Rockport Town Office contends with eight Freedom of Access Act information requests

Rockport residents seeks fiscal spending details and policy decisions in filing FOAAs

Mon, 08/03/2026 - 11:10am

Lynda Clancy

Rockport Town Office (file photo)

ROCKPORT — In his Aug. 3 Report to the Rockport Select Board, Town Manager Jon Duke said his office is processing eight Freedom of Access Act information requests, and he noted that while the town, "remains committed to providing public records in accordance with Maine law and believes transparency is essential to good government," he added, "it is important for the public to understand that fulfilling extensive or numerous FOAA requests requires substantial municipal resources and can affect the delivery of other Town services, not to mention delay the response time of any individual FOAA request."

A request for information under the Maine Freedom of Access Act is a formalized process, governed by state statute, that ensures members of the public can obtain government records they seek and attend public proceedings where the people's business is underway.

Submitting a request for information under the Freedom of Access Act is often informally called, "submitting a FOAA", and applies to municipalities, counties, public school bodies, and state agencies. There is a similar process for submitting information requests to federal government under the national Freedom of Information Act (FOIA). The federal act does not apply to state and local government.

Duke did not list what the Rockport FOAAs constitute in his report, and a request for information about them has yet to be answered, but two Rockport residents, Craig Mitchell and Stephen Bowen, have been clear about what information they want from the town.

Both men sit on the town's Budget Committee and want to see more detailed records about municipal procedural decisions, as well as specific budget data.

Bowen has asked for minutes and/or notes made from a July 10, 2023 Select Board workshop concerning Town Charter amendments, and a specific document cited during a July 31, 2023 Select Board meeting.

Bowen submitted his FOAA Dec. 8, 2025. In a March 10, 2026 email exchange with Duke, Bowen confirmed that he wanted the information in his pursuit of, "Just looking for more background on the 2023 charter changes generally and the origin of and goals for the changes to the budget committee language specifically."

Following a May 8 email from Duke asking Bowen if he still wanted the information, Bowen responded: "Yes. Same information about the Select Board's charter discussion back in 2023."

As of June 15, Bowen said he had yet to receive an answer to his FOAA request.

Mitchell submitted a FOAA June 11, asking the Town Office to produce copies of payroll records showing compensation paid to Duke for Year 2025. He asked for the information to be in the form of a W2, and include the last paycheck stub of 2025.

Mitchell asked for records, "showing gross wages, net pay, salary, overtime (if any), bonuses, stipends, payouts, and any other compensation paid during this period, including reimbursements for a car, cell phone, technology, health or life insurance, etc."

He also asked for, "all sources of income and reimbursements."

And, he asked for: "a copy of ALL payroll contracts with our town managers with all select board signatures as required by our town charter. This includes past and present contracts since we hired our town manager Jon Duke."

When Mitchell did not receive the requested information, he contacted Brenda Kielty, who is the Maine Office of the Attorney General Public Access Ombudsman. On July 16, Mitchell asked her for assistance in getting his Rockport FOAA request, "completed or at least a reason for not being fulfilled."

He reiterated his request for the Town Manager's contract documents and, "his last pay stub for 2025 for comparison purposes."

Mitchell copied Duke on his email request for help from the state's ombudsman, as well as Rockport's Town Attorney, Philip Saucier, of the Portland firm Bernstein Shur. He said he has also included the Select Board on his FOAA request because he wants the Select Board to be accountable for listening to the residents and managing the Town Manager.

On July 27, Mitchell received an email from the Town Office with a letter from the finance department outlining how the Town Manager’s wages were calculated since the last contract was signed with Duke in 2024. The response also included Duke's annual employment agreements, the last one which was signed July 2, 2026.

"On July 1, 2025, the Town Manager’s pay was increased to $67.52 per hour or $140,441.60 annually," the letter from Megan Brackett, the town's Finance Director, said. "This increase in wages was a result of a 2.5% cost-of-living adjustment that was afforded to the majority of employees. $65.87 multiplied by 2.5% is $67.52 per hour. This rate was effective until June 30, 2026.

"On July 2, 2026, the Town Manager’s pay was increased to $71.49 per hour or $148,699.20 annually. This increase in wages was a result of a 2.8% cost-of-living adjustment and a five-year service step increase of 3%. $67.52 multiplied by 2.8% is $69.41 an hour, then multiplied by the step increase of 3% is $71.49 per hour. This rate is set to be effective through June 30, 2027, unless there are contract changes."

Aside from the annual employment agreement, Duke is operating under a five-year contract with the Town of Rockport, which ends June 30, 2029. That contract stipulates a base salary of $137,000, with an increased compensation, "at least the average across the board increase granted to other employees of the Employer in the absence of compensation increases agreed to in the Annual Salary Review."

Mitchell said he is has been asking the town for Duke's compensation records because he wants, as a regular course of action, for the pay rates to Rockport employees to be more readily available, and transparent.

It is not, he said, solely a matter of wanting to know what Duke is being paid by the Town of Rockport. He wants to see what and how town employees in Rockport are paid, and a detailed documentation of which municipal budget accounts are generating compensation for those employees.

"The main reasoning is because we want to make sure the town is spending taxpayers' money wisely," said Mitchell, Aug. 3.

"I’m filing FOAA requests because our community deserves transparency," he said. "The town budget has doubled in recent years, and despite meeting with Select Board members and sharing payroll data, I’m getting no traction. The payroll information is concerning—many salaries have doubled or nearly doubled, and our Town Manager appears to be earning far more than what residents were told."

As for the remainder of his FOAA request, the town office said it hoped to respond by the end of last week. That remainder includes, the: "records showing gross wages, net pay, salary, overtime (if any), bonuses, stipends, payouts, and any other compensation paid during this period, including reimbursements for a car, cell phone, technology, health or life insurance etc. Please include all sources of income and reimbursements. I understand that confidential personal information may be redacted as required by law, such as address, date of birth and social security details.

"Secondly, I would like a copy of ALL payroll contracts with our town managers with all select board signatures as required by our town charter. This includes past and present contracts since we hired our town manager Jon Duke."

In his report to the Select Board, Duke wrote: "The Town is committed to transparency and complying with Maine's Freedom of Access Act. Public access to government records is an important part of maintaining accountability and public trust.

"However, responding to multiple FOAA requests requires considerable investment in staff time and municipal resources.

"At present, the Town is managing eight FOAA requests and from conversations with colleagues across the state, this is a trend that is only increasing in frequency. While each request varies in size and complexity, every request requires staff to:

• Review the request to determine the records being sought.

• Search multiple departments for responsive documents.

• Retrieve emails, electronic files, paper records, and archive materials.

• Review records for confidential or legally protected information.

• Redact exempt information where required by law.

• Consult with legal counsel when necessary.

• Organize and produce records within statutory deadlines.

• Communicate with the requester regarding scope, timelines, and costs.

"A single FOAA request can require anywhere from a few hours to dozens of staff hours, depending on the volume of records requested. These actions can distract staff from remaining focused on the core responsibilities residents expect their Town employees to place at the core of their workday.

"Although Maine law allows municipalities to recover certain costs after the first two hours of staff time under specific circumstances, many requests still result in unreimbursed expenses that are ultimately borne by taxpayers.

"The Town remains committed to providing public records in accordance with Maine law and believes transparency is essential to good government. At the same time, it is important for the public to understand that fulfilling extensive or numerous FOAA requests requires substantial municipal resources and can affect the delivery of other Town services, not to mention delay the response time of any individual FOAA request.

"Perhaps most importantly, most requests for information do not require a FOAA to gain an answer! Call the Town office. Talk to staff. Ask questions. The employees of the Town want to educate and inform our residents about how we operate. Rockport remains a small town and we can talk to each to work through issues and concerns without engaging in FOAA requests or involving attorneys to ask questions about how we operate."

The Rockport Select Board meets this evening, Aug. 3, at 5:30 p.m. in the Parker Meeting Room at the Rockport Opera House.

The meeting is streamed live.

Read the full meeting packet here.

AGENDA

I. Call Meeting to Order

II. Executive Session

a. Discussion of a Personnel Matter pursuant to 1 M.R.S. Section 405 (6) (A)

III. Amendments to the Agenda

IV. Public Comment on Non-Agenda Items

V. Town Manager’s Report/UpdatesVI. Consent Agenda

a. Meeting Minute(s):➢ July 13, 2026, Select Board Minutes➢ July 13, 2026, Select Board Minutes, Executive Session

VII. Action Items