“These are the public’s documents”
Matt Scallan, writing for The Times-Picayune:
Faced with a slumping real estate market, more Louisiana clerks of court are moving public records to the Internet, both as a convenience and a way to shore up their bottom lines.
“It’s expensive to do, but I’m hoping it generates a little revenue,” said St. Charles Parish Clerk Charles Oubre, who plans to have court records online by September. …
Kinler said he had planned to put records online this year but will have to wait until 2010 because of the expense.
Oubre said his office is spending $100,000 for the project, which involves scanning records and obscuring Social Security numbers to comply with state law.
He said he hasn’t decided how to charge for the service.
“Some of the clerks let you look but charge you for every page you print. Other ones charge a monthly fee and let you print as many pages as you want,” he said. “We just have to figure out what works for us.”
Oubre said his office will post civil suits filed since 1981, land conveyances since 1960 and mortgages since 1972.
Lafourche Parish has had records online since August, culminating a 15-year project to digitize that parish’s records. Clerk of Court Vernon Rodrigue said viewers can see documents online but must pay for copies.
“I can’t tell whether I’m coming out ahead or not, but I feel like these are the public’s documents,” he said. “They should be able to look at them just as if they were here in the courthouse.”
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