BALTIMORE — Inspector generals are now calling on legislature to pass an exemption to the state’s open records law, after Baltimore City’s Inspector General Isabel Cumming received heavily redacted internal documents for the first time in her eight year tenure.
Baltimore City heavily redacts documents in IG case. Now, a court battle is brewing
“This denial allows political actors or others who wield power within the overseen entity to hide crucial information behind a facade of privilege,” she told the Inspector General Advisory Board during a meeting on Tuesday.
Cumming has been outspoken about the issue that began on Friday, January 16th when she received 200 pages of financial records that were mostly blacked out.
OIG requested financial records on 10/22/25. Below is what OIG finally got on 1/16/26 - 200 pages redacted. Unable to follow taxpayer $$ -on 1/20 IG subpoenaed these pages
— Isabel22 (@isabel_cumming) January 27, 2026
w/o redactions due 1/22. On 1/24, OIG loses its admin access* to data - w/o notice & still no records. pic.twitter.com/w3M17d6z0w
Cumming says they were related to payments made by the Mayor’s Office of Neighborhood Safety and Engagement (MONSE) to contractors.
She issued a follow-up subpoena, which has gone unanswered.
“I have an outstanding subpoena and by law, I have the ability to enforce that subpoena,” she said.
She says she's only ever relied on this power three times, and it's always related back to the office's work regarding MONSE.
The Board approved her request to seek out pro-bono legal counsel to enforce it. Cumming tells WMAR-2 News that she expects to have representation by early next week.
But Mayor Brandon Scott says they are following the Maryland Public Information Act law, which has exemptions for sensitive information, such as medical and financial, that applies to everyone.
“We do not want her good work to stop, but we cannot allow anyone that's working in the City of Baltimore to work outside of compliance with state law,” Scott said.
His office points to an advisory letter issued by Assistant Attorney General Shaunee Harrison to Baltimore City state senator Antonio Hayes of the 40th District on February 3, 2026.
In it Harrison states “[I]n my view, a local law or charter provision authorizing, or requiring, a local government custodian of records to disclose records to a local inspector general would be preempted by State law and unenforceable to the extent it required or authorized the custodian to disclose records covered by one of the PIA’s mandatory exceptions.”
It is not an official AG opinion. WMAR-2 News reached out to the AG's Office but has not heard back by time of this article was published.
Statement from the Mayor’s Office:
“There were two takeaways from Tuesday night’s Advisory Board meeting: (1) the OIG conceded that the Attorney General’s legal opinion is clear and (2) the board would have benefitted from additional context about these decisions that, so far, they have not sought. Only hearing from one perspective is not going to provide a complete picture.
“We remain eager to have the Law Department brief the Board Chair on these issues, including why it is not feasible for the IG to pursue legal action against the City in her official capacity, and to work with the OIG and Board to outline new protocols that ensure their work continues uninterrupted.”
"This letter has the potential to incapacitate our offices and diminish our ability to root out fraud, waste and abuse," Cumming and Inspector Generals from Baltimore, Howard and Montgomery Counties wrote in a letter to the public on Thursday. They note that information that is are mandatory exceptions under the MPIA are "routinely used" in their work.
They have called on legislators to create an exemption for IG local offices within the MPIA, to provide them with necessary access and reinforce the State's commitment to transparency and integrity at all levels of government.
Inspector Generals call on legislature to exempt their offices from open records law limitations
