(The following appeared on the Progressive Railroading website on April 8, 2010.)
Yesterday, Connecticut First Coalition officials requested that Rep. Joe Courtney (D-Conn.) investigate Amtrak’s recent response to a Freedom of Information Act request.
The New London-Norwich Building & Construction Trades Council’s request for RFP materials relating to the Niantic River Bridge replacement project, for which Amtrak hired a Maine construction company, was met with a $6,080 document handling charge, according to the coalition.
In a letter to New London-Norwich Building & Construction President Keith Brothers dated April 1, Amtrak said “your request has been classified as category 1 — that is, a commercial use request. Requesters in this category are charged $38 per hour for search and review time and 25 cents per page for reproduction of documents.”