Tucson Mayor sued after failing to produce public records
From Sunshine Review
29 July 2008 Controvery arose in Arizona when it became apparent that a number of elected officials were using taxpayer funds for non-essential projects, which often surfaced right around re-election time. In response, the Goldwater Institute launched a project to examine and document the issue.
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Records Request
They submitted public record requests for documents related to the issue from 29 officials around the state, receivng the requested reply from 28 of them. The only official who failed to comply was Tucson Mayor Bob Walkup. The initial request letter was sent to the Mayor's office on April 1, 2008.
The city has acknowledged in writing that the reply was received, but no action was taken. After follow up phone calls and emails received no response, another letter was sent in June. When another batch of phone calls and emails went unanswered, a final letter was sent in July, threatening to sue if the information was not provided by July 23. When the date came and passed, the Institue took the matter to court.
Information requested
The complaint by the Institute states, "The Goldwater Institute believes that information is power, and that power must not be jealously guarded by government employees and elected officials to the exclusion of the public," going on to ask the court to force the Mayor to produce the following documents:
- A statement of all expenditures for public relations agencies (radio, TV, etc.) made in the immediate past budget year
- For each expenditure provide copies of all relevant contracts, agreements, and ads.
- A statement of all expenditures for publications, other than news releases, that feature a message from or photos of elected officials made in the immediate past budget year
- For each expenditure provide copies of all publications
- A statement of the total amount of the Mayor's budget for the past budget year
The Mayor's Response
Local TV news station KGUN investigated the matter, attempting to find out just what had happened. When they finally were able to talk to the Mayor, he stated he had no idea any such request had been made. Saying that if fell into a "black hole," Mayor Walkup said he would personally see that all the requested information was properly provided.[1]
