A&A: Mayor up for reelection wants to stifle public comment on candidates

Q: The mayor who is running for reelection is currently advancing a policy revision to stifle the public comments during City Council meetings of anyone who is speaking to a ballot initiative or on a candidate.
Recently the mayor discussed the changes she’s proposing in an interview with a local newspaper and mentioned email communication with [...]

A&A: Have been denied access to my own “Physician’s Notice of Birth”

Q: I am requesting a certified copy of the commonly referred to “Physician’s Notice of Birth” (PNOB) issued by the attending physician of the birth. The town where I was born has my birth certificate on record, but neither the city records office nor the hospital where I was born  claim to have access to [...]

A&A: Is the list of employees taking voluntary buyouts a public document?

Q: I am a reporter covering the public district hospital. I want to know if a list of 74 employees who accepted voluntary buyouts is a public document. I requested this list from the hospital’s PR person, and she said she would provide it only on condition that I promise not to publish the names. [...]

A&A: Can a letter be subject to the CPRA before it is given to the recipient?

Q: Is an intent to sue letter drafted by a special district’s attorney subject to the CPRA prior to it being given to the recipient?
A: The kind of letter you describe might be exempt from disclosure under the PRA under a number of different exemptions.

If it were kept confidential between the attorney and district [...]

A&A: Is there a statute of limitations on CPRA cases?

Q: I have read the California Public Records Act and I have been unable to find a statute of limitations. Are you aware of any authorities that indicate how long a plaintiff has to sue under the CPRA?
A: The Public Records Act (”PRA” or the “Act”) does not provide for a statute of limitations for [...]

A&A: I have been denied access to all records and the staff has been told not to speak to me

Q: We have a small fire protection district, and the board of directors (all volunteers) is getting out of control. Can you please give me some general advice about the following issues?

Do I need to file a “public record request letter,” or can I just go down to the district office and request [...]

A&A: Is CPRA 10-day deadline measured in calendar days or weekdays?

Q:The PRA provides that “[e]ach agency, upon a request for a copy of records, shall, within 10 days from receipt of the request, determine whether the request, in whole or in part, seeks copies of disclosable public records…” Govt Code § 6253(c)
Is that 10 business days or 10 calendar days? How long do I have [...]

A&A: How does the CPRA deal with emails between elected officials

Q: Can email sent by a California Special District elected official to other directors or the district office concerning district business be subject to examination using the Public Records Act? Would it make a difference if he used his personal computer to send an email to another elected official?
A: Under California’s Public Records Act, “any [...]

A&A: DMV denied request for records previously accessed. What should I do next?

Q: I am attempting to identify information from the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV). The specific information is an identifying number on a driver’s license print out. The identifying number corresponds with a specific court in California. If you call DMV’s toll-free number, they will tell you what court belongs to the identifying number.
My public [...]

A&A: Agency won’t provide records in electronic format

Q: In response to our public records request for electronic data, public agencies have refused to release data in Excel format. They have instead given us pdfs or hard copies. Their reasons are vague, ranging from concerns we will manipulate the data to saying it’s not their policy to release data in that format. [...]

A&A: We had to wait for records; others received info with a phone call

Q: We have been cited for a barking dog complaint of one of our dogs. The complaining parties are our neighbors, one of which we have taken to court over an easement issue and there is an arbitration agreement in place for no harassment by either party.
We claimed that they were using the dog as [...]

A&A: What’s the law regarding destruction of public records?

Q: What section of California law deals with retention and destruction of public records?
A: California has several statutes addressing document destruction/retention. With respect to city governments, Government Code Section 34090 requires that the city retain any record that is less than two years old:

Unless otherwise provided by law, with the approval of the [...]

A&A: Getting run around trying to access police report on son’s death

Q: My son was shot to death. It was ruled as an accident and the killer received four years for involuntary manslaughter and one year for felony possession of a firearm. I want to file a lawsuit against the defendant for wrongful death. I am trying to get a copy of the police report [...]

A&A: Is a Salary/Wage Review Really A “Trade Secret”?

Q: Our District Hospital contracted with a company to do a salary/wage and benefit review of hospital employees. They are meeting in closed session and discussing this report as a “trade secret.” I have requested a copy of this report under the CPRA and was refused based on the trade secret exemption. Their response was, [...]

A&A: Does city’s “fee schedule” for public records violate CPRA?

Q: A media partner of ours reported that a municipality has adopted a “schedule of charges” for public records requests. The board voted that there will be a $25 administrative fee per request. The number of pages requested will generate additional fees.
The first 10 pages of records will cost $1 per page and each additional [...]

A&A:Board Conducting Public’s Business Via Private Emails

Q: It became apparent yesterday morning that the Board of Directors of our Community Services District is conducting a significant portion of its business via email.  The emails would have originated from at least six personal private computers. Such email has not been made part of the public record. Under CPRA I have [...]

A&A: Tax Document Exemptions from Public Records Requests

Q: We requested consultant contracts from the county office of education, but the information we received was incomplete.  We’ve thought of requesting the list of consultants who received an IRS 1099 form, but we’re concerned that we would be denied the information on the grounds that it falls under the “tax” exclusion section of the [...]

A&A: Are Public Employee Performance Goals Exempt from CPRA?

Q: I would like to know whether a public-university attorney’s performance goals are personnel information that is exempt from the PRA. The goals should not contain privileged information, but instead consist of general goals that the individual wants to accomplish that year. In one case, the individual’s supervisor required the individual [...]

A&A: Withholding “Requests for Proposals” from the public

Q: A law enforcement commission released an RFP (Request for Proposals) some months ago. Two vendors responded but omitted required DVBE (Disabled Veteran Business Enterprise) participation so their proposals were not reviewed. The commission canceled the solicitation and has now put up a new one. Their response as to why [...]

A&A: Records request denied due to ongoing investigation

Q: I made a CPRA request for information regarding enforcement of a housing ordinance.  The response was that “the matter is under investigation.” How long can the CPRA be denied with the explanation that the matter is “under investigation” ?
A: Under the Public Records Act, public records — which include “any [...]

Can I see the city’s settlement agreement with police officers?

Q: The city has just reached a settlement agreement with several police officers who had filed claims–and then a lawsuit–alleging discrimination on the part of the police chief. There were also workers compensation claims tied to this lawsuit. The city just announced that as part of the agreement, the officers [...]

A&A: Police deny journalist’s request for suicide report

Q: I’m a freelance journalist, and I’ve got a few question regarding a recent records request I filed asking to view police reports, correspondence, etc., related to a suicide investigation. The case is closed, but the request was denied anyway. The denial letter says that even when a police investigation is [...]

A&A: Need documents to douse fire district’s out-of-control board

Can you please give me some general advice about these issues? We have a small fire protection district, and the board of directors (all volunteers) is going out of control. In this case, the district staff are friendly, the board is the enemy.
My questions are:

Do I need to file [...]

A&A: Request for sheriff’s homeless policy leads to trouble

Q: We requested from the sheriff department the following documents regarding homeless and/or transient people, people sleeping or camping outside, and/or people sitting on public sidewalks:

Documents setting forth guidelines, policies, practices or standards used by the sheriff’s department regarding homeless and/or transient persons;
Documents regarding and/or generatd by sheriff’s department [...]

A&A: City study taken off website after one day

Q: An historic inventory and study that the city paid for was put on the city’s website for only a day and then taken off. I’ve asked city staff to provide me with a copy and was told that it’s an administrative draft and they’re not for public view.
A: I think the [...]

A&A: Fee for email copies same as paper copies?

Q: I filed a complaint with the Department of Fair Employment and Housing (DFEH). The investigation is now complete, and I have requested a copy of the complete file.  The DFEH district administrator responded stating cost of 10 cents per page plus postage needs to be paid before I can receive [...]

A&A: Access to Caltrans Field Notes Denied

Q: I acted as my own attorney in my civil complaint against Caltrans [CT]. Two years ago CT denied my request for access to handwritten field notes and the County Superior Court judge denied my subsequent motion to compel.
The handwritten field notes I requested are stored in a vault in the [...]

A&A: Can City Attorney Withhold 911 Call Transcripts?

Q: A county supervisor called 911 to report what he described as an assault with several punches thrown at him. The local police department investigated and determined witnesses saw no punches thrown. After some delay, the city attorney has released the police investigative documents. Thus far, they have refused to release transcripts of the phone [...]

In Separate Moves, State and Federal Courts in California OK Policy Changes Allowing Greater Public Access

BY PETER SCHEER — The courts in California are often criticized for being out of step with the rest of the country. A willingness among judges to deviate from national orthodoxy is not necessarily a bad thing, however.
Just this week the administrative arm of the California Supreme Court adopted a rule providing public access to [...]

New rule allows public access to administrative records of California courts

The California Judicial Council approved a new Rule of Court this week giving the public a right of access to administrative records of Superior and Appellate courts and the Administrative Office of the Courts. The rule will be in effect January of next year and is modeled after the California Public Records Act. -DB

Legislative Bulletin
California [...]

A&A: City gives tax-free deal to developer, details kept secret

Q: The city recently entered into an agreement with a developer of a multi-million dollar resort hotel to forgo collecting transit occupancy taxes (TOT) of many million dollars. The city’s financial consultant analyzed the request from the developer and created several reports that were not made available to the public. The reports were presented to [...]

A&A:City wants me to pay to see report on fire at my house

Q: I just requested an incident report from the Fire Department relating to a fire at my property. They wanted to charge me $16 just to view the record, and said that they had been authorized to do so by the City Council.  Is this legal?  GovC 6253(b) authorizes charges “… of fees covering direct [...]

A&A: Access to public records denied during business hours

Q: On at least four occasions , I have gone to the Park and Recreation Department to review public records (on site, in the building) during normal business hours and I have been sent away. If at all possible, I would like to file a motion this week to force the department to allow me [...]

A&A: Councilman asks intern on date via city issued cell

Q: I have learned that a city councilman was sending text messages to a city intern, asking her for a date. I would like to file a CPR request for the text messages sent from his city issued Blackberry. I’m sure they (the councilman and the city attorney) would try to argue that such a [...]

A&A:City Surveillance Cameras and Public Records Law

Q: Are city-owned and operated surveillance camera recordings of public areas subject to disclosure in accordance with the California Public Records Law?
A: Under the Public Records Act, public records — which include “any writing containing information relating to the conduct of the public’s business prepared, owned, used, or retained by any [...]

A&A: Online arrest records no longer show violations

Q: I have received conflicting information from public records experts and police public information officers on what law enforcement agencies have to release relating to arrest history. So, let me ask you directly, if I submit a request to a police department in California that asks if John Doe, DOB 1/1/60, has ever been arrested [...]

Court rules CA counties must disclose pension amounts paid to government retirees

Nov 6, 2009—In a case filed by the First Amendment Coalition, the Modesto Bee and the California Newspaper Publishers Association, a California Superior Court has ruled that county governments, upon request, must disclose–by name–their retirees’ pension payments.
The Superior Court for Stanislaus County reasoned that the public interest in access to government employees’ pensions outweighs the [...]

California governor issues veto messages for free speech and open government bills

In vetoing SB218 Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger said he was for openness and transparency but felt that defining private auxiliary organizations as public under state public records acts would cause the state to lose the support of the organizations when the higher educations institutions were suffering significant budget cuts. In regard to SB 242, the governor said no business [...]

$100 fees for copies of unclaimed property data too high

Q: I am freelance journalist taking issue with the fees charged by the California Comptroller’s Office to provide copies of the digital files of lists of abandoned/unclaimed property.
The Comptroller produces well over 1,000 of these discs each month and charges $100 each. Once the computer file is downloaded from his mainframe, the actual cost [...]

Public should know if school employee embezzled $2m

Q: I have some information and documentation that a school district employee in Administrative Services was dismissed from her job for embezzling at least $2 million in district funds.  The employee was allowed to retire with benefits. Without Federal stimulus funds the district would be facing an $11 million deficit this year.
I believe warrants further [...]

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