Milgram by any other name is still an A-Hole

If Ravi or anyone else has any doubt that John Milgram is an a-hole just read this email exchange I have been having with the human smokestack a/k/a JJOKE PIO Johm Milgram.  Now remember this started when I asked Milgram for the financial disclosure reports of JJOKE commissioners and employees required to file those reports.  Milgram told me at a commission meeting that I needed to specify which employees.  I asked him for a list of employees and he told me to make a document request, which I did.    After waiting a reasonable amount of time and not receiving the list I started requesting reports for those employees that I knew by name and this is what happened:

"Dear Mr. Grandeau,

In response to your July 6 records request identifying financial disclosure statements for certain Commission staff members, and pursuant to Executive Law §94(19)(a) and the Commissions guidelines for accessing publicly available records at http://www.jcope.ny.gov/law/recordsaccess.html, copies of the documents you requested will be available for you at the Commission's reception desk at start of business Monday, July 16, upon receipt of a check made out to the Joint Commission on Public Ethics for $5.75 (23 pages at $0.25 per page).

Mr. Milgram
Am I to understand from your response that Ms. Clemente's financial disclosure report is 63 pages? As the commission waives copying fees for the first 40 pages I would be happy to pay for the 23 additional pages. If however Ms. Clemente's report is less than 40 pages I would request an explanation for the commission's change in policy regarding copy fees.
If the response is in reference to one of the other 4 seperate request I made on July 6 please so identify which request you are responding to.
If you are responding to all 5 seperate requests I made on July 6 as one request you are mistaken and I would ask that they be treated seperately and provided seperately.
David Grandeau




Mr. Grandeau,

Your public document request submissions of July 6 are considered part of one public document request submitted on your behalf and indeed appropriately and reasonably describe specific documents you were seeking in a broader request of May 16. As per the Commission's guidelines for accessing publicly available records at http://www.jcope.ny.gov/law/recordsaccess.html, copies of documents requested are assessed a fee of $0.25 per page, with no fee assessed for the first 40 pages. The 23 pages are in addition to the 190 pages already provided to you as part of the same request, and for which you paid $37.50 in copying fees ($0.25 per page for 150 pages). Copies of the additional 23 pages of documents you requested (financial disclosure statements of five specific Commission staff members) are available for you upon receipt of a check made out to the Joint Commission on Public Ethics for $5.75 (23 pages at $0.25 per page). This decision may be appealed pursuant to the Commission’s records access guidelines as referenced above.

Mr Milgram

How do you know that the 5 seperate document requests made on July 6 are part of the "broader request" of May 16?

If you can now fulfill the "broader request" of May 16 please do so immediately as it has been over 30 days since it was made.

To the extent you cannot fulfill the broader request please disregard it and provide me the list of employees I requested over 21 days ago and we can start this kabuki dance all over again.

David Grandeau"

Now I'm sure it's possible that Milgram is not to blame and some lawyer, maybe even one related to a commissioner is to blame, but it was Milgram that I am told is handling this request.

Now I am always open to suggestions if anyone has a better word than asshole to describe the foregoing feel free to let me know.

By the way I can't wait to pay the money and get my hands on these reports.