Picking a fire chief is a big decision: Cincinnati's oversees a department 905 employees and a budget of $134.7 million.
So when the city was searching for a new fire chief, The Enquirer sought to find out who had applied. Was there a lot of interest? Were there other finalists? How would the pool stack up against the person the city eventually chose?
To do that, The Enquirer filed a request under Ohio's public records law for the names. But the city didn't give The Enquirer the names.
Instead, nearly 10 weeks after announcing the search for a new fire chief, City Manager Paula Boggs Muething alerted council that the city had hired the new chief. It was Assistant Cincinnati Fire Chief Michael Washington – a 28-year veteran of the fire department and by all accounts a popular and well-qualified choice for the $170,000-a-year job.
The Enquirer did eventually get the names of the 21 candidates, but only after Washington was hired on May 14, and only after The Enquirer sent a follow-up email seeking the records.
"There is no provision in the law that allows a public official to hold on to requested pubic records and release them at their convenience," said Cincinnati First Amendment attorney Jack Greiner, who represents The Enquirer. "Getting the information to the public after the chief was selected really takes the public out of the process."
With Cincinnati Police Chief Eliot Isaac set to retire in early 2022, will the public know who applied before city leaders make their choice?
Boggs Muething, who as city manager is responsible for hiring the fire chief, declined an interview request about the fire chiefselection process.
Kelly Carr, Boggs Muething's chief of staff, said in a statement: "The city's human resource department followed all administrative protocols and procedures for the selection of the new fire chief – including public disclosure of the vacancy. Upon the announcement of Chief Winston's retirement on March 5, the city publicly communicated that a new chief would be selected. The job posting was released to the public that same day. The selection of incoming Chief Washington was publicly announced on May 14, 2021."
Under the city charter Boggs Muething doesn't have to tell the public anything about the process; the short list of candidates was not provided to the public in the two previous fire chief searches.
Cincinnati Charter Committee President Matt Woods urged more transparency in city business.
"Our local media is crucial in maintaining checks and balances on those entrusted in local government," Woods said. "By delaying the release of public information it continues the narrative that our officials play in a father-knows-best system. Proper checks and balances produce trustworthy, competent government and our media must be respected for the role they serve in our city."
Cincinnati Fire Union President Matt Alter said he, too, would have liked the process to have been more open.
"Being transparent helps all candidates and citizens know what goes into the process so folks don’t think this was a political choice," Alter said. "It wasn't. This chief was selected based on his education and qualifications and experience and merit. But having a more open process removes any doubt. It would give firefighters, but also the public, confidence that things are being done on the up and up."
Washington began his career in 1991 as an emergency medical technician and worked his way up the ranks to lieutenant, captain, district fire chief and then assistant fire chief of the department's fire prevention office.
A review of the applications shows 21 people applied for the job, five of them local. Fire chiefs and assistant chiefs from all over the country applied, as did a person from South Africa.
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