Grand County Sunshine Project by The Union

Scoring(Information

Grand(Lake

Financials

Kremmling

Notes Score Meeting-minutes-since-2011,-only-the-current-agenda-(B2).5 Bonus-for-board-packet-(+2)

Notes Meetings-and-agendas-only-since-2013-(B2)-Bonus-pointfor-posting-packet-(+2)

Budget/expenditures-posted-for-past-three-years(5)

Only-current-budget-(B1),-accounts-payable-posted

4.5

Only-current-budget-and-2013-budget-(B.5),-financialsposted-

Contact-information-of-elected-officials/staff--(5)

2.5

Emails-for-staff-and-mayor.-No-phone-numbers-for-anyofficials-(B1),-and-no-contact-info-for-other-electedofficials(B1.5).-

4.5

Included-emails--for-all-key-staff-and-elected-officials,-butonly-half-had-phone-numbers-(B.5).-Mayor-also-includescell-phone.--

4.5

Expenditures-financial-information-a-little-difficult-to-find-(B .5),-but-current-budget-is-clearly-posted,-and-agenda-andminutes-are-easy-to-find. Town-clerk-is-named-as-handling-records,-and-has-contactinfo,-and-website-has-a-records-request-form,-but-it's-veryhard-to-find-(B1). Meetings-info-posted-under-Mayor-and-Board-of-Trustees,as-well-as-FAQ.-

Website

Meetings

Granby

Score Minutes-&-agendas-posted-for-past-three-years-(5)------- 5 Bonus-for-posting-board-meeting-packet-(2)

Score

Notes Minutes-only-since-2013-(B2),-only-current-agenda-(B2)

Hot(Sulphur(Springs

Notes Meetings-and-agendas-only-since-2012-(B2)

Score

No-budgets-(B4)-but-expenditures-posted-for-current-year.We-asked-Kremmling-Town-Manager-Mark-Campbellabout-the-town’s-website-and-learned-the-town-hadupdated-its-website-three-months-prior-to-make-it-moreIncludes-names-of-officials-and-key-staff,-but-no-contactinfo.-(B4)-

No-budget-or-financials-posted

Minutes-and-agendas-easy-to-find,-as-are-expenditures.Website-is-easy-to-navigate.

No-information-on-this.

Fraser Score 2.5

Notes All-agendas-and-minutes-posted-for-past-three-years.Bonus-points-for-posting-board-packets-(+2).-

Only-the-current-budget-(B1),-no-expenditures-(B2)

Lists-all-elected-officials,-but-no-contact-info-(B2).-Includescontact-info-for-staff.-Lists-terms-for-all-elected-officials(+1)

Elected-officials-listed,-but-no-contact-info-(B2).-Staff-havecontact-info.

Minutes-and-agendas-are-easy-to-find,-but-no-financialdocuments.-(B1)

Where-available,-documents-are-easy-to-find-and-websiteeasy-to-navigate.-But-no-minutes.-(B2)

No-information-on-this

Upcoming-meeting-not-posted.-Only-the-last-one-(alreadyoccurred)

Town-hall-meetings-posted-on-town-calendar-page.

Information-is-under-Town-Clerk's-page,-which-includesopen-records-form,-instructions,-and-fees.-But-thisinformation-is-hard-to-find.-(B1) Meetings-announced-under-"Board-of-Trustees"--

0.5

The-most-bareBbones-agenda,-no-thoroughness-(B3).-Listsplace-of-meeting,-but-not-address-(B.5).-Times-for-agendaitems-not-listed-(B1).-Only-one-agenda-provided,-so-we-didnot-have-a-pool-to-compare-like-all-the-other-towns-(B5).We-could-only-find-the-current-agenda-online,-othersweren't-provided.-

Does-not-list-times-(B1),-but-does-provide-some-detail-andcontext-on-action-items.-Lists-time,-place-and-address-ofmeeting.--Thoroughness-is-lacking,-but-we-appreicate-thefact-they-list-dollar-amounts-associated-with-some-actionitems.-Public-comment-section-is-clear.-Consent-agendaneeds-explanation-for-those-who-don't-know-what-that-is.-

Lists-place-of-meeting,-but-not-address(B.5).-Do-list-timesof-agenda-items-for-some-meetings-(B.5).-Lists-fullordinances-and-provides-useful-details.-Lists-an-"openforum,"-but-confusing-as-to-whether-it's-a-public-commentperiod-(B.5).-Need-to-provide-instructions-for-publiccomment.-Need-to-explain-what-a-consent-agenda-is.-Butwe-like-that-they-note-upcoming-meetings.-(+.5)

Grand(County Score

General(notes

Notes All-agendas-and-minutes-easy-to-find.

Current-and-past-budgets-posted-under-financedepartment.-Also-include-comprehensive-financial-reportand-sales-tax-report,-but-no-expenditures.-(B1)

Current-and-past-budgets-posted,-financial-reports-posted,-but-no-expenditures.-(B1)

Websites-are-becoming-extremely-important-to-the-voting-public.-Theycan-serve-to-alleviate-the-need-for-copying-fees-and-recordsresearch/retrieval-fees.-If-governments-are-proactive-in-postinginformation-and-making-records-available-online,-it-saves-governmentstaff-the-exercise-of--answering-phone-calls-and-responding-to-simple-

Lists-council-members-and-includes-emails,-but-no-phonenumbers.-(B1)--Includes-contact-info-for-all-key-staff.

Contact-info-for-elected-offcials-easy-to-find,-including-emails-and-phone-numbers.Contact-info-for-all-key-staff-easy-to-find-under-relevant-department-sections.-Someelected-officials-have-photographs.

The-public-is-entitled-to-contact-information-of-the-people-it-elects-forrepresentation.-Contact-information-should-be-on-each-governmentwebsite,-and-should-be-easy-to-find.-

4.5

Budget-tricky-to-find,-should-be-posted-on-homepage-(B .5).-Webpage-easy-to-navigate,-other-documents-easy-tofind-under-relevant-sections. Procedure-published,-although-tricky-to-find-(B1),-underTown-Clerk-with-all-necessary-contact-info.-Fees-are-notpublished.-(B1) Meetings-are-generally-explained-on-website,-but-datesaren't-easy-to-find-(B3).

Site-is-easy-to-navigate,-and-documents-are-easy-to-find-under-relevant-departments.-

Fairly-easy-to-find-under-"Government-Transparency-Portal."-Form-includes-instructionsand-fees,-but-fees-are-only-explained-generally-(B2).

Posted-right-on-the-site's-front-page,-and-elsewhere-in-relevant-sections.

No-times-(B1).-Do-have-place-and-address.-Need-to-explainwhat-a-consent-agenda-is.-

Doesn't-list-place-of-meeting-or-address-(B1).-Do-list-times-very-thoroughly.-Sparse-withdetail-(B2)

Agendas-should-aspire-to-answer-"why-should-I-care?"-They-should-beclear-as-to-what-public-officials-are-really-doing-and-discussing.-The-moredetail,-the-better.

Ease-of-locating-documents-(5)

Budgets,-financial-and-minutes-relativey-easy-to-find.

Open-records-procedures-and-fees-publsihed-(5)

Meetings-notification-(5)

Website-includes-an-open-records-request-that-has-feespublished,-but-it's-hard-to-find.-Staff-responsible-forhandling-request-is-not-named-(B1),-no-contact-info-(B1).Meetings-are-all-included-on-town-calendar,-which-is-easyto-find.-

Agendas-thoroughness-(10)

Thourough-agenda-context,-but-no-times-for-agendaitems.-We-like-they-have-page-numbers-to-findinformation-in-the-packet,-which-is-also-included-as-part-ofthe-agenda.-Written-in-plain-langauge-that's-easy-tounderstand.-Doesn't-list-place-or-address-of-meeting(B1).Didn't-list-times-on-agenda-(B1)-We-didn’t-have-a-pool-touse-for-comparison.-All-the-other-towns-except-Kremmlingsupplied-us-with-digital-agendas,-but-Grand-Lake-requiredus-to-come-to-Town-Hall-to-view-them-and-make-copies.We-decided-to-dock-them-five-points-for-this.(B5)-We-likethey-call-public-comment-period-"citizen-participation"

9.5

The-best-agenda-in-our-opinion.-Very-thorough-withagenda-item-context.-Written-in-plain-langauge-that's-easyto-understand.-Easy-for-the-average-person-unfamiliarwith-public-meetings.-Public-comment-period-easy-to-find,with-instructions.-Times-for-discussion-period-listed.-Weencourage-all-other-government-agencies-to-look-toGranby-as-an-example.-One-thing-could-improve-on-islisting-place-of-meeting-B.5.

Minutes-thoroughness-(10)

4.5

Meeting-coverage-is-thorough,-minutes-like-a-transcriptincluding-public-comment.-However,-the-bulk-of-GrandLake-trustees'-discussions-goes-on-at-afternoonworkshops,-for-which-no-minutes-are-taken-and-there-areis-no-recording,-before-the-biBweekly-official-meetings.The-town-has-been-conducting-meetings-this-way-fordecades-as-a-way-to-limit-the-length-of-its-night-meetings-.Although-workshops-may-be-legal,-we-feel-consistentlyconducting-them-as-Grand-Lake-does-violates-the-spirit-ofthe-law-governing-open-meetings,-and-is-a-special-caseNo

Minutes-read-like-a-transcript.-Votes-are-clear-with-boldtype,-and-names-each-trustee's-yes-and-no-votes.

Action-items-and-votes-are-clearly-called-out-with-caps.Details-of-discussion-have-a-little-more-detail-than-sometowns,-but-could-be-more-thorough.-(B2)-Couldn't-find-acase-of-a-trustee-with-a-dissenting-vote-to-see-how-that-isrecorded.-

Not-very-thorough.-Very-general-explanations-of-trustees'discussion.-(B5)-Voting-clearly-called-out-with-caps.Couldn't-find-a-case-of-a-trustee-with-a-dissenting-vote-tosee-how-that-is-recorded.-

Not-very-thorough.-Very-general-explanations-of-trusteediscussion.-(B5)-Votes-are-bolded,-and-provide-a-votingbreakdown-when-votes-aren't-unanimous.-

We-appreciate-when-they-provide-a-breakdown-of-howcouncil-members-vote,-but-this-isn't-consistent.-Don'talways-provide-a-breakdown-how-trustees-voted.-(B5)-Notvery-thorough.-Very-general-explanations-of-councilmembers'-discussions.-(B5)

What-they-lack-in-agenda-thoroughness-they-make-up-for-in-minutes.-Minutes-are-likereading-a-transcript-of-the-meeting.-Votes-and-action-items-are-clear,-including-votes-ofindividual-commissioners.

There-is-no-law-on-how-mintues-should-be-executed,-so-there-is-little-wayto-avoid-subjectivity.-We-gave-high-scores-for-the-minutes-most-liketranscripts.-The-best-scenario-is-to-actually-be-at-the-meeting,-but-whenthat-is-not-possible,-minutes-can-serve-to-give-a-thorough-rundown-ofmeeting-details,-including-discussions.-Citizens-are-entitled-to-read-theopinions-of-elected-officials-on-all-topics-as-one-way-to-hold-themaccountable.-

Yes,-including-draft-notes

Yes,-stamped-"draft"-

Yes,-including-draft-notes

Yes,-1B2-days-after-meeting,-with-'draft'-watermark

Yes.-Meeting-details-also-emailed-to-subscribers

Since-it-sometimes-takes-weeks-to-get-minutes-approved-by-a-board,-wecommend-governments-that-share-minutes-in-draft-form.-According-toattorneys-with-the-Colorado-Press-Assocation,-draft-minutes-are-publicrecord-and-should-be-made-available.-

Yes 43-exec-sessions/-107-meetings-=(40(percent((63)

0 4

No Best-ratio-showing-least-executive-sessions,-but-did-notprovide-the-exact-number-of-meetings-so-we-had-tocalculate-using-general-number-of-meetings-per-month.-(B 1)-4-executive-sessions-/-120-meetings.-3(percent( Sufficient,-but-could-have-more-thorough-description-(B1).

0 5

No 10-executive-sessions/-82-meeting-=-12(percent(

2 0

Yes 66-exec-session/119-meetings,--=-55(percent((65)

2 3

Yes 51-executive-session/162-meetings-=(31.5(percent((62)

2 2

Yes 104-exec-sessions/-238-meetings-43.7(percent((63).((((

Good,-but-inconsistent-(B1)

Grand-County-does-a-good-job-of-recording-its-executive-sessions-information-before-and- We-asked-for-meeting-minutes-directly-before-and-after-an-executiveafter-meetings,-and-would-have-gotten-the-full-5-points-in-this-category.-However-we-used- session-to-ensure-votes-out-of-session-in-relation-to-an-executive-sessionthis-category-to-bring-up-a-meetings-issue-that-we-feel-needs-to-be-publicized.-Grandare-properly-recorded.-It's-important-to-note,-the-Colorado-Sunshine-lawsCounty-has-a-unique-situation-in-that-the-commissioner-office-desks-are-all-in-one-shared- specify--that-when-calling-an-executive-meeting-into-session,-boardsroom.-Although-the-newspaper-has-no-proof-of-the-County-violating-open-meeting-laws- should-provide-as-much-detail-as-possible-about-what-that-executivewith-this-setup,-we-decided-to-dock-points-because-the-county-did-not-remedy-thissession-will-be-about.-For-example,-"personnel-issue"-or-"disucussionsscenario-when-it-did-its-major-renovation-on-the-administration-building-in-recent-years,- with-the-attorney-about-legal-matters"-are-too-vague-of-reasons--andeven-though-the-newspaper-took-issue-with-the-commissoner-office-back-then-too.would-require-more-information.Commissioner-desks-in-one-shared-room-with-commissioners-sharing-the-same-officehours-while-conducting-public-business-technically-constitutes-a-public-meeting.-This-to-uscould-mean-possible-violations-without-the-public,-or-perhaps-even-the-commissionersthemselves,-even-knowing.--(B5)-We-did-give-back-one-point,-however,-for-the-ceilingcamera-in-the-county-meeting-room-that-shows-the-public-on-TVs-in-the-room-what-thecounty-is-looking-at-on-their-meeting-table-(+1)

Executive-summary-has-page-numbers-for-each-fund,which-acts-like-a-table-of-contents.-In-executive-summary,figures-and-dollar-amounts-are-bolded-to-aid-in-findingquickly.-Summary-clearly-explains-what-the-funds-financein-simple-language.-Actual-budget-spreadsheets-providecomparison-for-three-years.--Various-categories-havebolded-subBheadins-with-bolded-totals.-Overall,-budgetsimple-to-navigate.

Difficult-to-navigate.-No-table-of-contents-or-navigationaltools-(B4).-No-executive-summary-to-guide-reader-(B2)-.-Budget-spreadsheets-are-broken-up-by-accounts-withineach-fund,-although-this-could-be-made-more-clear-withbolding,-colors,-etc..-

Executive-summary-is-written-in-clear-language-that's-easyto-understand.-Good-transparency-on-budget-process.-Has-page-numbers-for-each-fund,-which-acts-like-a-table-ofcontents.-In-executive-summary,-figures-and-dollaramounts-are-bolded-to-aid-in-finding-quickly.-Summaryclearly-explains-what-the-funds-finance-in-simplelanguage.-Actual-budget-provides-comparison-for-threeyears-within-charts.--Various-categories-have-bolded-subB heads-with-bolded-totals.-Provides-comparisons-since2011.-Overall,-budget-simple-to-navigate.

By-far-the-best-budget-in-the-pack.-All-other-towns-andthe-county-should-strive-to-meet-this-budget's-exellence.Includes-table-of-contents,-with-a-clickable-digital-version,a-readers'-guide,-a-"top-10-budget-questions-and-quicklinks"-section,-simple-language,-good-design-and-graphicfeatures-to-guide-navigation.-(+1)

Budget-includes-a-table-of-contents.-A-BOCC-budget-message-serves-as-a-sort-of-executivesummary,-but-it's-buried-17-pages-down-in-the-budget-document,-making-it-difficult-tolocate-(B1)-but-no-executive-summary-(B2).-Budget-spreadsheets-are-broken-up-byaccounts-within-each-fund-,and-totals-are-bolded,-but-volume-of-numbers-in-this-bulkybudget-make-navigation-tedious.-(B1)-Provides-comparison-since-2011.

Excellent-graphics-that-enable-people-to-make-sense-ofbudget-complexities. Excellent-executive-summary.-Includes-narrative-freaturesand-graphics-with-simple-language.-

Excellent-graphics-that-enable-people-to-make-sense-ofbudget-complexities. Best-exectuive-summary-in-the-county.

No-charts-or-graphs

Executive-summary-could-be-considered-the-BOCC-budget-message-on-p.-17.-It's-written-insimple-language-that's-easy-to-understand-with-narrative-features-that-help-make-sense-oftrends.

Draft-minutes-available-(2-BONUS)

Automatic-email-notification-(2-BONUS) Exectuve-Sessions-Binfrequency-(5)

2 2

Yes Did-not-provide-the-exact-number-of-meetings,-so-wecalculated-general-number-of-meetings-per-month-(B1).-33executive-sessions/-115-meetings-=-28.7-percent-(B2)-

2 2

Executive-Sessions-B-discussion-before-and-after-inpublic-session-(5)

There-are-no-minutes-directly-before-or-followingexecutive-sessions,-nor-explanations-for-executivesessions-because-they're-done-during-workshops.

Budget-B-ease-of-navigation-(10)

Exec-summary-is-broken-up-by-sections-with-underlinedfund-headings-and-subcategories.-Spreadsheets-providecomparisions-since-2011.-Sections-and-subsections-boldedwithin-charts.-No-table-of-contents-of-navigational-tools.--(B 4)

Budget-B-charts-and-graphs-(5)

No-charts-or-graphs-

Budget-B-executive-summary-(5)

Executive-summary-includes-narrative-features-that-helppeople-make-sense-of-trends-and-explanations-for-2014funding.

Detailed-expense-reports-(10)

Fees-(5)

Response/fulfillment-of-request-(5)

100(pts.((plus(6(bonus)

2.5

60.5

There-should-be-no-suprises-when-a-person-request-records-from-agovernment-agency.-Reasonable-fees-should-be-clearly-outlined-toprevent-this.-

The-less-executive-sessions,-or-closed-meetings,-the-better-in-the-spirit-oftransparency.

Difficult-to-navigate.-No-table-of-contents-or-navigationaltools-(B4).-Exec-summary-is-difficult-to-scan-through-to-findspecific-information-about-different-funds.-Lack-ofheadings,-bullets,-etc.-makes-the-summary-diffiuclt-tonavigate.-(B1)-Budget-spreadsheets-use-color-coding-to-callout-specific-numbers,-but-it's-confusing-as-to-what-thedifferent-colors-mean.-Subtractions-are-in-red,-which-ishelpful.-Provides-comparison-since-2012.-

No-charts-or-graphs

No-charts-or-graphs.

Executive-summary-includes-narrative-features-that-helppeople-make-sense-of-trends-and-explanations-for-2014spending.

Executive-summary-includes-narrative-features-that-helppeople-make-sense-of-trends-and-explanations-for-2014funding.

Didn't-have-check-number,-but-do-have-invoice-number-(B 1)

Don't-give-specific-date,-just-a-range-(B1),-amount,-nocheck-number-(B2),-to-whom-payment-made,-what-it's-for

Included-amount-of-payment,-date,-check-number,-towhom-payment-is-made,-what-it-was-for

Beginning-of-budget-has-the-language-of-adoptedresolution,-but-no-executive-summary-with-narrativefeatures-or-explanations-(B4).-Resolution-does-call-outfunds-and-revenues.Doesn't-have-who-it's-to-or-what-it's-for-(B4)

Date,-payment-amount,-no-check-number,-but-do-havereference-number-(B1),-to-whom-payment-was-made,-notwhat-it-was-for-(B2)

Don't-include-what-payment-is-for-(B2)

check-number,-date,-name,-description,-amount

Daily-expense-reports-should-show,-in-the-least,-check-numbers,-thedates,-the-names-checks-were--issued-to,-what-the-checks-were-for-andthe-amounts.-Pertinant-budget-information-related-to-checks-would-behelpful-as-well.-

Fees-of-$50/hour-for-research-and-retrieval-exceedreasonable-range-of-$0B$25/hour-(B3).-Copy-fees-are-listedand-within-legal-limit-of-25-cents-per-page.-Published-onthe-open-records-form.

Open-records-form-says-fee-is-$35/hour,-above-thereasonable-range-of-$0B$25/hour-(B1),-but-clerk-Deb-Hesssaid-she-has-been-charging-$25.-Copy-fees-are-listedwithin-legal-limit-of-25-cents-per-page.

Fees-aren't-published-(B1),-but-town-clerk-said-$24.94B $43.21/hour-for-research-and-retrieval.-Some-of-thesefees-are-above-the-reasonable-rate-(B1).-Charge-25-centsfor-black-and-white-copies,-within-legal-range.

Hot-Sulphur-Springs'-public-records-request-form-showsthat--routine-requests-for-"search-and-retrieval"-have-a$15-an-hour-fee-and-"voluminous"-requests-have-a-chargeof-$25-per-hour.-Retrieval-of-offBsite-records-has-a-chargeof-$20-an-hour-minimum.-Standard-copying-is-25-cents,11x17-copying-is-50-cents.-

Fraser-does-an-excellent-job-listing-fees-through-its-openrecords-form.-Form-includes-a-comprehensive-feeschedule.-Research-fees-for-nonBmanagement-staff-are$20/hour-for-research-and-retrieval,-within-thereasonable-range-of-$0B$25/hour,-but-charges-formanagement-doing-research-is-above-the-reasonablerange-(B1)

Hourly-fee-isn't-included-in-open-records-request-(B1),-buttown-clerk-said-staff-charges-"up-to-$20/hour,"-within-thereasonable-range-of-$0B$25/hour.

Grand-County's-open-records-language-says-"each-department-may-also-charge-areasonable-hourly-fee,"-but-does-not-specify-the-fee-amount.-The-county-clerk-did-notprovide-specific-information-on-this-hourly-fee,-even-after-email-requests-(B3).-Openrecords-language-does-include-fee-for-copies,-at-25-cents-per-page.

-A-$0B$25-research-and-retrieval-fee-has-been-deemed-"reasonable"-perthe-Colorado-Court-of-Appeals.-There-is-no-existing-open-records--fee-capin-Colorado,-but-current-proposed-legislation-HB-1193-as-currentlywritten-seeks-to-establish-a-fee-cap-at-fourBtimes-the-minimum-wage,-orat-$32-an-hour.-http://coloradofoic.org/whatBisBaBreasonableBcoraBfee/-------------------State-statute-caps-copy-fees-at-25-cents-per-page,-but-a-recent-piece-fromComplete-Colorado-challenges-this-fee,-saying-it-far-exceeds-the-actualcosts-of-copying.http://completecolorado.com/pagetwo/2014/03/08/photocopyBcostsB10B centsBorBlessBbutBgovernmentsBstillBchargeB25BcentsBforBopenBrecords/

Got-information-and-responded-in-due-time,-but-didn'tinclude-exec.-session-minutes-or-number-of-meetings(partial-fulfillment)-(B2.5)

Fastest-response-and-thorough-fulfillment-of-request.

Responded-quickly,-but-didn't-completley-fufill-request

Quick-response-and-thorough-fulfillment

Quick-response-and-thorough-fulfillment.

Quick-response-and-thorough-fulfillment

A-Colorado-Open-Records-Request-requires-a-government-agency-torespond-to-a-request-within-three-working-days.-If-the-request-requiresadditional-research-and-work,-seven-days-may-be-granted-to-fulfill-therequest.-

Records

TOTALS

Winter(Park

Notes Score Only-agendas-for-upcoming-meetings,-no-past-agendas7 and-no-minutes.-(B4.5)-Bonus-points-for-board-packet-(+2).-

2.5

78.5

C+

81.5

C+

Finance-details-are-not-everyone's-cup-of-tea,-so-we-encouragegovernment-agencies-to-make-budget-information-as-accessable-aspossible-so-that-every-citizen-—-not-just-the-master-accountants-—-canunderstand-it.-