Board reviews spike in legal fees and 165 public-records requests since February

Board members received a detailed briefing on public-records requests and related legal fees during the Nov. 19 meeting. Speaker 2 told the board that, from February through November invoices, the district has paid $185,006.26 in legal fees; insurance reimbursements totaled about $38,005.91 on select claims. The presenter said there have been 165 public-records requests in the period and cited $74,001.96 in legal fees tied specifically to records requests to date.

Speaker 2 named outside counsel and investigators used in recent matters: WASB (Barry Forbes/Ben Richter), Boardman Clark (Rick Verstegen), Tim O’Brien/Bakke Norman (restraining-order defense), and independent investigators (Michael Irvin with Squires Walzberger & Mace). He explained which categories are typically district-paid (employment matters) and which are covered by EMC insurance (certain ERD/EEOC claims), and he read a statutory citation from the transcript ("state statute 895.4618") stating that state law requires local governments to pay attorney fees for employees and board members for actions taken in official capacities.

The presenter said that prior to this period the district’s legal fees across 13 years totaled roughly $56,002.89, making the current year’s expense unusually large. Board members asked whether some legal fees can be recovered from requesters; the presenter said public-records law allows charging for certain reproductions but not for legal review or attorney time, and he said he intends to advocate with legislators about how modern electronic records have changed costs.

No vote was taken on policy changes at the meeting; the briefing was informational. The presenter also noted that the district hired a part-time staffer over the summer to assist with records requests and that staff time costs are not included in the legal-fee totals presented.