DESIGNING WOMEN
&
Playwright’s characters reveal a rich female perspective throughout history. B-4
The Gazette DAMASCUS | CLARKSBURG
DAILY UPDATES ONLINE www.gazette.net
Wednesday, March 19, 2014
25 cents
Who wants
TO KNOW? n
Tenants, businesses, watchdogs, parents and more, records study shows BY
ANDREW SCHOTZ STAFF WRITER
Last year, the public asked local government bodies for copies of employees’ salaries, property inspection reports and information about a mysterious 1990 homicide. Motorists who received tickets from cameras pointed at their vehicles were an active subgroup, requesting information to help them fight their tickets. Watchdogs sought copies of expense reports showing how school system officials were spending
taxpayers’ money. Much of it was public and available through a simple request, under Maryland’s sunshine laws. Sometimes, the records were considered private and the request was denied. Maryland’s Public Information Act guides the release of public records. Local residents, law firms, out-of-state businesses and journalists filed hundreds of PIA requests last year with government bodies in Montgomery County. This year, The Gazette asked Montgomery County, Montgomery County Public Schools and 19 municipalities within the county for copies of all of the PIA requests they received in 2013. The newspaper asked for a copy of each request, the government’s reply and, when feasible, the information that was provided to fulfill those requests. The study was done in conjunction with Sunshine Week, a national effort by news organizations and open-government
DAN GROSS/THE GAZETTE
Brothers David Vu (left) and Yimeem Vu of Washington, D.C., try their luck fishing Sunday on Little Seneca Lake in Boyds. Yimeem Vu said they had cabin fever and needed to get out;. Good thing they did: That night, another snowstorm hit the county, dumping up to 10 inches.
SPRING ON THE HORIZON
See SUNSHINE, Page A-10
INSIDE AND ONLINE
BUT WINTER WEATHER STILL HANGING AROUND IN MARCH
n How local governments did when asked for PIA information – chart, Page A-10 n Editorial: Information belongs to you – Page A-14 n The types of records sought locally through PIA in 2013 www.gazette.net
PAUL LAYER The Gazette talked to several people in Montgomery County who made Maryland Public Information Act requests in 2013 about their experiences. For other Q&A profiles, go to www.gazette.net. Name: Paul Layer Hometown: Damascus Occupation: Federal government worker How many Public Information Act requests have you ever made (to any government body)? Estimate if necessary: Six or seven requests over the past two or three years. In 2013, you asked the city of Gaithersburg for: the locations of its speed cameras and whether the locations have been published in a newspaper, as required. After successfully fighting a 2012 speed-camera ticket he received in Damascus, Layer asked Gaithersburg in August 2013 for information about its cameras. Separately, in December
Data are from Baltimore-Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport.
15 12
PIA PEOPLE:
2013, he requested from the Montgomery County Police Department deployment records for three cameras in Damascus and one in Germantown. Did you get what you wanted? How was your experience?: Three weeks after his request, the city of Gaithersburg sent 11 pages of information. In response to Layer’s December 2013 request, the police department told him it would take eight hours of staff time. After two free hours, as directed by law, the county would charge $110 an hour, for a total of $660. Layer said he doesn’t have the time or resources to follow through
See LAYER, Page A-10
SPORTS
SPRING SPORTS PREVIEW
Baseball, softball, lacrosse, track and field start this week. See which teams are the favorites.
B-1
2013-14
SNOWFALL (IN INCHES)
n
14.2 11.9*
9.8
9
Sunday’s snow keeping sports teams from play
NORMAL
BY KRISTA BRICK STAFF WRITER
8.0
6.8
6
2.9 3.0
3
1.9**
DECEMBER
JANUARY
FEBRUARY
* through Monday ** for all of March
MARCH*
SOURCE: NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE
It’s an annual rite of spring when baseball players take to the diamond for spring training. Well, Mother Nature apparently is not a fan of spring sports. Spring may start Thursday, but due to the harsh, wet winter that’s been hanging on through March, the county’s athletic fields, including local
parks, elementary and middle schools, are closed to teams that ordinarily would be starting their spring play now. Those fields have beckoned to players, as warmer weather crept into the county Friday and Saturday. But those same inviting fields found themselves blanketed by up to 10 more inches of snow Monday morning. The restriction will be reassessed daily but is in place to prevent surface damage, according to the county. The decision affects all the county’s
See SPRING, Page A-10
Final Ten Mile vote postponed by council n
Staff needs more time to draft resolution
BY
VIRGINIA TERHUNE STAFF WRITER
The County Council has postponed its final vote to amend the 1994 Clarksburg Master Plan by setting limits on development in the Ten
Automotive Business Calendar Celebrations Classified Entertainment Opinion School News Sports Please
B-13 A-11 A-2 A-13 B-9 B-4 A-14 A-12 B-1
RECYCLE
Mile Creek watershed. Originally set for March 25, the final vote has been tentatively rescheduled for April 1 to allow the staff more time to draft the final resolution, Marlene Michaelson, senior legislative analyst for the council, wrote in an email on Tuesday.
See TEN MILE, Page A-10
Close, but no title TOM FEDOR/THE GAZETTE
Damascus High School’s (from left) Jaki Frierman, Carri Connor, Kelli Prange and Jenna Kaufman keep their chins up after falling short in the Class 3A state basketball championship game Saturday The Swarmin’ Hornets lost, 40-37, to Milford Mill Academy. Story, B-2.
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