Huber Heights City Council will consider whether an influx in public records requests merits the hiring of a new city employee.
Vice Mayor Tyler Starline proposed researching whether hiring a new, part-time public records employee would assist Clerk of Council Anthony Rodgers, who said the requests can at times take up to one-third of his time in the office.
“It ebbs and flows, but it seems like it’s flowing now,” Rodgers said during a recent council work session. “The problem is we’re getting increasingly complex levels of requests.”
Among those requests, Rodgers said, are requests from elected officials. Council members have disagreed over whether they are subject to having to file records requests.
Public records have been at the center of several controversies in Huber Heights in recent months, resulting in several internal investigations and, in one case, a request for Ohio Auditor of State Dave Yost to investigate. The request was rejected.