Augusta Law Department Stakes Claim On Oversight Committee Idea

Augusta, GA—Augusta’s Legal Department says it is laying down the law, not Commissioners.

As we first reported, Commissioners have formed a committee to provide oversite to the Law Department.

The department has come under fire recently for its handling of open records, but the Law Department’s General Counsel says the committee was her idea, and is not in response to how the department has been operating.

Chiquita Johnson, “It’s not oversite of the Law Department, it’s a regular standing committee of the Augusta-Richmond County Commission, so you will see all the ordinances, resolutions, and other legal business handled on that committee and not a response to open records requests, now, not a response at all. One of the reasons the committee is needed is so legal business can be handled more efficenmtly.“

Johnson says the legal department’s policy on open records is following state law.