FOIA Request to McDonough County regarding all county employee salaries 2024 on December 18, 2025.
A Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request was submitted to McDonough County, Illinois, seeking detailed records on the salaries and employment details of all individuals employed by the county during the calendar year 2024. The request was made by Prairie State Wire, a media organization dedicated to providing comprehensive news coverage on local governmental affairs.
The requested information includes the full name, department or office, job title or position, salary or wages for 2024, and employment type or status of each employee. The employment types specified in the request include full-time employees, part-time employees, temporary/seasonal employees, and contractors if such records are maintained by the county.
Prairie State Wire has asked for these records in an electronic format that is machine-readable, such as CSV or Excel files. The request also specifies that if any portion of the information is denied or redacted, McDonough County should provide the non-exempt portions along with specific statutory exemptions relied upon for withholding information.
The requester has indicated their affiliation with The Coalition Opposing Governmental Secrecy, a non-profit organization that assists media companies and public advocacy groups in investigating governmental agencies through FOIA requests. More information about this coalition can be found at this link.
In addition to seeking transparency from public institutions, Prairie State Wire has requested a fee waiver for accessing these records due to their role as a media professional involved in gathering and reporting news to the public.
The average student-to-teacher ratio in McDonough County was 12-to-1 in the 2022-23 school year, with 3,238 students enrolled and 264 full-time faculty members across the county’s schools.
Our team will continue to keep you updated as we gather and report news related to this request and other matters of public interest. Please feel free to reach out if you have any questions or need further clarification regarding this matter.
