Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Numb
er
71
Units
Reques
ts
Reques
ts
26
Days
56
Days
106
1
54
50.9%
Days
Reques
ts
Reques
ts
29
Days
93
People
221
0.5
Days
Reques
ts Per
Day
Reques
ts
Table.1
Questions
1) Why cant the City Clerk provide Department Performance Data like Table.1
(above) to the Council, so that everyone can understand how effectively, or
ineffectively, the City is responding to its legal obligations of providing
information to the public?
2) How many of the PIRs were answered by links to the Citys WEB-site, making
the one day turnarounds not particularly difficult to accomplish?
3) When is the City Council going to become concerned about the Citys handling of
PIRs?
4) Why cant the City Clerk keep better records related to PIR handling?
5) Why didnt the City Clerk provide the Grand Jury better data about PIR handling?
Observations
The following comments about PIR handling by the City of Palo Alto were many by City
Manager Keene-http://www.paloaltoonline.com/print/story/2014/06/27/city-slammed-for-lack-oftransparency-on-arrillaga-proposals
He [City Manager Keene] defended the city's responses to public-records requests, saying
that the city receives "many requests for information every single day and we do a really
good job of responding to the public." He said the city has recently added a webpage for
people to formally file and track public-records requests.
does not seem to be supported by the data projected to the Grand Jury by the City.
The current PIR submission form, which can be found on the Citys WEB-site, does
not provide any meaningful feedback, and can not be used for tracking PIRs, no matter
who the submitter might be. As noted in a previous email to the Council, the City of
Oakland seems to have adopted software that is worthy of study, and possibly, adoption.
Conclusion
The City of Palo Alto received, on average, one Public Information Request every two
business days in 2013. The City was able to respond to only about 50% of these requests
in the legally mandated ten days, based on the data provided the Santa Clara County Civil
Grand Jury. Regrettably, the Civil Grand Jury did not seem to be very interested in long
term problems with the City of Palo Altos handling of Public Information Requests
looking for data only for 2013.
The data derived from the Citys data, provided in this communication, would be of more
value to the Council, and public, if the data provided to the public by the City Clerk were
more accurate, in a consistent format, and complete in all of its details.
It is very difficult to accept the claims of the City Manager that Palo Altos response to
Public Information Requests is great, based on this simple analysis, particularly since
several of my own requests are now years oldwith little hope of ever being answered
short of litigation to force the City to comply with the law.
Wayne Martin
Palo Alto, CA
www.scribd.com/wmartin46
www.youtube.com/wmartin46
www.twitter.com/wmartin46
DATE OF
REQUEST
1/8/2013
REQUESTOR
COMPLETION
DATE
Aaron Dolgin
9/29/2013
Alison Cormack
3/4/2013
Andrea Kopecky
REGARDING
Elapsed
Process
ing
Days
643 Maybell
??
9/30/2013
3/7/2013
6/19/2013
Andy Wright
6/19/2013
9/26/2013
August Weiss
10/1/2013
9/26/2013
Ausra Gaigalaite
9/26/2013
10/23/201
3
1/4/13
and
1/18/13
Ben Ludwig
9/26/2013
Ben Vassar
10/23/2013
2/4/2013
Breen Kerr
Bidocean
UAC/CC Info
??
Main Library
460's
??
4/11/2013
Breena Kerr
CC Travel
??
7/12/2013
Breena Kerr
7/12/2013
Measure C Docs
9/19/2013
Breena Kerr
10/3/2013
Traffic Study PM
14
2/11/2013
Carmel Naraval
Cassandra
Raveena
Catherine Blue
Holmes
2/11/2013
6/28/2013
8/23/2013
9/12/2013
9/23/2013
Charlotte Rubio
Connie
Nishikawa
9/24/2013
2/22/2013
Conor Kelly
2/27/2013
Sherman
2/6/2013
Conor Kelly
2/27/2013
Sheridan
21
6/26/2013
8/21/2013
9/11/2013
3/17/2013
Dennis Wallach
5/20/2013
Dennis Wallach
6/27/2013
Devin Ralston
5/15/2013
Dillan Betts
8/26/2013
Dillan Betts
9/23/2013
9/10/2013
Dixie
9/10/2013
10/7/2013
Doug Petersen
10/7/2013
Dustin Alamo
1/11/2013
1/8/2013
?
Invoked extension
6/28/2013
Smart Procure
Smart Procure
28
1
1
Main Library
8/29/2013
Edwina Feguis
??
4/15/2013
Ericka meaner
1/29/2013
Evelyn Gutierrez
6/11/2013
FOIA Group
6/28/2013
17
6/17/2013
Frank Ruiz
6/19/2013
2/28/2013
Greg Kerber
3/4/2013
2/4/2013
PAMC 9.48.025
??
SEUI
4/30/2013
Hana Hsaio
5/10/2013
5/16/2013
6/27/2013
Hank Steelsmith
Hannah
Palkowitz
3/26/2013
Holly Lee
3/26/2013
4/22/2013
Janis Roller
4/22/2013
5/14/2013
9/9/2013
Jason Green
Jason McCormick
5/15/2013
9/9/2013
Tax Form
1
1
9/9/2013
Jason McCormick
9/18/2013
Prometheus
Jay Enbom
7/1/13 (?)
Fiber Optic /
Interstate / SCCO
??
2/14/2013
Jeff Falbo
2/25/2013
uncashed checks
11
7/8/2013
Jeff Koch
7/30/2013
6/28/13
8/12/2013
Jeff Levinsky
7/11/2013
7/8/2013
??
6
7/8/2013
11
22
1
Jenn Nowell
8/13/2013
7/17/13 and
8/12/13
Jenn Nowell
7/15/2013
Jennie Skelton
3/14/2013
Jim Phelps
3/21/2013
16
3/11/2013
Joe
3/11/2013
6/17/2013
Joe Maulsby
6/24/2013
2/11/2013
Joseph Gennero
2/12/2013
7/26/2013
Joy Ogawa
8/19/2013
2/22/2013
Jusztima Traum
3/18/2013
Prevailing Wage
Kathleen O'Brien
10/1/2013
Org Chart
??
Kathleen O'Brien
Kathrine
Waterhouse
9/30/2013
P&P Surplus
19
6/7/2013
9/11/2013
Kelson Warner
9/20/2013
3/11/2013
Kenneth Hadler
3/20/2013
9/24/2013
Kirk Brown
9/24/2013
5/8/2013
3/11/2013
4/24/13
and
5/16/13
3/5/2013
9/11/2013
6/6/2013
Jennifer Fryling
??
Minutes
24
24
5/1/2013
Laura Connolly
4/5/2013
Lisa Mahlum
Mark PetersenPerez
Mark PetersenPerez
Mark PetersenPerez
Mark PetersenPerez
6/24/2013
12
7/30/2013
6/3/2013
6/12/2013
7/29/2013
7/23/2013
Firearms SFCO
6/3/2013
8/2/2013
4/4/2013
Mary Caddy
4/10/2013
3/28/2013
Mary Harris
4/1/2013
3/12/2013
Mel Sakata
3/18/2013
2/28/2013
Michael Collins
6/5/2013
Michael Collins
After 3/14/2013
7/1/2013
??
10
6
Ravi Mehti
4
6
??
26
9/6/2013
Michel Lopez
8/28/2013
10/29/201
3
Michel Vogel
4/1/2013
MJ Pierce
1/22/2013
Mr. Austin
Mr. Peele/ Bay
Area News
Group
1/23/2013
Nadia Aziz/Grant
Kolling/Morris
9/30/2013
9/13/2013
9/16/2013
4/4/2013
9/19/2013
10/29/2013
??
??
Numerous
different ones
regarding
Homeless
??
??
9/20/2013
Invoked extension
Pat Marriott
2/26/2013
4/17/2013
Patricia Bilir
6/12/2013
1/21/2013
Peter Singleton
2/13/2013
8/30/2013
14
Compensation
2/25/2013
3/5/2013
??
1
4/15/2013
Nick Selby
Nielson
Buchanan
Norman Beamer
Padmanabhan
Srinagesh
13
Various contracts
ROLUA
PA Hill GC and CC
??
1
Matadero Creek
56
23
Phelps
??
Ravi Madhu
9/3/2013
5/8/2013
Richard Hopp
5/9/2013
3/6/2013
Richard Placone
4/17/2013
Matadero Creek
10/8/2013
Ron Baker
10/8/2013
FPPC
9/16/2013
Rosalie Govek
9/16/2013
4/24/2013
Scott Brooks
Seunggyoun
Hong
10/1/2013
5/8/2013
1/31/2013
42
1
1
5/7/2013
13
PD Record
Stephanie Wong
??
??
7/1/2013
Steve Eglash
Steven
Rosenberg
1/5/2013
Ted Carlstrom
8/29/2013
Todd Emanuel
9/9/2013
11
6/1/2013
10/10/201
3
Tom Bates
6/4/2013
Tom Garber
7/1/2013
Tony Ciampi
8/21/2013
7/11/2013
Trish Mulvey
Vera DahleLacaze
6/4/2013
William Ross
9/4/2013
William Ross
Winter
Dellenbach
Former CM
7/3/2013
??
2
??
10/21/2013
11
??
8/21/2013
7/12/2013
1
??
9/23/2013
AB1234
19
5/14/2013
Minutes
??