Graham Questions Legality of Scott's Sinkhole Secrecy

Press Release

Six weeks after first requesting public records pertaining to the state's secret sinkhole, Representative Gwen Graham is demanding to know why Governor Rick Scott and the Florida Department of Environmental Protection are stalling the release of emails related to the controversy.

"Public records are the one tool we have to keep Governor Rick Scott and his Department of Environmental Protection honest. They kept the sinkhole secret for weeks -- and now they're stalling on our public records requests, "Graham said. "Floridians have a right to know the truth, and if the governor won't hold the Department of Environmental Protection accountable for this massive mistake, we will."

Graham's office has been told by DEP officials that it has taken weeks for the department to complete a legal review of the records, and that the department's communications team is also reviewing the public records before releasing them. In letters to Governor Rick Scott and DEP Secretary Steverson, Graham pointed out this may constitute a violation of the state's Sunshine Law. Copies of the letters and public record requests can be viewed here.

"As you are aware, Florida courts have ruled that an agency's unjustified delay in producing public records constitutes an unlawful refusal to provide access to the requested records, in violation of chapter 119, Fla. Stat. The only delay in releasing public records permitted by law "is the limited reasonable time allowed the custodian to retrieve the record and delete those portions of the record the custodian asserts are exempt.'" Graham wrote in the letter. "Because this request does not involve an ongoing criminal investigation and the requested communications are unlikely to include exempt or confidential information (such as local residents' Social Security numbers), there should be very little information to redact from these records. There is no excuse for this process to take longer than a few days -- certainly not six weeks."

Rep. Graham requested public records from the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) six weeks ago, on Friday, September 23. After Rick Scott claimed Steverson, his own hand-picked DEP secretary, kept the sinkhole secret from the governor's office, Rep. Graham sent a second public records request for communication from the governor's office on September 29, 36 days ago. Neither request, which only include electronic communication, has been answered.

This is not the first time Rick Scott has skirted the state's Sunshine Laws. The governor and Florida Cabinet have spent more than $1 million in taxpayer funds, including $445,000 from the DEP, on legal fees and settlements for public record violations.

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