The Florida Legislature and Hillsborough County are moving rapidly and in a mostly responsible manner to finally bring rideshare companies like Uber and Lyft more fully and legally into the traditional taxicab market. But regardless of how that long-running controversy is resolved, investigators need to determine whether Hillsborough officials destroyed or tampered with public records. This state has a long commitment to public records, and they cannot be strategically eliminated in the heat of a regulatory battle.

5 Months Ago

6 Months Ago

7 Months Ago

County attorneys informed a Hillsborough judge Monday that public records may have been erased from as many as seven cellphones at the Public Transportation Commission, the county agency that regulates for-hire vehicles such as taxis, tow trucks and limousines. County attorneys had already reported that the phone of former director Kyle Cockream was wiped clean just weeks before he gave it to an investigator hired to obtain public records, including text messages, from the device.

That reset left Cockream’s phone with no data older than Sept. 2, even though he had been using it far longer, according to a forensic investigator. The text messages were expected to shed light on a controversial period during which the PTC was accused of colluding with the cab industry against the rideshare companies. The messages were the subject of a public records request by a Sarasota attorney.

Government records in Florida, with limited exemptions, are required to be open for public inspection so taxpayers can see how official business is conducted. Those public records include text messages and other forms of communication. An attorney for Cockream said his client was not trying to hide the records but seeking to back up the data on the phones. County attorneys said the same reset process was performed on six other agency phones, along with Cockream’s personal phone. The phones reset included those used by agency inspectors who issued tickets to Uber and Lyft for operating without a required county permit.

The yearslong battle between taxicabs and rideshares seems to be finally nearing an end as the state appears poised to eliminate the PTC and as Hillsborough County government prepares to take over the regulatory role. That’s a sensible move, providing that the state and county still require background checks on commercial drivers, vehicle inspections and proper insurance. The PTC is a layer of government that’s not needed, but the consumer protections it enforces are essential for public safety.

State investigators still need to pursue these records, and the court needs to make a finding on whether officials broke the law. The Florida Department of Law Enforcement cleared Cockream and the agency of any benefit or illegal activity in their dealings with the taxicab industry. Now state investigators have opened a preliminary probe into the PTC’s handling of public records. The court needs to send a message, whatever investigators find, that public business must remain in the public eye. This episode, at the very least, shows a need to reinforce the importance of the public records law and the need to hold public officials accountable when those records disappear.

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