The records trail

Last updated September 24, 2026.

improvecortland.com helps residents file FOIL requests and see how long the City actually takes. The records trail is the other half of that work: what happened after the requests went in — the acknowledgments, the extensions, the fees, the "no records" letters — with the documents embedded so you can read them yourself.

Published pieces

What the records show: Cortland County’s FOIL paper trail

September 24, 2026

Fifteen Cortland-related requests, eight chapters: the complaint that closed itself, the fee fight the City conceded, the jail that certified it has no written health policies, the $60 invoice with the clerk’s own math error, and the newest acknowledgment with no reasons given. Every quote verbatim from a primary record.