne County Circuit Court Judge Marvin Stempien ruled against
the city of Westland. In his decision Judge Stempien wrote:

 

Block quote start

 

 

 

The public policy stated in the ACT is subverted by any cost to the members
of the public who are requesting information that is outside the actual cost

 

enumerated in the ACT.

 

 

 

Defendant [City of Westland] claims that MCL 15,234 [the Freedom of
Information Act] allows it to also charge for the equipment that is used in
those activities

 

that are required to comply with the FOIA request. Nowhere in MCL 15,234 is
a charge for the cost of equipment permitted.

 

Block quote end

 

 

 

The ruling also stated that after items that are exempt from disclosure are
blocked out, full audio and video recordings requested in FOIAs "shall be
provided."

 

 

 

Judge Stempien concluded: "Thus, defendant [City of Westland] must forthwith
revise its fees to comport with the clear language of MCL 15,234."

 

 

 

Maze said Westland has now stopped charging for FOIA materials.

 

 

 

"They (the materials) have been free of charge until the city can find out
how much it should be charging," he said.

 

 

 

The Mackinac Center's

 

lawsuit

 

was filed Sept. 20 in Midland County Circuit Court and was prompted by a $5
fee the city was charging before even beginning to search for the requested

 

information.

 

 

 

Westland city officials did not respond to requests for comment.