MADISON, Wis. (AP) -- A state lawmaker is pushing a bill that would allow government entities to charge record requestors for time spent deleting confidential information.
Rep. Garey Bies' proposal comes after the state Supreme Court last year barred record custodians from charging requestors for redaction expenses. The ruling came out of a dispute between the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel newspaper and the Milwaukee Police Department. The newspaper sued after the department demanded thousands of dollars to cover time spent redacting hundreds of incident reports.
Bies, a Republican from Sister Bay, says the taxpayers shouldn't have to foot the bill for a requestor's research project. He sent a memo out to the rest of the Legislature on Friday seeking sponsors for the legislation.
A spokeswoman for Assembly Speaker Robin Vos had no immediate comment.
