Editor’s Note: Sunshine Request makes no claim as to the veracity of any statements or information contained in any of the requests, or public records, we receive.
Other (indicate in message) Submitted: January 21, 2025 | Updated: February 7, 2025
(January 2025) Request for East Lincoln, NC Fire Department: List of all current employees and salaries. As of the present day.
Good evening Chief Tench,
I reviewed the following on your “Public Information” page prior to submitting my request:
“In order to facilitate such transparency, the following links will take you to documents and information about financial operations, management operations, and information about how to participate in Board meetings for this fire department.”
https://www.eastlincolnfd.com/?page_id=17
Currently, there are no available documents or other links as referenced on your site. I also could not find contact info anywhere online for Board Members or anyone who may be your Public Information Officer.
Please reply promptly to the following public records request, which I’m making in accordance with NC Public Records Law. https://www.ncleg.net/enactedlegislation/statutes/html/bychapter/chapter_132.html
The type of basic salary data I’m requesting is simple to provide, is very commonly produced, and is widely considered a matter of public record as part of the public personnel file of employees. Many NC entities fulfill requests like this via email in 1 week, and in many cases 1 day.
Please provide the names and salaries of all current East Lincoln, NC Fire Department (406 S Pilot Knob Rd Stanley, NC 28164) employees as of the present day [on the date the query is performed]. Please include the following:
1) Employee first / last name
2) Date of hire
3) Position / title / department
4) Salary [including hourly wage, hourly rate, or salary, and Total pay with Built in overtime (if applicable) – whichever payment structure is applicable to the employee]
Ideally, I’d like to receive the responsive records in an Excel or other machine-readable format. If any / all of this info is already publicly available online, please provide a link to where it can be accessed.
** I’m simply requesting an electronic copy of an electronic record, if one exists. I’m NOT asking for the opportunity to come in person to “inspect”, nor to obtain a printed copy of, this electronic record. I’m requesting explicitly that any responsive info be provided to me via the electronic medium / electronic format (in which the copy of this record already exists). If you are unable to fulfill any or all parts of this request, please specifically cite where a reason for denial is justified under NC Public Records Law. **
————————————
Please note that by submitting this request, I’m NOT agreeing to pay any potential fees or associated costs related to my request. If it isn’t possible to process the request without incurring fees, then please let me know the itemized potential cost and clear explanations of those charges upfront, and DO NOT proceed until I respond.
By Law I’m not required to provide a name or address to associate with a public records request, but in order to move things along I’d like to clarify that this request is being made by:
Sunshine Request
PO Box 17391
Asheville, NC 28816
The request has been sent solely by me and my email address [email protected] . If anyone other than that email address contacts you to pursue a similar request, it did not come from me. Please do not commingle or treat that as an alteration or cancellation of my request – I intend to continue to pursue my request.
Thank you for your assistance!
** Sunshine Request (www.sunshinerequest.com) makes no claim as to the veracity of any statements or information contained in any of the requests, or public records, we receive.
Status: Completed
Activity:
-
February 7, 2025 11:02 am
1 month ago
from: Sunshine Request <[email protected]>
to: “McMahon, Bill” <[email protected]>
date: Feb 7, 2025, 11:02 AM
subject: Re: Response to N.C. Gen. Stat. Chapter 132 Records Request to East Lincoln Fire Department, Inc. [IMAN-WORKSITE.FID3447442]Hi Bill,
Thank you for your message.
I understand you’re saying the East Lincoln Fire Department [ELFD] is not an entity subject to NC Public Records Law. I accept your response, and will consider that a “Closure” to my request. However, I am confused by the following claims on the ELFD’s “Public Info” page:
“The Board of Directors and the fire department management staff feel that with the fire department using tax funds to operate, the fire department’s interworking should be as transparent as possible. Even though the fire department was established as a non-profit fire department vs. a governmental agency, the board and management still strive to be completely transparent with the public.
In order to facilitate such transparency, the following links will take you to documents and information about financial operations, management operations, and information about how to participate in Board meetings for this fire department.”
https://www.eastlincolnfd.com/
?page_id=17 Since the ELFD is using tax funds to operate, it is in the public interest for them to be transparent, and to produce simple financial records like salary data if requested. Which is why — having read the statement above on their website, I reached out to the Chief to make a salary data request in the first place.
The type of basic salary data I requested is simple to provide, and is very commonly produced. Many types of NC entities fulfill basic requests like this via email in 1 week, and in many cases 1 day. Although you’ve indicated the ELFD’s position is that they won’t produce the records because they do not have to by Law, I do not believe that also means that they “can’t produce those records” if they wanted. They are just unwilling.
I would highly recommend that the ELFD and Board reconsider and revise the language on their Public Info webpage which states that they are dedicated to being “as transparent as possible”, and striving “to be completely transparent with the public.” Additionally – as I’ve said before, there are currently no web links to the “documents and information about financial operations” on the Public Info Page as referenced. This error should be corrected.
Thank you.
~ The Sunshine Request Team
Status: Completed -
February 6, 2025 10:35 pm
1 month ago
from: McMahon, Bill <[email protected]>
to: “[email protected]” <[email protected]>
date: Feb 6, 2025, 10:35 PM
subject: Response to N.C. Gen. Stat. Chapter 132 Records Request to East Lincoln Fire Department, Inc. [IMAN-WORKSITE.FID3447442]To whom it may concern:
Our firm serves as outside legal counsel to East Lincoln Fire Department, Inc. (“East Lincoln”). Please let this email serve as a response to your January 21, 2025 email, as well as your follow up email dated January 30, 2025.
In your January 21, 2025 email, you requested the name and salaries for all current East Lincoln employees, pursuant to Chapter 132 of the North Carolina General Statutes. However, only agencies of the North Carolina government and its subdivisions are covered entities under Chapter 132. East Lincoln is not a public agency covered by the statute; rather, it is a private non-profit corporation. Accordingly, East Lincoln will not be providing any employee names or salary information in response to your request.
Please let me know if you have any further questions, and direct any future communications concerning this request to my attention.
Thank you!
Bill McMahon
Bill McMahon
Partner
Direct: 336.721.6860 • Mobile: 336.413.6161
One West 4th Street
Suite 850Winston‑Salem, NC 27101
Main: 336.721.1001 • Fax: 336.748.9112
Status: Response Received from Government -
January 30, 2025 3:24 pm
1 month ago
from: Sunshine Request <[email protected]>
to: [email protected]
cc: [email protected], [email protected]
date: Jan 30, 2025, 3:24 PM
subject: Re: Public records request. (January 2025) Request for East Lincoln, NC Fire Department: List of all current employees and salaries. As of the present day.Good afternoon Chief Tench, (Mike, and social media address now CCed),
I submitted the following public records request to your office on 01/21/25:
(January 2025) Request for East Lincoln, NC Fire Department: List of all current employees and salaries. As of the present day.I have not received a response since submitting the request.
Please confirm receipt of my request to let me know it has begun processing, and please provide an anticipated date for its completion. I will follow up again in 1 week, if I don’t hear anything else before then.
Thank you for your help!
~ The Sunshine Request Team
Status: Follow up -
January 21, 2025 5:39 pm
2 months ago
from: Sunshine Request <[email protected]>
to: [email protected]
date: Jan 21, 2025, 5:39 PM
subject: Public records request. (January 2025) Request for East Lincoln, NC Fire Department: List of all current employees and salaries. As of the present day.Good evening Chief Tench,
I reviewed the following on your “Public Information” page prior to submitting my request:
“In order to facilitate such transparency, the following links will take you to documents and information about financial operations, management operations, and information about how to participate in Board meetings for this fire department.”
https://www.eastlincolnfd.com/?page_id=17Currently, there are no available documents or other links as referenced on your site. I also could not find contact info anywhere online for Board Members or anyone who may be your Public Information Officer.
Please reply promptly to the following public records request, which I’m making in accordance with NC Public Records Law. https://www.ncleg.net/enactedlegislation/statutes/html/bychapter/chapter_132.html
The type of basic salary data I’m requesting is simple to provide, is very commonly produced, and is widely considered a matter of public record as part of the public personnel file of employees. Many NC entities fulfill requests like this via email in 1 week, and in many cases 1 day.
Please provide the names and salaries of all current East Lincoln, NC Fire Department (406 S Pilot Knob Rd Stanley, NC 28164) employees as of the present day [on the date the query is performed]. Please include the following:
1) Employee first / last name
2) Date of hire
3) Position / title / department
4) Salary [including hourly wage, hourly rate, or salary, and Total pay with Built in overtime (if applicable) – whichever payment structure is applicable to the employee]Ideally, I’d like to receive the responsive records in an Excel or other machine-readable format. If any / all of this info is already publicly available online, please provide a link to where it can be accessed.
** I’m simply requesting an electronic copy of an electronic record, if one exists. I’m NOT asking for the opportunity to come in person to “inspect”, nor to obtain a printed copy of, this electronic record. I’m requesting explicitly that any responsive info be provided to me via the electronic medium / electronic format (in which the copy of this record already exists). If you are unable to fulfill any or all parts of this request, please specifically cite where a reason for denial is justified under NC Public Records Law. **
————————————Please note that by submitting this request, I’m NOT agreeing to pay any potential fees or associated costs related to my request. If it isn’t possible to process the request without incurring fees, then please let me know the itemized potential cost and clear explanations of those charges upfront, and DO NOT proceed until I respond.
By Law I’m not required to provide a name or address to associate with a public records request, but in order to move things along I’d like to clarify that this request is being made by:
Sunshine Request
PO Box 17391
Asheville, NC 28816The request has been sent solely by me and my email address [email protected] . If anyone other than that email address contacts you to pursue a similar request, it did not come from me. Please do not commingle or treat that as an alteration or cancellation of my request – I intend to continue to pursue my request.
Thank you for your assistance!
** Sunshine Request (www.sunshinerequest.com) makes no claim as to the veracity of any statements or information contained in any of the requests, or public records, we receive.
Status: Sent to Government -
January 21, 2025 5:39 pm
2 months ago
Submitted to Sunshine Request
Status: Pending