01:59 PM PDT | Tuesday, May 21, 2013

Survey a first for Arkansas

FOIArkansas ---------------- Unlocking the public's business

FOIArkansas Project

The FOI Arkansas Project, designed to test how public officials respond to citizens requesting public records under the state Freedom of Information Act, was the first such survey done in Arkansas.

The project, which included a six-part survey, was a collaborative effort of reporters, editors and publishers of five daily newspapers and the Arkansas News Bureau in Little Rock.

The major component was a one-day walk-in survey of four offices in each of Arkansas’ 75 counties. Surveyors sought specific documents at the county jail, the county unit of the state Health Department, a city and a school district. Cities and school districts were selected at random.

The other two parts of the survey were done by traditional and electronic mail. Letters with a self-addressed stamped envelope and a check to cover copying costs were sent to the 75 county clerks; the e-mails went to public universities.

View the FOI Survey Databases

To download PDF version of FOIArkansas print edition, click here.