This page is the
to the Sequel found at http://www.hollidaydental.com/dotpr.htm
The Georgia Department of Transportation-GaDOT refuses reasonable and lawful requests for access to public records in legally requestable electronic form.
Below are copies of email to and from the GaDOT and their hired help.
Please note that at the bottom of this page you may find hypertext references to relevant GA State Law.
Monday, May 04, 1998 9:44 PM
To: webmaster@hdratlanta.com
Subject: DOT/HDR Web page - request for more information
Dear Sirs:
I recently visited your web page again: http://www.hdratlanta.com
Where is the report of the public scoping meeting meeting at Bernd Elementary School held on January 29? I was there and I made recorded statements. I would like to see if my comments were correctly transcribed.
I noticed the large logo of the Ga DOT at the top of [your] page. Is HDR a subdivision of the Ga DOT?
Your page mentions another public meeting was to be held in April. Has this happened?
Thank-you.
-Lindsay Holliday
PS. blind CC to some friends of the Ocmulgee Old Fields.
Fri, 15 May 1998 06:21:04 -0500 From: "Palmer, Dell" <dpalmer@hdrinc.com>
To: Lindsay Holliday <teeth@macon.mindspring.com>
Lindsay
thanks for visiting our site
regarding your comment on the scoping meeting, several things are in the works or complete.
We have summarized all of the comments and presently have a draft Scoping Report that exists as an internal document thus far. Our intention is to make this report available to the stakeholders at the appropriate time. It is possible that this Scoping Report will appear as an stand alone Appendix to our EIS document.
Perhaps more immediate, the scoping meetings are summarized very thoroughly in Newsletter #2 which you should see by the end of the month.
Please note that your specific comments exist in our court recorder transcript that will remain non edited or summarized in anyway for the record. I'm a little unsure of what the proper procedure should be, but I guess we could work with you one on one on the quality assurance of your comments by the court recorder. We are confident that material captured by the court recorder would be found acceptable to you.
HDR Engineering, Inc. (www.hdrinc.com) is a private company based in Omaha, NE with over 40 offices across the country. We are totally unaffiliated with the GDOT or any other state agency. We are under contract to perform these studies.
We have not had another meeting in April, and are considering having something in July. Plenty of notice will be given, including Website postings, newspaper ads and hotline announcements.
Sincerely
Mark Cheskey
HDR Engineering, Inc
EIS Project Manager
Sat, 23 May 1998 12:52:24 -0400
To: "Palmer, Dell" <dpalmer@hdrinc.com>
Mark,
Thank you for your response.
If it is not too much trouble, Will you please post your court recorder's transcript at the EIS page?
Thanks again,
-Lindsay Holliday <teeth@macon.mindspring.com>
To: "'teeth@macon.mindspring.com'" <teeth@macon.mindspring.com>
Cc: "Palmer, Dell" <dpalmer@hdrinc.com>, "Ligon, Perry ( Rusty )" <pligon@hdrinc.com>, Michelle Lopez <mlopez@mindspring.com>, "Anderson, Ken" <kanderso@hdrinc.com>
Subject: Court Recorder
Date: Fri, 29 May 1998 09:27:34 -0500
Mr. Holliday
I am responding back to you in reference to your request to put the court recorder transcript on the webpage. After some research, we do not intend to do this.
I checked with our Public Involvement specialists and they informed me that the transcript exists as a hard copy only-- not as a computer file that could be shared readily. It would require scanning and extensive reformatting to make readable. Perhaps more problematic is the issue of sharing the comments of others, who may have wished their personal statements only to be part of the official record of the project - and not readily available to all on the web.
We do expect that key documents, as prepared, can be shared on the webpage.
Thanks again for your continued input into this process
Mark Cheskey
Project Manager HDR Engineering, Inc.
Date: Sun, 31 May 1998 22:18:31 -0400 To: "Cheskey, Mark" <mcheskey@hdrinc.com>
Mr. Cheskey,
Thank you for responding to my request to publish the transcript on the web.
I find it hard to believe that your Public Involvement specialists only possess a hard copy.
Do their secretaries still use manual typewriters? Please do send me a "Carbon Copy" - the typist should know what I mean.
I have an equally improbable image in my mind of a monk with a quill pen - illuminating the manuscript by the dim and flickering light of a lone candle ...
As for sharing the "personal statements" of others: I [and we all] made those statements into an electronically amplified public address system. This was done in front of an audience of over one hundred persons - including TV cameras and newspaper reporters.
Surely, No one could possibly think that their comments would not echo on out to distant observers.
The Traditional Cultural Property involved is a National Treasure.
The federal monies involved in this project came also from Alaskans and Hawaiians and Shuttle Astronauts. All American taxpayers have a stake in this EIS. They have a right of access to the public comments.
Is it not your mandate to make available this public information? Publishing the factual data you have collected with/using our public tax money is simply one part of a proper EIS. - Is it not?
I hope that you will reconsider my request for the transcipt of my/our comments.
Thank-you,
Lindsay Holliday
To: csmith@legis.state.ga.us
Subject: Request for GA DOT information
Rep C. Smith
Dear Sir:
I am having a very hard time getting public information from the DOT.
My problems are documented below.
I hope you will support the new tougher law for open records.
Thanks.
-Lindsay Holliday <teeth@macon.mindspring.com>
* * * * *
>From: "Cheskey, Mark" <mcheskey@hdrinc.com>
>To: "'Lindsay Holliday'" <teeth@macon.mindspring.com>
>Cc: "'Lesa Walker'" <lesa.walker@dot.state.ga.us>
>Subject: RE: Request for GA DOT information
>Date: Tue, 9 Feb 1999 13:57:44 -0600
>X-Mailer: Internet Mail Service (5.5.2232.9)
>
>Mr. Holliday
>got your message--
>our next PIM is scheduled for March 9th from 4-7pm
>you should recieve your newsletter soon announcing the meeeting and other
>technical information.
>Your FOI request was forwarded to GDOT
>
>Mark
>-----Original Message-----
>From: Lindsay Holliday [mailto:teeth@macon.mindspring.com]
>Sent: Sunday, February 07, 1999 8:35 PM
>To: Cheskey, Mark
>Cc: Michelle Lopez; 'Catherine Ross'; rreicher@legis.state.ga.us; GA
>Senator Susan Cable; Rep. Charles Smith 175th
>Subject: Request for GA DOT information
>
>
>Dear Mr. Cheskey,
>
>To answer your question -
>My fax # is (912) 742-4952. But I do not want a fax. I want the entire
>transcript of the Public Meeting. I want that information in the format of
>a text file. I want that information to be emailed to me. I believe my
>request is simple and reasonable. I am willing to pay you for the 3
>minutes it will take your employee to fulfill my request.
>
>Our new Govenor, Roy Barnes, has made it a priority issue to make "open
>records" easier for the taxpayers of our great state. In the spirit of the
>govenor's intentions, I hope you will reconsider my request for the entire
>electronic-digital-text version of the written record which you have
>[below] agreed to send to me as an incomplete fax.
>
>I am capable of receiving this requested file as an attachment to email.
>This will save someone in your office a considerable amount of time feeding
>the paper record into the faxer.
>
>Could you please tell me when the next public meeting about this project
>will be?
>Thank-you,
>Lindsay Holliday
>(signature below)
>
>PS: This pending law is HB 279 at:
>http://www.ganet.org/cgi-bin/pub/leg/legdoc?billname=1999/HB279&docpart=full
>
>
>At 01:17 PM 6/1/98 -0500, Cheskey, Mark wrote:
>>Dear Dr. Holliday
>>Do you have a fax number??
>>I'd like to fax you a copy of the transcript with your comments as you requested.
>>Let me know and I'll fax out right away.
>>Mark
Selected excerpts of Georgia State Law
(e) An agency shall utilize the most economical means available for providing copies of public records.
(f) Where information requested is maintained by computer, ...
----------------------------------------------------
(a) The superior courts of this state shall have jurisdiction in law and in equity to entertain actions against persons or agencies having custody of records open to the public under this article to enforce compliance with the provisions of this article. Such actions may be brought by any person, firm, corporation, or other entity. In addition, the Attorney General shall have authority to bring such actions, either civil or criminal, in his or her discretion as may be appropriate to enforce compliance with this article.
(b) In any action brought to enforce the provisions of this chapter in which the court determines that either party acted without substantial justification either in not complying with this chapter or in instituting the litigation, the court shall, unless it finds that special circumstances exist, assess in favor of the complaining party reasonable attorney's fees and other litigation costs reasonably incurred. Whether the position of the complaining party was substantially justified shall be determined on the basis of the record as a whole which is made in the proceeding for which fees and other expenses are sought.
(c) Any agency or person who provides access to information in good faith reliance on the requirements of this chapter shall not be liable in any action on account of having provided access to such information.
_________________________
>> Following is from recently passed HB 279, effective July 1 of this year. If I understand this correctly, in cases of where state and local govt keep the data in electronic form, it must be placed on their existing web site (if they have one) upon request. Anyone know anything to the contrary?
3- 3 (g) At the request of the person, firm, corporation, or
3- 4 other entity requesting such records, records maintained
3- 5 by computer shall be made available where practicable by
3- 6 electronic means, including Internet access, subject to
3- 7 reasonable security restrictions preventing access to
3- 8 nonrequested or nonavailable records."
see http://www.ganet.org/cgi-bin/pub/leg/legdoc?billname=1999/HB279&docpart=full
>> 25 "50-18-74.
26 (a) Any person knowingly and willfully violating the
27 provisions of this article by failing or refusing to
28 provide access to records not subject to exemption from
29 this article or by failing or refusing to provide access
30 to such records within the time limits set forth in this
31 article shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and upon
32 conviction shall be punished by a fine not to exceed
33 $100.00.
34 (b) A prosecution under this Code section may only be
35 commenced by issuance of a citation in the same manner as
36 an arrest warrant for a peace officer pursuant to Code
37 Section 17-4-40, which citation shall be personally served
38 upon the accused. The defendant shall not be arrested
39 prior to the time of trial, except that a defendant who
40 fails to appear for arraignment or trial may thereafter be
41 arrested pursuant to a bench warrant and required to post
42 a bond for his or her future appearance."
_________________________________
Links to: CAUTION Macon,
If you believe the public has a right to public records, or are willing to help, please send me an email.
Thank-you, Lindsay Holliday www.hollidaydental.com