Rhode Island attorney general sues city for records law violations
I love Rhode Island. How many other states provide the attorney general the power to sue agencies that violate the open records law on behalf of citizens? That should be the standard in every state. According to a
story in the The Providence Journal, the AG sued the city of Cranston for failing to respond to a public records request by a disc jockey. The disc jockey is running for city council and requested records regarding long-distance phone calls to identify potential wasteful spending. The city took three months to respond to the request instead of the required 10 days, stating that it couldn't comply with the law because of "limited resources." The lawsuit is the fourth time the AG has sued government agencies for failing to follow the state's open government laws.