OLYMPIA — Government agencies could face higher penalties if they fail to properly search for documents in response to public records requests, the state Supreme Court said Thursday.
In their 7-2 decision, justices said that an inadequate search might be considered an aggravating factor in c
alculating daily penalties. The court said agencies must search for records in all areas where they are reasonably likely to be found.
Michele Earl-Hubbard, an open government attorney who filed a brief on behalf of newspapers in the case, said agencies in the past have said they don’t have responsive documents but may not have been looking in all the right places. She said the ruling provides a strong message that agencies need to diligently look for available records.
“If they know of a place that might have the information, they ought to be searching that place,” Earl-Hubbard said.
Justices said Spokane County failed to sufficiently search for records in response to a request focused on a log of information about a government seating chart. A group, the Neighborhood Alliance of Spokane County, wanted to examine hiring practices in the county’s Building and Planning Department after the son of a commissioner was hired.
The court said the search was inadequate because it examined only an employee’s computer that had recently been replaced.
“Where, as occurred here, the computer containing the record has been destroyed, the agency must look to other locations,” wrote Justice Charles Johnson in the majority opinion.
Breean Beggs, an attorney for the Neighborhood Alliance, said the county’s handling of the case was particularly egregious because officials looked in the only place where the information wouldn’t be found. He said they could have examined the old hard drive that was in storage or an overall county network where the information would typically be saved.
Beggs said he expects the case will result in a substantial fine of many thousands of dollars.
Attorneys in the case did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
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