More thoughts on the regional property database and State Supreme Court case, Commissioner of Public Safety v. Freedom of Information Commission.

As a follow up to the Record Journal story Mayor backs regional database, but without property data (cross posted to my blog) and my response follow up on my Town Council page where I offered my own take on the subject and just how much information is already out there, I have been discussing this with a number of people to get their thoughts, feedback and input.

On person I had an email exchange with offered to me a link to the SUMMARY OF COMMISSIONER OF PUBLIC SAFETY VS. FOIC which I am going to review. (A quick “thank you” to them for their thoughts and these points of reference; we have different mindsets here but I need that to remain as objective as possible).

The full majority opinion is available at the following link: http://www.jud.ct.gov/external/supapp/Cases/AROcr/CR301/301CR37.pdf. The concurrence is available here: http://www.jud.ct.gov/external/supapp/Cases/AROcr/CR301/301CR37A.pdf

One point that was made to me was “suppose you're a member of a protected class under the statute (also referenced in the Supreme Court decision I sent you). If I, as a private citizen or corporation, make your home address public, nobody can do anything to me as far as I know. If, however, I am the town assessor and make your address public, I'm violating state law.”

So I am going to see where my thoughts are to issues like that after I read the ruling. The bottom line here – I believe that currently I could walk into the town assessor's office right now and get data relative to those individuals that are part protected class under the statute (I might be mistaken – I am going to review and I will let you know). The town assessor is already making that information public if I walk in – if my thought process is correct, how is he or she suddenly in violation if that information is available online?

I suppose this is one of those situation where “the devil is in the details.”

I’ll have to look at it and follow up.

Mayor backs regional database, but without property data

As published in the Record Journal Saturday March 10, 2012

By Dan Ivers
Record-Journal staff
divers@record-journal.com
(203) 317-2275

WALLINGFORD — Mayor William W. Dickinson Jr. is recommending that the town endorse a grant application that would help create a regional property database, but he will not allow the release of the town’s records.

The South Central Regional Council of Governments is applying for the $591,028 grant from the state’s Office of Policy and Management, with the intention of creating a central database for property information in its 15 member towns.

Dickinson has recommended that the Town Council endorse the agency’s proposal, but said Friday he objects to the posting of information on individual properties in town.

“I’m not sure why people in Russia or China should be able to look up what your property looks like. I just don’t see the benefit,” he said.

Town Councilor John Le-Tourneau, who co-chaired the council’s Information Technology Committee, said he wanted to hear more about Dickinson’s reasoning, but doesn’t understand his reluctance to take full advantage of the grant.

“We’re not plowing new ground. Other towns do it and they’ve done it successfully for a number of years,” he said. “On the surface, I don’t see the problem.”

Eight of the regional council’s 15 member towns, including Meriden, already provide online access to property records through technology called Geographic Information Systems. The systems have details on each property, including photos, assessed value, owner information and year of construction. In Wallingford, however, people have to go to the tax assessor’s office to get the same information.

If the grant is awarded, the regional council would create a database for Wallingford, North Haven, New Haven, Madison, Orange, East Haven and Woodbridge, and expand existing programs in the other eight towns to include information on demographics, economic development, environmental features and transportation. All the improvements would come at no cost to the towns.

“Those municipalities without a web-based GIS program will have access to a dynamic regional system, while municipalities with a web-based GIS program will gain access to new data layers,” the grant application reads.

Dickinson said he recommended that the council endorse the grant so the additional information on demographics, transportation and economic development could be included, but he said he will not release any data on individual properties for inclusion.

He cited concern over a recent Supreme Court decision that barred towns from posting information that includes the addresses of public safety officials, such as police officers, judges and correction officers.

“If someone can tell me how we can guarantee there won’t be privacy issues, that’s fine. But no one’s been able to tell me that,” he said.

Last year, Dickinson rejected a recommendation from the Information Technology Committee to make property records available online for an estimated cost of $6,000. He cited many of the same concerns, including the Supreme Court decision, as his reasoning.

Should the grant be approved, it would take about two years for the database to be launched.