{"id":9160,"date":"2023-03-17T17:32:22","date_gmt":"2023-03-17T22:32:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/mosunshine.org\/?p=9160"},"modified":"2023-03-18T12:02:01","modified_gmt":"2023-03-18T17:02:01","slug":"missouris-department-of-social-services-sued-for-alleged-sunshine-law-violations","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dailyjournalonline.com\/news\/state-and-regional\/missouri-s-department-of-social-services-sued-for-alleged-sunshine-law-violations\/article_218fbf5c-cab9-5853-8047-377d48e4a30e.html","title":{"rendered":"Missouri’s Department of Social Services sued for alleged Sunshine Law violations"},"content":{"rendered":"
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The state argued it didn’t have to turn over records because they were exempt from Sunshine Law under the litigation exception, which carves out records related to the nexus of ongoing litigation. (Jason Hancock\/Missouri Independent)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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A software company that successfully sued the state and was awarded $23 million<\/span> last year<\/span><\/a> has filed a new lawsuit against Missouri\u2019s Department of Social Services, alleging the agency \u201cknowingly and purposefully\u201d violated open records law.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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According to the<\/span> lawsuit<\/span><\/a> filed Thursday in Cole County, Florida-based HHS Technology submitted a request for records to the social services department in late April 2022. The department acknowledged receiving the request in May and said responsive records \u201cmay be\u201d available in July.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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The company says it did not hear back from DSS, despite repeated queries, until last month, when after 10 months the state formally denied the request and refused to turn over records.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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The state said the documents were exempt from the Sunshine Law because they were related to ongoing litigation.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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The lawsuit disputes that the documents fall under that exemption to Missouri\u2019s open records laws and also takes issue with the 10 months it took the state to deliver its decision.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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\u201cThe department\u2019s professed need to \u2018research\u2019 application of a narrow, straightforward exception to the Sunshine Law cannot justify its 10-month delay in responding to the request,\u201d the lawsuit states.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Chuck Hatfield, the attorney representing HHS Technology, said in an interview with The Independent he hopes the court clarifies that such delays aren\u2019t permissible.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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\u201cThey need to respond and answer these requests, and I think the court\u2019s going to tell them so,\u201d Hatfield said.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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DSS did not immediately respond to a request for comment.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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In 2016, a company called EngagePoint sued Missouri for breach of contract over its work on DSS\u2019s case management system.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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HHS Technology acquired EngagePoint\u2019s claims for the lawsuit and was substituted as the plaintiff, and last year a Cole County judge ordered the state to pay the company $23 million.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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The state has appealed the ruling.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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HHS Technology says in its lawsuit that the records request submitted late last April was for documents related to \u201chow the department requested and allocated taxpayer dollars\u2026in its public solicitation process\u201d for a system to modernize its case management of public benefits, between 2013 to April 2022.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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According to the lawsuit, the state\u2019s February denial was based on its argument that the documents were exempt from Sunshine Law under the litigation exception, which carves out records related to the nexus of ongoing litigation.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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HHS\u2019s lawsuit argues the litigation exception is sufficiently narrow that it shouldn\u2019t apply because the records are \u201cnot inherently connected to litigation\u201d \u2014 at least not for the entire time period the request covered.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Hatfield said the court will decide whether the records should be closed under that exemption. But a broader issue at play is the \u201cflat-out failure to respond to the Sunshine request, when they told us they\u2019d respond to us at the end of July,\u201d he said.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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The lawsuit asks the court to enter judgment deeming the department to have violated Sunshine Law \u201cby not providing timely follow-up or a legitimate denial\u201d of the request, as well as ordering the department to produce the documents and pay an \u201cappropriate civil penalty.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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The department has had issues quickly processing Sunshine requests in the past.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Media, including The Independent, have seen requests for public records from Department of Social Services languish for months,<\/span>\u00a0and staff do not always respond to inquiries after the estimated delivery date has passed.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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The post Missouri\u2019s Department of Social Services sued for alleged Sunshine Law violations<\/a> appeared first on Missouri Independent<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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