Advisory Opinion 06-011

Facts and Procedural History:

On February 6, 2006, IPAD received a letter dated same, from Tony Pistilli. In his letter, Mr. Pistilli asked the Commissioner to issue an advisory opinion regarding his right to gain access to certain data from Sherburne County.

IPAD, on behalf of the Commissioner, wrote to Brian Bensen, Administrator of the County, in response to Mr. Pistilli's request. The purposes of this letter, dated February 10, 2006, were to inform him of Mr. Pistilli's request and to ask him to provide information or support for the County's position. On February 21, 2006, IPAD received a response, dated same, from Todd Schoffelman, Assistant Sherburne County Attorney.

A summary of the facts as Mr. Pistilli provided them is as follows. In a January 5, 2006, letter to the County he wrote:

Can I gain access electronically and inspect, remotely from my computer, not a copy, without fee, information such as dwelling size, property sketch, number of finished rooms in the basement and main level, etc., that is located on the subscription based Sherburne County GIS web site?

I am aware that the data that I am requesting is also contained within the County but outside of the GIS web site.

I have already inspected certain data available on the Sherburne County public web site and some of the data is available in the subscription -based portion of the County web site.

I am looking specifically for the additional data not available on the Sherburne County web site without subscription.

The County responded on January 25, 2006, The information you seek is available over the internet, by subscription. You can also inspect the same information, at no cost, at the Sherburne County Assessor's Office. However, if you wish to have copies of the data, you will need to pay the applicable copying charge.

In his opinion request, Mr. Pistilli wrote, The information I was requesting is collected and assembled using public tax dollars. Some of this information is available to the public via the Internet. The other public information is being restricted from public viewing on the Internet and is only available for viewing with a subscription.

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Issue:

Based on Mr. Pistillit's opinion request, the Commissioner agreed to address the following issue:

Did Sherburne County comply with Minnesota Statutes, Chapter 13, in denying access to a request to inspect, remotely, certain data the County maintains?

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Discussion:

Minnesota Statutes, section 13.03, subdivision 3(b), states, in part, A government entity may charge a fee for remote access to data where either the data or the access is enhanced at the request of the person seeking access.

In his comments to the Commissioner, Mr. Schoeffelman argued that, here, both the access and the data are enhanced:

Sherburne County's paid subscribers have access to the following enhanced remote access and enhanced data:

1. The ability to search property records by last name of property owner.

2. The ability to do a comparable search of every parcel in Sherburne County by the following parameters:

a. Year Built
b. Total Square Footage
c. Construction Quality
d. Bedrooms
e. Sale Price
f. Sale Date
g. Assessed Value
h. Style of dwelling

3. The ability to access property ownership information.

4. The ability to access per parcel dwelling details, such as square feet of dwelling, number of bedrooms and bathrooms and the year the dwelling was built.

5. The ability to review any available sketches of a dwelling.

6. The ability to review sales history of a dwelling.

7. The ability to access the above mentioned data 24 hours a day and 365 days a year.

8. The unlimited ability to remotely download, print and/or copy the above mentioned enhanced data 24 hours a day and 365 days a year.

All of these enhancements assist the subscriber in searching and accessing public data.

Of particular note, is searching for comparable properties. This remote enhancement and data enhancement allows for near instantaneous and simultaneous search of all the public data maintained by the Assessor's Office according to subscriber chosen parameters and manipulation.

The same search conducted in person at the Assessor's Office would either require the manual searching of numerous public documents or using the public access computer. Both of these searches would have to occur during business hours. The individual would also need to pay any applicable copying fees.

Unfortunately, if Sherburne County can not use this modest reasonable fee to help offset the cost of maintaining this remote access, Sherburne County will have to cancel its contract with the outside vendor that provides this service and cease offering any remote access to its public data. The fee structure in Minn. Stat. 13.03 Subd (3) (b), recognizes this fiscal limitation of government and provides for Sherburne County's reasonable fee for access to the enhanced remote access to data and enhanced data. Consequently, Sherburne County's fee is legal.

Based on Mr. Schoffelman's comments, it appears to the Commissioner that the subscription service available from Sherburne County does offer data and access that have been enhanced. According to Mr. Schoffelman, the County has at least 32 subscribers. Thus, based on the language in section 13.03, subdivision 3(b), the County may charge a fee.

Mr. Pistilli argues that he should be able to gain access remotely, without charge or enhancement, to the same types of data that are available to individuals who pay the subscription fee. However, nothing in Chapter 13 requires government entities to provide inspection of public data on a remote basis. Clearly, though, pursuant to section 13.03, subdivision 3(a), Mr. Pistilli is entitled to inspect and/or obtain copies of any and all public data in the Assessor's Office at reasonable times and places set by the County.

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Opinion:

Based on the facts and information provided, my opinion on the issue that Mr. Pistilli raised is as follows:

Sherburne County complied with Minnesota Statutes, Chapter 13, in denying access to a request to inspect, remotely, certain data the County maintains.

Signed:

Dana B. Badgerow
Commissioner

Dated: March 28, 2006

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