Porten v. City of Hampton

Case Attorney: Nicholas Nelson and Austin Lysy

Enforcing Transparency in Local Government

The Upper Midwest Law Center filed a lawsuit on behalf of Hampton Township residents Erik and Kathleen Porten after the City of Hampton failed to properly respond to public records requests related to a major proposed data center development.

The case centers on a fundamental principle: government records belong to the public, and access to them is not optional.

What Prompted the Lawsuit

The Portens submitted data requests seeking information about a proposed 1.5-million-square-foot data center project that could significantly impact their community.

According to the complaint, the City’s response raised serious concerns about transparency, recordkeeping, and compliance with Minnesota law.

What the Lawsuit Alleges

The lawsuit outlines a pattern of failures by the City of Hampton and its officials, including:

• Failing to search email accounts used by the Mayor for city business
• Delaying responses for months
• Producing records with unexplained or unauthorized redactions
• Attempting to charge unlawful fees for inspecting public data
• Failing to update its data access policy for nearly 20 years
• Requiring residents to review hundreds of pages at a service window rather than in a reasonable setting

The complaint also alleges that city officials used personal or non-city email accounts for official business without proper oversight or retention, raising concerns that public records may not be fully accessible.

Why This Case Matters

Minnesota’s Government Data Practices Act exists to ensure transparency and accountability in government.

This case asks whether those protections will be meaningfully enforced when public entities fail to comply.

Access to public records is not a courtesy—it is a legal right that allows citizens to understand decisions that affect their communities.

What UMLC Is Asking the Court to Do

The lawsuit seeks to require full compliance with Minnesota law, including:

• Proper responses to public data requests
• Lawful inspection practices
• Adequate record retention procedures
• Enforcement of statutory remedies under the Minnesota Government Data Practices Act