Published: October 10, 2007 10:17 am      

Clarksville did not break law with copy ordinance

Indiana’s Public Access Counselor ruled Tuesday that the town of Clarksville did not violate open-records law when it put a 25-cent-per-page charge on copies of public documents.

The town passed an ordinance creating the copy fee earlier this summer. Following the ordinance’s passage, Clarksville resident Tom DeArk and a cadre of others filed a formal complaint alleging that the fee was excessive. That wasn’t the case, according to Heather Neal, the state’s public access counselor.

In her advisory opinion, Neal notes that public-access law was changed by the Indiana General Assembly this year. Language regarding the factoring in of labor and overhead costs for making a copy used to be in the state law. However, a law passed in the statehouse this year removed that language, she said. Regardless of whether the striking of that language was intentional or inadvertent, the language of the statute now allows a public agency to add those costs, she said.

“I’m glad they ruled on our side,” said Paul Kraft, Clarksville’s council president. “I think it was a fair charge in the first place.”

The town’s Planning Department had done a study regarding copy time to determine the actual cost of copying documents, Neal said. The study revealed that the cost was just under $1.61 per page for making a copy. DeArk had said previously that he believed actual cost per copy is closer to 4 cents per page, an estimate which he said includes service, maintenance and parts for copying equipment.

Joseph Merideth — who signed on to DeArk’s complaint — said that part of the problem was that the complaint was made based on 2003 data, when the state’s public-access handbook was last printed. Neal addressed that in her opinion, admitting that the handbook was out-of-date and saying a new version will be published by the end of the year.

“The Clarksville ordinance is another roadblock that keeps ordinary citizens from having unobstructed access to their government,” DeArk said in a prepared statement. “It’s unfortunate, but this decision seems to open the floodgates for public agencies to charge almost any fee. It isn’t a good decision for the average Joe who wants copies of public documents.”

DeArk is well known in Clarksville for being a frequent requester of public documents in keeping track of the town council’s business.