Action Committee for Transit, Inc. v. Town of Chevy Chase

The Maryland Public Information Act (the “MPIA”) 1 permits government agencies to charge a reasonable fee for expenses incurred in the course of responding to a request to inspect public records. See § 4-206 of the General Provisions Article (“GP”), Md. Code Ann. (2014). The MPIA also allows an agency to waive fees upon the request of an applicant if, “after considering the applicant’s ability to pay and other relevant factors, the official custodian determines that the waiver would be in the public interest.” GP § 4-206(e)(2). The dispositive issue in this appeal is whether an official…