FOIA Request to City of St. Elmo Regarding Building Permits on October 30, 2024.
As part of our ongoing commitment to providing comprehensive and accurate news coverage on local governmental affairs, we at South Central Reporter have submitted a request for records under the Illinois Freedom of Information Act (5 ILCS 140).
Our request is specifically for the list of all new residential and commercial building permits issued from January 1, 2023, till today's date. We are seeking detailed information including the type of permit, date issued, fee paid, requester details, address and contractor name.
In addition to this, we have also requested for a list of all active residential and commercial building permits along with their current status. The same fields as mentioned above are required for these active permits as well.
As media professionals involved in gathering and reporting news to the public, access to public records is essential for us to fulfill our professional responsibilities. These include holding public institutions accountable and providing transparency to the public. Given our role in disseminating information, we believe we are eligible for a fee waiver as a media professional.
We will continue our efforts in ensuring that our audience receives timely and accurate information regarding local governmental affairs. If there are any questions or clarifications needed regarding our request, we encourage relevant parties to reach out to us at South Central Reporter.