By GAIL OBER, InDepthNH.org
CONCORD – The state Attorney General’s Office is refusing to identify the 161 people who have applied for state reimbursement for losses incurred as a result of the 2009 collapse of the FRM Ponzi scheme.
Spokesman Michael Garrity said in an email that 41 of the claims have been evaluated by a fund administrator and four have been rejected. The fund website updated the evaluated claims to 59. The closing date for submissions was May 18.
“To date, no distributions have been made, and the names of the applicants are not public,” said Garrity, citing the right-to-know law, RSA 91-A: 5, IV. He added that distributions will be made on Dec. 31, saying that disclosure of the names would constitute an “invasion of privacy.”
The law, established by RSA 359-P, but funded though the state budget, caps each claimant’s state payout to 50 percent of the certified loss.
Andru Volinsky, a lawyer in private practice with substantial expertise in the right-to-know law, said the names should be public.
“I understand the attorney general is relying on invasion of privacy to withhold the names of the applicants and their position, and I think it is in error,” Volinsky said.
“None of these applicants was required to register,” Volinsky continued. They have voluntarily put themselves out there seeking reimbursement.
“The state is not invading their privacy. They are voluntarily providing information to get a benefit….
