Cabell County Opioid Settlement Fund Request
| Submitted | March 6, 2025 |
| Due | April 3, 2025 |
| Est. Completion | None |
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Communications
From: Johnathan Edwards
Johnathan Edwards
2040 University Avenue- Apartment 301
Morgantown, WV 26505
02/24/2025
Scott Caserta
Cabell County Clerk
Clerk’s Office of Cabell County
750 5th Avenue
Courthouse-Suite 108
Huntington, WV 25701-2072
Dear Mr. Caserta:
Under the West Virginia Freedom of Information Act, §29-B-1-1 et seq., I am requesting an opportunity to inspect or obtain copies of public records that show the following; Allocation of opioid settlement funds received by Cabell County, the application that individuals or organizations seeking funding from the county complete, copies of grant applications from individuals or organizations that have been approved to receive these funds, the individuals who will review the funding applications, any meeting minutes of county-level officials where the receiving or distribution of county-level opioid settlement funding was discussed, and how much funding has been awarded as of March 1, 2025, and to whom it was awarded.
If there are any fees for searching or copying these records, please inform me if the cost will exceed $25. However, I would also like to request a waiver of all fees in that the disclosure of the requested information is in the public interest and will contribute significantly to the public’s understanding of how this large sum of allocated funds is being distributed across the county. I am a student reporter at West Virginia University and intend to use this information to more accurately report on these findings. This information is not being sought for commercial purposes. The West Virginia Freedom of Information Act requires a response to this request be made within five business days. If access to the records I am requesting will take longer than this amount of time, please contact me with information about when I might expect copies or the ability to inspect the requested records. You can call me at 304-638-6367 or send me an email at jde00006@mix.wvu.edu My physical address is 2040 University Ave. Morgantown, WV, 26505.
From: Cabell County Clerk's Office
17Mar2025
Johnathan Edwards
2040 University Avenue- Apartment 301
Morgantown, WV 26505
In Re: Freedom of Information Request dated 14Mar2025 for the Cabell County Clerk
Mr. Edwards,
I am writing this response to your request for information from the Cabell County Clerk’s Office in Huntington, WV Cabell County.
Although FOIA requires a clerk to allow a person to inspect and copy records that already exist, it "does not require the creation of a public record."(Affiliated Construction Trades Foundation v. Regional Jail and Correctional Facility Authority, 490 S.E.2d 708 (W. Va. 1997)). Therefore, if a person requests information from a clerk and the information is not maintained in a particular document or set of documents by a clerk, the clerk has no duty to create a record that would be responsive to the request. However, the clerk should allow a person to inspect available records if the records would allow a person to gather information that would be responsive to the request.
You or a representative of your organization are welcome to look at any public records maintained by the Cabell County Clerk’s office and compile your own data. Our office is located at: 750 Fifth Ave. Suite 108 Huntington, West Virginia 25701. With the exception of legal holidays, our office hours are 8:30 a.m. until 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday. Please contact my office at (304) 526-8625 to schedule a mutually agreeable time to review the records. I ask that you schedule a time so I can make sure that I have staff available that may be needed to assist you. In addition, Cabell County participates in West Virginia Checkbook through OpenGov. You may find some of the information you seek online.
Respectfully,
Scott Caserta
Cabell County Clerk
750 Fifth Ave. Suite 108
Huntington, WV 25701
304-526-8625
From: Cabell County Clerk's Office
17Mar2025
Johnathan Edwards
2040 University Avenue- Apartment 301
Morgantown, WV 26505
In Re: Freedom of Information Request dated 14Mar2025 for the Cabell County Clerk
Mr. Edwards,
I am writing this response to your request for information from the Cabell County Clerk’s Office in Huntington, WV Cabell County.
Although FOIA requires a clerk to allow a person to inspect and copy records that already exist, it "does not require the creation of a public record."(Affiliated Construction Trades Foundation v. Regional Jail and Correctional Facility Authority, 490 S.E.2d 708 (W. Va. 1997)). Therefore, if a person requests information from a clerk and the information is not maintained in a particular document or set of documents by a clerk, the clerk has no duty to create a record that would be responsive to the request. However, the clerk should allow a person to inspect available records if the records would allow a person to gather information that would be responsive to the request.
You or a representative of your organization are welcome to look at any public records maintained by the Cabell County Clerk’s office and compile your own data. Our office is located at: 750 Fifth Ave. Suite 108 Huntington, West Virginia 25701. With the exception of legal holidays, our office hours are 8:30 a.m. until 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday. Please contact my office at (304) 526-8625 to schedule a mutually agreeable time to review the records. I ask that you schedule a time so I can make sure that I have staff available that may be needed to assist you. In addition, Cabell County participates in West Virginia Checkbook through OpenGov. You may find some of the information you seek online.
Respectfully,
Scott Caserta
Cabell County Clerk
750 Fifth Ave. Suite 108
Huntington, WV 25701
304-526-8625