Reviewing expense reports filed by Montgomery County department leaders would cost as much as $10,000, according to officials in County Executive Ike Leggett’s office.
In August, The Washington Examiner asked for expense reports, including supporting documentation, submitted by the county’s department heads and Leggett dating back to fiscal 2007.
Three months later, county spokeswoman Donna Bigler said it would cost between $4,000 and $10,000 to provide the public information, partially because reports haven’t been audited from the past two fiscal years. She explained that it would take two employees as long as two months “off and on” to retrieve the data.
“The fishing expeditions are killing us,” she said of The Examiner’s history of open-record requests.
Under Maryland’s public information act, agencies are expected to comply with information requests within 30 days. State law also allows an agency to charge a “reasonable fee” for finding the materials.
But some county officials are questioning the asking price.
“This speaks to a lack of transparency on the executive side,” said Councilwoman Valerie Ervin, D-Silver Spring. “There has to be some level of accountability over there.”
Still, Leggett’s representatives defended the cost estimate.
“I know it sounds outrageous,” Bigler said. “But we have to charge the actual cost.”
