Record-holding agency: Sarasota County School District
Date requested: Sept. 10, 2026
Outcome: Received on Oct. 9, after submitting a more narrow request
Cost: $239.16

Suncoast Searchlight requested internal affairs reports, alleged misconduct reports and use of force reports for all staff members of the Sarasota Schools Police Department. The initial request also asked for all support and ancillary documents tied to the primary records, but Suncoast Searchlight removed that portion of the request after receiving an initial cost estimate of over $1,000. The school district claimed 33 hours of staff time would be needed to find and redact the documents in the initial estimate. The invoice for the reduced request stipulated the district would need seven hours of staff time, costing $239.16. On Oct. 9, Suncoast Searchlight received over 100 pages of records, which are still being reviewed by a reporter.

The district’s initial estimate of more than $1,000 was more than three times what Suncoast Searchlight paid last year for a substantially larger request, which covered seven years of the same types of records and cost just $322.

When asked about the discrepancy, a records custodian said the police department had severely underestimated how long it would take to gather the records for last year’s request but decided not to increase the price after giving the initial estimate. This year, the records custodian said the estimate was based on how long it actually took to gather and redact the records.