Orange County, Florida
From Sunshine Review
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Orange County is one of 67 counties in Florida. Orlando is the county seat.
Orange County's population as of 2007 was 1,105,603. It is one of 20 charter counties in the state. It became a charter county in 1987.[1]
[edit] Evaluation of website
- Main article: Evaluation of Florida county websites
[edit] The good
- Budget is available.[2]
- Board agendas[3] are available. Meetings can be viewed live online.
- County Commissioners are listed with contact information.[4]
- Building permits[5] and zoning information is available.[6]
- Contracts are available online.[7]
- Information and forms for making public records requests are available. [8]
- Local tax information is available.[9]
[edit] The bad
- Does not disclose if belongs to taxpayer-funded lobbying associations.
- Information on how to make a is not provided on the site.
[edit] Public Records
In late 2008 reporters organized by the Florida Society of Newspaper Editors requested the most recent budget emails from central Florida county officials in order to audit the responses.
All record requests in Orange County were met, with the exception of the Sheriff's Office. The requesting party was referred to the public-information office, who said the records might not exist, and that they would have to file a written request.
Capt. Angelo Nieves responded by saying the request was vague and that "We did as much as we could based on the circumstances. Obviously, there was an ongoing effort in trying to fulfill the request."
While requests from the Orange County Public Schools office and county administrator's office were fulfilled, confusion still occurred. In both cases officials said that if the requesting party had spoken with the correct person in the correct department, that the records could have been easily provided. [10]
See also public record requests meet with confusion in central Florida.
[edit] Lobbying
- Main article: Florida taxpayer-funded lobbying
Orange County has reported $1,070,000 spent on lobbying between 2000-2008 (see table). Orange County pays for services of the lobbying firm Alcade & Fay. [11]
| Year | Amount spent on lobbying |
|---|---|
| 2008 | $30,000 |
| 2007 | $120,000 |
| 2006 | $120,000 |
| 2005 | $120,000 |
| 2004 | $100,000 |
| 2003 | $140,000 |
| 2002 | $120,000 |
| 2001 | $142,500 |
| 2000 | $177,500 |
[edit] Audits
For Orange County, the clerk or comptroller performs the internal audits.[13]
[edit] External links
- Official Orange County Website
- Orange County Property Appraiser
- Orange County Clerk of Courts
- Orange County on E-Reference
- Orange County Sheriff's Office
- Orange County Interactive Mapping
- Orange County Public Schools
- Orange County Health Department
- Orlando Travel and Visitors Bureau
[edit] References
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