Boonville Area Chamber of Commerce responds to at-least two information inquiries with a FOIL request
BOONVILLE- The Boonville Area Chamber of Commerce has responded to at-least two public information inquiries by asking for a FOIL submission.
One of these inquiries was one of our own.
On Tuesday, February 7, we submitted a request, as members of the media and the chamber, to examine the chamber’s IRS 990 forms for 2020 and 2021. We have already reviewed previous 990 forms via the IRS website from 2016 – 2019, but the forms for 2020 and 2021 were not yet posted for public examination as of this report.
What is FOIL? The definition of FOIL, according to the Comptroller’s Office, is as follows: “The Freedom of Information Law (“FOIL”), set forth in Article 6 of the Public Officers Law (§§84-90), is designed to ensure public access to government records. Under FOIL, an agency must make records available for public inspection and copying, except to the extent that records or portions thereof fall within one or more grounds for denial.”
In the wake of a heated public meeting on January 18, the Boonville Chamber published a call for members and anyone in the public to submit their requests, in writing, to an email address that was provided.
That email address is:
The chamber proposed this to the public after they did not provide things such as bylaws and treasurers reports, which were all requested on the spot from members who attended the January gathering.
The chamber clarified that they would provide whatever was requested, as long as it is available, by the next public meeting, which is February 16.
After inspecting the Chamber’s available IRS 990 forms online ourselves, we subsequently inquired to view their 2020 and 2021 forms by sending a written request to the email address.
The chamber responded by stating it was at the advice of their attorney, Jessica L. Young, that “you must request in writing not email and must be filled out with Freedom of Information (FOIL) Law,” the response read. “Once the Boonville Chamber receives this information we will be happy to provide the information we have available,” the response suggested.
Attorney Young spoke to us on record Thursday and said she gave the chamber this following advice: “Everything needs to be submitted in writing,” she told us.
In the chamber’s original publication inviting anyone to reach and request for information, it was made clear that a written request should be submitted via their email address. That post is listed below:
Original Boonville Chamber publication on January 23, 2023.
“At our January public meeting, which was well attended, we were greeted with requests for meeting agendas, meeting minutes, financial reports and other inquiries for 2022,” former chamber Director of Communications Joshua Fitzgerald told us. He resigned from his position in late January.
“The board, the members and the public were all told those were the instructions to receive requested information,” Fitzgerald added.
There was no formal instruction from the chamber in their response to our inquiry as to how to file a foil request for the Boonville Chamber.
We did reach out and were told to find a form online. We were also told the chamber is expected to have these FOIL forms in the near future.
We have been searching for this generic FOIL form and our only valid results thus far have led us to the State Comptroller’s Office. On their website, one can submit a written FOIL request via email.
The question up in the air revolves around if the Boonville Chamber or any Chamber of Commerce can make their members file a FOIL request upon inquiring for documents.
We have been searching for an official who could iterate and explain this, but so far after reaching out to numerous nearby chamber offices, attorneys and other officials, we have only been met with responses that include "not being well versed enough" to make a comment on record.
We did encounter a former local official who claims the chamber can make their members file a FOIL request, however; this individual asked to remain unidentified.
Meanwhile, Robbin Grunert, a freelance accountant who oversees taxes for 501 (c) exempt organizations in Lewis County, says the 990 forms for 2020 and 2021, which we requested, are up for public inspection and a FOIL shouldn’t apply.
“They have to be available to the public to view,” she told us. "It is not a normal procedure because it is open for public inspection." Grunert did clarify that the IRS may be behind with publishing filed 990 forms on their website.
Her claim reflects very similar to what the IRS states when it comes to 990 forms.
From the IRS website: “An exempt organization must make available for public inspection its annual information return (e.g., Form 990, Form 990-EZ). Returns must be available for a three-year period beginning with the due date of the return (including any extension of time for filing) or, if later, the date it is actually filed. For this purpose, the return includes any schedules and attachments that are filed with the form. Note, however, that an exempt organization, other than a private foundation, need not disclose the name and address of any contributor. An organization is not required to provide a copy of its Form 990 if the organization has made that form publicly available (e.g., through Internet posting), but must nevertheless make the form available for in-person inspection.”
In addition to our response from the chamber regarding our inquiry, we are aware of at-least one other chamber member who received the same response.
If anything else develops further and if we receive any more official comment regarding FOIL, we will be making another update.
The next Boonville Chamber public meeting is aimed for Thursday, February 16 at 46 Schuyler Street. The meeting will begin at 6:45 p.m.
Image via the Boonville Area Chamber of Commerce.
*Note: This story was updated with additional information as of 3:26 p.m. Friday, February 10, 2023.
