Earlier this month, students in Mercer University’s Murphy Center for Collaborative Journalism sent open records requests to agencies in Macon-Bibb, Houston, Jones and Monroe counties in an effort to check their compliance with Georgia’s law and gauge their accessibility to members of the public. You can see a list of all the grades here.
Agency: Jones County Commissioner
Records that were requested: Minutes from the September 17, 2024 Jones County Commissioners’ meeting.
When did you hear back?: I submitted my request on October 1, 2024 and I heard back on October 2, 2024.
Did the agency request a fee?: No
Describe the response: The response was quick and received a digital copy of the minutes as requested.
Assign a grade for contact/process: A; It was relatively easy to contact the person in charge of my request. The email was available on the website.
Assign a grade for response: A; Shannon Wagner from the Jones County Commissioners Office responded within 24 hours and she sent me exactly what I needed.
Grading scale for the ease of contacting agency staff and finding or filing for public records.
A: Agency uses an online portal or has a clearly defined process or contact on its website for requesting public records. An “A” agency may also readily provide the most commonly requested records on its website, including agendas and meeting minutes.
B: Agency has some public information online such as meeting agendas or meeting times, but additional information on how to request public information is not available. There is contact information available for staff.
C: Agency website has contact information for staff but nothing specific about how to request public information.
D: Agency has limited contact information on its website but it is not clearly labeled and/or easily accessible.
F: Agency contact information or how to get public records is not available on the website.
Grade scale for agency’s overall responsiveness and compliance with open records law
A: Provided records within the three-day window or less.
B Acknowledgedf the request within the three-day requirement, but records were provided after three days.
C: Acknowledged the request but then put forth a long timetable for response or requested a high fee or retrieval price for what should be a digital record and/or PDF that could be emailed.
D: Acknowledged the request but no further information or follow-up.
F: No response.
