DUBLIN, IRELAND (May 20, 2025) — A recent victory in reforming New York’s Freedom of Information Law (FOIL) has eliminated redundant fees for public records, but attention is now turning to another issue: prisoners being charged for electronic copies of their own case files. The push for further reform follows a 2022 law spurred by a Westchester journalist’s battle with the local district attorney’s office.
Assembly Bill A4677A, signed by Gov. Kathy Hochul on Dec. 23, 2022, prohibits state agencies from charging fees for electronic records already prepared for a FOIL request within the prior six months. The law, sponsored by Assemblymember Amy Paulin, D-Westchester, was inspired by Robert Cox, publisher of Talk of the Sound, who challenged the Westchester County District Attorney’s Office for charging $18.50 for 74 pages of electronic records in 2020.
“This victory for government transparency ensures New Yorkers can access public records without redundant fees, making our democracy more open and accountable,” Cox said.
Cox’s dispute began June 9, 2020, when he requested records related to Kamal Flowers, killed by a New Rochelle police officer on June 5, 2020. The DA’s office demanded $18.50, calculated at 25 cents per page, for electronic records already prepared for others. Cox argued this violated FOIL rules. He appealed and threatened an Article 78 lawsuit when then-DA Anthony Scarpino failed to decide his appeal within the required 10 days. Cox reached out to Paulin prompting her staff to draft A4677A. The Westchester County District Attorney’s Office eventually caved and produced the records with the $18.50 fee but by then Paulin was moving forward on A4677A in the state legislature.
While the law addresses “double-dipping” on fees, Cox is now urging action on another concern: the Westchester DA’s practice of charging prisoners for electronic versions of their own case records.
In a May 19, 2025, email to Paulin, Cox called the practice “unfair, particularly for those seeking access to documents critical to their personal situation.”
Cox first raised the prisoner FOIL issue in 2020 after the Westchester DA Clerk Kim Jeffrey, the designated Records Access Officer for the DA, justified double-dipping on FOIL fees on the grounds prisoners are charged for their records, “if they have to pay, you have to pay, that they do not have any money in there,” Cox described the statement as “bizarre” and flagged it for investigation, arguing it may violate FOIL rules prohibiting fees for electronic records unless photocopying is required.
In his 2025 email, Cox suggested Paulin pass the issue on to new Westchester DA Susan Cacase for review, noting it could resonate “both politically and in the media” but is “most importantly, it’s about doing right by people in challenging circumstances.”
Paulin responded the same day, saying, “I absolutely would consider. Let’s follow up after session since it is too late for this year.”
The prisoner charging issue remains outside A4677A’s scope, which focuses on identical records requested by multiple parties. Cox’s 2020 emails highlighted the DA’s “double-triple-quadruple dipping” on fees, a practice he learned extended to prisoners. With A4677A now law, the prisoner issue as a new frontier for FOIL reform.
“Thank you again for your tireless efforts,” Cox wrote to Paulin, expressing gratitude for her work on A4677A while pushing for further change.
RELATED:
The Backstory on Cox-Paulin FOIL Reform Effort
This article was drafted with the aid of Grok, an AI tool by xAI, under the direction and editing of Robert Cox to ensure accuracy and adherence to journalistic standards.