FOIA Request to Village of Bull Valley regarding vendor payment registers on February 1, 2026.
A Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request was submitted to the Village of Bull Valley by Prairie State Wire, a media organization dedicated to covering local governmental affairs. The request, dated February 1, 2026, seeks access to the village’s vendor payment register for the preceding calendar month. This request is made under the Illinois Freedom of Information Act, 5 ILCS 140.
The requested records include detailed information about payments made by the city in the specified month. Specifically, Prairie State Wire is seeking:
– Names of vendors paid by the city
– Dates and amounts of payments
– Descriptions of goods or services purchased
The purpose of this request is to gather information that serves public interest and can be disseminated to the public. It emphasizes that only existing records are sought and does not require new documents to be created. If any part of this request is denied or withheld, Prairie State Wire has asked for an explanation citing specific statutory reasons for such denial.
Prairie State Wire has also requested that these records be provided in electronic format if available. Additionally, they have requested a fee waiver based on their role as a media organization involved in news gathering and reporting.
The requestor identifies as a member of The Coalition Opposing Governmental Secrecy, a non-profit organization assisting media companies and advocacy groups in investigating governmental agencies through FOIA and Sunshine Laws. More information about this coalition can be found at https://stopsecrecy.org/about/.
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.
