Kaye Holman: Freedom of Information Fighter

[XLFD]

Ludington City Councilor at-large Kaye Holman had a couple stacks of papers at her side and made a speech at the Monday 8-13-2012 Ludington City Council meeting.  It was directed at yours truly and the Freedom of Information Act, well mostly at me.  Since I couldn't say anything at the meeting, I include my commentary in red here.  Her diatribe begins after the 26:00 mark.

"Everyone is asking me what the papers are for  [I knew it was going to be part of a visual aid.]  Tom, thanks for coming [you're welcome is what I would say if I had the opportunity to speak, but as per the rules of order, I would have to sit mute for the rest]  These two stacks of papers constitute about 90% of all the FOIAs that we have had to copy, to send to Tom, because of his Freedom of Information [Note: I have had about 30-40 copies sent to me in total, all paid for without any indigency bonus.  I ask to 'inspect' the records, which generally requires no copies to be made, they generally have opted to send it scanned to me via E-mail.  About half of the two stacks were from my one FOIA described in "Innerview with a Vamper"]

Now I believe in Freedom of Information, what that means is, yes, you can ask for it and yes we will give it to you, unless it is an open thing such as we have had lately with the Fetters and a couple of other things we just simply can't [I haven't asked the City for anything regarding the Fetters' shooting, the two investigation records I have asked for, they surely can and must if they follow the law When open governments...]  However, these are the originals of the copies that Tom has gotten [correction: over 98% that Tom has either inspected or received electronic images of.]  We have approximately $6500 in fees, $6500 in fees, but you get a credit if you're indigent (point, smirk), you get a $20 credit (point, smirk) if you're indigent [the $6500 is an arbitrary figure they get when they add in illegal costs such as attorney fees.   I have paid for all the material that I have inspected or received.  I really appreciate you dissing indigent people interested in why their government is doing corrupt acts, Ms. Holman.  Maybe next meeting I'll point to you, smirk and say wealthy, and repeat myself.]

You have approximately 150 hours included in this which includes time for the people who work here, that have to take time from their day [... to do their official duty of providing records via FOIA].  Now consider if you're a minimum wage employee, which is..., I don't even know what minimum wage is now [$7.40 an hour, do your homework, Kaye] , say you make $10 an hour, and you spend 3 hours a day, 5 days a week, that's 15 hours, that's $150 that the City is paying someone to make these copies [again, if copies are being made, they are not following my request to either inspect or receive scanned images].

And I'm sorry, but I consider this a fishing expedition [your speech?]; I think it is done to harass the City [your speech?!]; and I truly believe that or I wouldn't be standing up here [giving your speech?].  We copy actual records [when they don't need to], we have time, we have 100 of staff hours, close to a thousand of staff hours [quick math fact:  1000 hr. X $10/hour minimum wage = $10,000 minimum for these, a bit more than her arbitrary $6500 figure earlier-- is the City paying under minimum wage?  Hardly.] since this whole mess was started.

We have... this is approximately two feet, three feet, something (pointing to stack).  Normally, we get 4-6 FOIA requests per year (hand wave, repeated).  Here we are.  Attorney fees are included in this; now we do pay our City Attorney, our City Attorney is on a retainer but if he's working, and we're having to go to him with many of these if not all [let's ask ourselves why the City uses the $185/hour CA to gauge how best to dodge giving out information for most of their responses.]  Most of them-- OK so if we're paying him X amount of dollars per year [$40,000 plus $185/hr. for special projects] and I don't have those figures [I do.] and I'm not going to give you one [I can.]   If we're paying him X amount of dollars and he's having to take part of that time, and he's taking that time over a course of a year, 40 hours a week, I don't know [I do, its about 7 hrs a week, 28 hrs per month.], which is what most of us work, but because he's got to play with this mess (flourish at the papers), he's now working 50 hours a week [hmm, my less than one FOIA request per week causes the City Attorney to work 10 extra hours that week.  Wow, I had no idea...]

Don't you think, don't you think, that he's gonna say "You aren't paying me enough." [$185 an hour is plenty for these special projects.]  There we are again with the money.  It's costing the City a lot for Tom to go fishing [and I don't even have a marina slip under surveillance by the City!]  I have no idea what he uses them for [read the Ludington Torch and find out, Kaye, or curse the darkness.], I don't care [I do], I don't know [I do know], I'm sure he's not going to tell me [tell you what Kaye, I will go through my whole list of City FOIA requests next meeting and tell you exactly what I was fishing for, the reason I was fishing, and show you the fish I caught, and even the ones that got away.  I'll need more than five minutes however...] 

But I'm having a real hard time with this and that's why, because of this (points to papers), and this isn't all of it; John Shay has them all laid out on his counter and I didn't want to mess up his counter any more [... than I did at the last office party.]  The dollar rate will go up, hourly we're paying these people, and again I don't know what the average hourly rate is here [I do, once again thanks to FOIA], we'll pick the $10 figure [for City Hall workers, guess again, the lowest clerk goes for over $15, the City manager around $70 per hour].

Right back to paying and paying and paying and I frankly don't have any idea what Tom is doing with these [could it be exposing the corrupt City in action, Kaye?] , other than one of my favorite phrases (mumble) the tail is trying to wag the dog [this idiom means:  An item of minor importance dominating a situation-- I don't get it either].  And I resent that deeply, I resent that DEEPLY [I still don't get it either, even with her repeating it.]

I'm going to be here for two more years [knock on wood] and I'm probably not going to shut up (fit of cackling).  Those of you that know me, know that I take it very seriously, very, very seriously [why?], and I don't intend to stop talking about it [but I'm restricted to five minutes, is that fair?] and if I bring more of these out (points to papers) I will [no, puh-leeze not again, have mercy], because I believe it is only fair that (mumble) other than costing the City and its... it's not me, I'm a taxpayer, you're all taxpayers also, right?  Everybody in this room and the people watching are all taxpayers, we're paying for this, we're paying and paying and paying [there goes her paying ramble again], and I have to say again, I resent that deeply.  Thank you

[XLFD]

Good for you, Phil.  What he said is absolutely true.  City Councilor Tykoski and Mayor Henderson currently are on and represent the Ludington Fire Department.  Heaven help us.

 

[AQUAMAN]

I TRULY think Gerry Funk has outlasted his tenure, if in fact he has any, God help us, take your lard belly and do your job, not your "son-in-laws bidding"!

[Wanda Marrison]

Get it correct Tom, the mayor IS NOT the son in law of the chief. You continually post this FALSE INFORMATION. Better give yourself a "time out" to research your facts.

[XLFD]

I'm sorry if I forgot that fact, I remember John's wife maiden name was  Penny Funk.  Is the Chief his uncle in law?   Thank you.

[Wanda Marrison]

I would find that hard to believe if it wasn't coming from a person that demands facts to backup their statements on this blog. Tom you have "forgot" to verfied your facts many many many times on this blog. That is a verifiable fact here.

Please do your research that you are so good at. You will find the correct fact.

 

[XLFD]

That's Fourth Ward City Councilor Wanda Marrison, once again showing why it costs the City of Ludington so much to get simple information to citizens. 

Wanda,  I could care less about  their filial relationship, other than I want to correct the record, since I have apparently flubbed it here.  I was on the LFD with both for 8 years, they're very close; I expected it was a father-son in law relationship, because Penny Funk Henderson treated the Chief like a father.

[XLFD]

Wanda,

I do appreciate any corrections you make regarding the family tree of the Mayor,  but what about the corrections I made to Ms. Holman's fictitious claims such as:

1)   I make the City Attorney work an extra ten hours a week on FOIA requests.

2)   I have made the City make copies of all those documents, when I expressly ask for inspection or scanned copies, or had them send them to me through the mail.  That would be a lot of postage.

3)  That I requested anything to do with Fetters (yet, LOL).

4)  That someone is working 15 hours a week just to make copies for me and my less than one FOIA a week, requesting to inspect.

5)  A thousand staff hours?  That's roughly ten hours per request and most are simple.

6)  The City Attorney has been used for most of the requests, nearly all?  Why, especially at $185/hr?  Few of my requests have exemptions.

[Wanda Marrison]

your many request have created extra man hours of work. over and abovet his paid monthly retainer. he works so many hours a month for one fee and anything over that is an hourly fee. My taxes paying for all these to be found, presented to you either by ectronic means or by veiwing. A quilfied staff memvber would have  to drop  their daily work schedule to watch you viewing.records. . That is a lot of my tax money go to what. Keeping up a 5 year olf traffic ticked vinda.

[XLFD]

Wanda, the City Attorney does not need to be used for FOIA requests at all, unless the FOIA Coordinator

1) doesn't know the heck what he's doing or

2) does know the heck what he's doing, and he wants to be able to get away with it and not go around the law by too much.

[Willy]

Wanda, you just don't get it. It is public information. Quit acting like you and other City officials are doing a favor by releasing it. And it's your's and the City's  decision to use an attorney who is involved with the FOIA's. So your actually complaining about your own actions because you are the people who are unecessarily running up a large tab at the taxpayers expense. Quit shifting the blame for the FOIA's and take a responsibility for your decisions.

[Wanda Marrison]

I was wondering why Tom wears the same shirt to every meeting. If he can't afford another on, I'd glady purchase him a few so he would have to where his red LFD shirt to every meeting.

I see some juvenile behavior in the guy wearing the LFD t shirt every CC meeting too.

[XLFD]

You know, Wanda, you have a good idea there.  I'll wear one of my many red and blue "Ludington Fire Department" shirts to a meeting and start an auction up on my now famous shirts.  Bids start at $40, and for you Wanda, I will give you the shirt off my back if you have the winning bid. 

When you say "I see some juvenile behavior in the guy wearing the LFD t shirt every CC meeting too." , do you mean that you see juvenile behavior elsewhere in the City Hall, such as by your associates?  I think we're making some progress here.