AUBURN — Firefighters claiming city councilors wrongfully withheld emails after a Freedom of Access request have dropped their lawsuit.

Craig Bouchard, president of the Auburn Professional Firefighters Local 797, said his group did receive a 100-page document containing copies of about 30 emails from the City Council regarding firefighters’ use of city vehicles.

“We didn’t find one citizen complaint contained in those emails,” Bouchard said. “We just wanted people to see that, so they could judge what’s been going on for themselves.”

At least two councilors complained this spring that they had received complaints from residents who had seen Auburn firetrucks driving around or stopped at stores.

The city changed its policy regarding use of fire vehicles for errands, requiring them to use smaller trucks to go shopping at grocery stores. Councilors said earlier this month they were happy with the changes and that the complaints had stopped.

The union filed a Freedom of Access request, asking to see all emails councilors had regarding the issue between January 2010 and May 2011. Councilor Dan Herrick said he did not have any emails since he does not use the medium to communicate with his constituents. Councilor Mike Farrell said he would give union officials the emails if they paid him the time he spent collecting them. Other councilors did release their emails.

State access laws allow government officials to charge a reasonable fee for their time. Farrell said he was charging the union $40 — $10 per hour for five hours work, with no charge for the first hour.

Union officials argued they should not have to pay the fee until Farrell released his emails and filed a suit against city councilors and City Manager Glenn Aho.

Farrell relented in June, releasing his emails and requested the union pay $30 for the time he spent gathering the emails. He has said he would donate the fee to the city’s Community Development Department.

Bouchard said the union had not paid the fee.

“But we will be,” he said.

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