Dear Ronnie:1. So how many no-bid contracts are there? What is their total dollar value this year?
2. Please send printout/list and total dollar value today, without further delays.
3. It's your job. Don't shirk it.
4. You should be consulted every single time there is a no-bid contract. You should know the answer.
5. We have a Right to Know. It's our money.
6. Ronnie, your constantly attempting to inflict fees reflects deep flaws in your Weltanschauung. It rather reminds me of the time a quarter century ago, when I was working for the Chief Judge at USDOL, Honorable Nahum Litt, and I attended at his requst the U.S. Attorney General's Advocacy Institute course on FOIA at the Justice Department in 1988. Controversial Reagan Attorney General Edwin Meese's acolytes told us to charge fees to discourage requesters. We were told to use fees to discourage people learning about our government. It was a vulgar display, by small-minded government lawyers, who worked for a tyrant, one who evidently believed "L e'tat, c'est moi."
7. We expect better from the City of St. Augustine with John Regan as City Manager. As President Clinton said, "Nothing great was ever accomplished by being small."
8. Your acting like an anti-information energumen, a proverbial cognitive miser, and your constantly attempting to inflict discriminatory and confiscatory fees on certain public interest requesters is demeaning to our City, to you, and your office. It is contrary to the genius of a free people. It does not show vision, or class, or any conception of why government exists.
9. Please cease and desist from all avoidance, evasion, pettifoggery, flummery and dupery from this day forward. You will feel better about yourself, and others will respect you more!
10. Please call to discuss.
Thank you.
With kindest regards, I am,
Sincerely yours,
Ed
-----Original Message-----
From: Ron Brown
To: easlavin
Subject: RE: Copies of all no-bid contracts and annual cost of no-bid contracts for two cities, one town, our county government, the three large special taxing districts and our five constitutional officers serving St. Johns County, Florida
Good Afternoon: In response:
1. The revised scope of request reduces the research burden but does not eliminate it. The City’s staff still must research and identify all currently in force contracts for the identification of no bid contracts which may require five or more hours of staff time at a cost of $90.00 or more.
2. The costs cited do not include the production of paper copies but address only the extraordinary research time required. The referenced Attorney General opinion is irrelevant, therefore.
3. Whether one may believe the fee is ”tribute,” it, nonetheless, is statutorily allowed. Thank you.
From: easlavin@aol.com [mailto:easlavin@aol.com]
Sent: Monday, June 09, 2014 11:02 AM
To: Ron Brown;
Subject: Re: Copies of all no-bid contracts and annual cost of no-bid contracts for two cities, one town, our county government, the three large special taxing districts and our five constitutional officers serving St. Johns County, Florida
Dear Ronnie:
1. All no-bid contracts currently in force. Please post on city website for all to see by close of business today.
2. No charge. Electronic records. See State Attorney General opinion AGO 2013-03: http://myfloridalegal.com/__85256236006EB5E1.nsf/0/C50E174E0287AFB185257B03005C63BA?Open&Highlight=0,records,electronic
3. In the words of the great American diplomat, Charles Cotesworth Pinckney, "Not one penny for tribute."
Please call to discuss.
Cheers,
Ed Slavin
904-377-4998
-----Original Message-----
From: Ron Brown
To: easlavin
Sent: Mon, Jun 9, 2014 10:50 am
Subject: RE: Copies of all no-bid contracts and annual cost of no-bid contracts for two cities, one town, our county government, the three large special taxing districts and our five constitutional officers serving St. Johns County, Florida
Good Morning: The City of St. Augustine today acknowledges receipt of this correspondence dated June 7, 2014. The City understands the correspondence to include a request for the review and copying of public records in two categories: “no bid” contracts and the “annual cost” of “no bid” contracts. The requests do not include parameters as to times and dates. The City’s General Services and Procurement Office indicates that, given the extreme breadth of the search parameters, the staff would be required to expend an extraordinary amount of staff time in excess of 15 minutes to identify and locate the total number of the possible responsive documents. The staff estimates that this identification and location process will require no fewer than 12 hours at an approximate cost of $216.00 for which the City is entitled to request a deposit in advance. Once the staff have identified and located the relevant documents. the staff will require additional time to review and prepare the documents for review and to prepare copies of same. The amount of additional time required will depend on the number of responsive documents identified and located. It is the understanding of our Office that no summary exists of the “annual cost” of “no bid” contracts. The City understands the request to include a total of the contract prices of “no bid” contracts for all years for which the City possesses or controls responsive records. The City does not possess or control responsive documents including such a summary, and the City is not required to create a document in response to a public records request. Please advise our Office regarding how you wish to proceed. In the event the actual time required to perform the initial search proves less than 16 hours, the City will credit you with the difference. In the event the actual time exceeds 16 hours, the City will notify you accordingly and will expect payment of the difference prior to conduction further work on the request. Thank you.
-----Original Message-----
From: easlavin
Subject: Copies of all no-bid contracts and annual cost of no-bid contracts for two cities, one town, our county government, the three large special taxing districts and our five constitutional officers serving St. Johns County, Florida
Dear Mr. Royle, Ms. Lopez, Mr. McCormack, Ms. Jack, Mr. Wuellner, Dr. Xue, Sheriff Shoar, Mr. Hollingsworth, Ms. Oakes, Ms. Strickland, Ms. Monson, Ms. Outland, et al.
Please send. Please place on your respective websites.
I look forward to dialogue about reforming government procurement as we know it.
Thank you.
WIth kindest regards, I am,
Sincerely yours,
Ed Slavin
www.cleanupcityofstaugustine.blogspot.com
904-377-4998
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