DOC will pay $65,000 in open-records case

OLYMPIA — The state Department of Corrections will pay $65,000 to settle a lawsuit over its refusal to provide electronic versions of benefits records, even though the agency recently won a court decision in the case.

The settlement comes after a September directive to state agencies from Gov. Christine Gregoire, telling officials they should strive to "make electronic copies of nonexempt public records available."

In a statement released Wednesday, the prisons agency said it "believes in the importance of open government and is committed to disclosing public records under all appropriate circumstances."

The case involved a document request by Douglas Moore, a Tacoma man who was seeking information from several state agencies about employee health-care coverage.

About 10 other government agencies provided electronic databases in response to Moore's requests, but the Department of Corrections (DOC) argued that it lacked the software to redact private employee information from its database.

The DOC offered free inspection of the data and had offered to make paper copies of the records for $8,900.

In June, Thurston County Superior Court Judge Christine Pomeroy ruled that the agency was required to disclose its information but said Moore had no inherent right to get the data in electronic form.

That decision was being appealed when the case was settled. The DOC said Wednesday that it delivered electronic copies of the records to Moore earlier this month.

Moore's lawyer, Stephen Festor, said "government agencies should see DOC's payment as a warning to not withhold electronic records."

Moore had sought the information to determine whether part-time and intermittent employees were receiving health benefits.

Moore has a separate lawsuit pending in King County over his denial of benefits for three months a year in his job as a race steward for the state Horse Racing Commission.