All across the country we’re seeing government offices of all shapes and sizes use the pandemic as an excuse not to respond to open records requests in a timely manner. We discuss this at length in this week’s bonus episode.
This example came across our desks after production for that episode wrapped up, and it’s worth a mention.
The Dallas school district has been telling reporters that they have an indefinite amount of time to respond to their open records requests because of COVID, even though Texas state law requires a response within 10 business days.
Instead of complying, the district has taken the position that they have no business days as long as employees are working from home.
The state attorney general has issued guidance that pretty much backs them up, too, saying that it’s ok not to count business days when working with a “skeleton staff.” Take a look.