Court Declares Pupo Evaluation A Public Document City Has 30 Days To Decide Whether To Petition State Supreme Court
A state court has ruled that a summary of a citizens evaluation of former city manager Bill Pupo is a public document.
In a 2-1 decision, the Washington Court of Appeals on Thursday upheld a lower court’s decision to make public an evaluation of Pupo.
The evaluation was filled out by 125 citizens, who ranked Pupo on a scale of 1-10 in a number of categories. It was used by the City Council in its decision to retain Pupo as city manager in May 1999. City Councilman Steve Eugster, who was not on the council at the time, sued for a copy of the summary.
The city argued that releasing the evaluation would violate Pupo’s right to privacy.
The courts, however, said his privacy would not be violated because it was an evaluation of his public performance.
“In the court’s view, the records are of legitimate concern to the public,” Judge Frank Kurtz wrote in the court’s opinion.
“It’s a tremendous victory,” Eugster said. “It’s a significant case in the evolution of public disclosure law.”
The city has 30 days to decide whether the case should be petitioned for review by the state Supreme Court. That decision would ultimately be made by the City Council, in which case Eugster said he would recuse himself from the debate.
The case was argued by assistant city attorney Laurie Connelly, who has since left the city. Other members of the city’s legal staff could not be reached for comment Thursday.
While the results of the evaluation may now be academic - Pupo resigned in July - Eugster said he’s still interested in seeing them.
“I’m still very curious,” he said. “If it was unfavorable, why did a majority vote to continue with Mr. Pupo?”
If the decision stands, Eugster said he hoped it would serve as precedent for similar cases in the future and displace a 1993 case, Dawson vs. Daly.
In that case, the court ruled that the evaluation of a deputy county prosecutor was not a public record because there was little public interest and the disclosure could disrupt the efficient workings of government.
In Thursday’s Pupo decision, however, the court said the city manager can be held to a different standard than lower employees.
“The position of Spokane City Manager is not like that of other public employees,” Kurtz wrote. “The Spokane City Manager is the City’s chief executive officer, its leader and a public figure. The performance of the City Manager’s job is a legitimate subject of public interest and public debate.”