Budget woes could cut into county's ability to comply with state law

Slashing El Paso County's budget could leave some government agencies unable to comply with state law, officials said today.

One problem would be handing over documents to people who ask for them, an activity that state law says government agencies must do. News reporters, activists and other people routinely ask to review documents that show how the government is spending taxpayer money. Nicola Sapp, director of the county's Finance and Budget Department, said her staff won't be able to hand over documents within the law's 72-hour deadline if her budget is cut $147,000.

The county commissioners heard from Sapp and other department heads today about how budget cuts will affect county services. The commissioners expect to make a decision today on what services to slash.

A state law called the Colorado Open Records Act says most government records are open for anyone to review and copy. It says the government has to provide access to the records immediately unless they're in active use or storage. In that case, officials can wait up to 72 hours to give the records. If the request involves a lot of records from many sources, the government can take an additional 10-day extension.

Sapp said if she has to cut five people from her 22-person staff she'll be unable to respond quickly to records request.

"We would have to request an extension on every single one of these requests," Sapp said.

Recently, the Finance and Budget Department has received three or four records requests daily, Sapp said.

The Gazette has sued El Paso County and other governments for refusing to provide public records. The lawsuits typically involve records that officials don't believe they must release rather than a delay in receiving the records.

The records in Sapp's office detail all of El Paso County's roughly $230 million in spending each year. They track spending on things including cars, computers, travel and land purchases.