Press sues California Legislature for access to office budgets and spending records

The Los Angeles Times with a number of other newspapers has sued the California Legislature to secure the office budgets and spending records of lawmakers and legislative committees. The Assembly Rules Committee rejected requests for the records last month saying they were exempt under California’s Public Records Act. The press wants to find out how [...]

California: Local governments feeling budget squeeze on enforcing open meeting law

Observers are expecting some slippage in enforcing the Brown Act, now that the state Legislature cut the $17 million reimbursement to local governments to cover the costs of enforcement. Monterey County alone is on the hook for $140,000 in Brown Act enforcement. The county is opposed to a bill by a Watsonville assemblyman to require [...]

Washington Supreme Court rules federal privacy law supercedes state public records law

In a case involving predatory lending, The Washington Supreme Court ruled the state attorney general could not release financial records from a mortgage company investigation since federal privacy law pre-empt state public records law. -db The Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press November 8, 2010 By Rosemary Lane The Washington Supreme Court barred the [...]

A&A: School personnel campaigning on public dime

Q: Can I request emails from the school district without using an attorney? I want to request emails between the superintendent and other employees, assistant superintendent and union reps, and board members and school employees? Reason: I have seen hard evidence that they are campaigning on school time, using equipment to run campaigning materials and [...]

A&A: Council-elect make decisions, but claim documents are not public

Q: I cover an unincorporated community that voted in June to incorporate. Voters approved incorporation and also elected a five-member council.  A committee has been formed to raise private funds to put on a celebration on mark the historic occasion. Two elected members of the city council-elect (who will not be sworn in until the [...]

Tulare: Vice mayor resigns to settle lawsuits over violations of open government laws

Members of the Tulare City Council admitted violations of California’s Public Records Act and the Brown Act, the state’s open meeting law, and the vice mayor resigned as part of the settlement of lawsuits filed against the city and two members of the council. -db Tulare Advance-Register October 11, 2010 By Staff Vice Mayor Phil [...]

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 [...]

Open records dispute: Judge orders university to release contract with Palin

A Superior Court judge has ordered California State University of Stanislaus to comply with public records laws and release a speakers contract with Sarah Palin. -db San Francisco Chronicle August 26, 2010 By Nanette Asimov California State University at Stanislaus violated public records laws and will have to release the speakers contract with Sarah Palin [...]

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 [...]

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: Records request regarding government contractors was denied on privacy grounds

Q:  I manage a small organization that helps teach people to use public records for their protection. Recently we made a request to several municipalities for records of payments made to people doing business with the muni’s. We sought to discover the names of persons or companies who were paid by the county or city [...]

Cal State Stanislaus admits to possessing Palin speech documents

After saying they had no records pertaining to Sarah Palin’s contract for a speech at a fundraising event, officials at California State University Stanislaus copped to possessing “800 to 900″ documents. -db California Watch May 5, 2010 By Lance Williams Is the open government ruckus over Sarah Palin’s speaking fee in Turlock sputtering toward a [...]

Same-sex marriage referendum: Supreme Court justices voice skepticism about keeping signatures private

In hearing arguments about keeping referendum signatures private in a referendum to repeal Washington’s domestic partnership law, several justices appeared unsympathetic to arguments of the attorney opposing making the signatures public. -db Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press April 28, 2010 By Mara Zimmerman The U.S. Supreme Court on Wednesday appeared skeptical of the [...]

Leading gubernatorial candidates Meg Whitman and Jerry Brown need to show voters, by their own actions, that they are committed to transparency in government. Promises won’t cut it.

BY PETER SCHEER—As California voters begin the process of selecting the next  Governor of the ungovernable Golden State, the leading candidates owe them a demonstration of their commitment to government transparency. All politicians are supportive of open-government “in principle;”  the question is whether they are committed in practice. The best test for that is a [...]

California State Assembly Speaker bans texting in session

The new California Assembly Speaker has banned text messaging on the assembly floor prompting skepticism from First Amendment advocates that the ban is enforceable or efficacious. -db CivSource Commentary March 9, 2010 By Bailey McCann Last week, when John A. Perez became California’s new Assembly Speaker a point in his opening speech caught our eye [...]

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 [...]

News organizations hopeful about obtaining parole documents of alleged kidnapper

A Sacramento judge tentatively ruled that the state must hand over Phillip Garrido’s parole records. Garrido has been charged with the kidnap of an 11-year-old girl and keeping her in captivity for 18 years. -db The Sacramento Bee February 5, 2010 By Sam Stanton A Sacramento judge issued a tentative ruling Thursday that would require [...]

Internet raises stakes in cases pitting public disclosure against right to privacy

In Doe v. Reed, the U.S. Supreme Court will weigh the right to privacy under the First Amendment’s protection of freedom of speech and association against the need for open government and transparency in public elections. -DB First Amendment Center Commentary January 19, 2010 By Tony Mauro WASHINGTON, D.C. — The Supreme Court has agreed [...]

Watsonville: Council member criticizes city government for open government lapses

A former member of the Watsonville City Council and Planning Commission says that greater transparency is needed in expenditures and city contracts especially in legal and consulting services. -DB Register-Pajaronian Opinion January 16, 2010 By Emilio Martinez While walking the districts these past few weeks I had some long-term Watsonville residents use the word “corrupt” [...]

Redding newspaper sues fire district for records on investigation of ex-fire chief

The Redding Record Searchlight has asked the county superior court to release documents on alleged mismanagement and misconduct by an ex-fire chief. The chief resigned last July. -DB Redding Record Searchlight November 10, 2009 By Jim Schultz The Record Searchlight on Monday sued the Anderson Fire Protection District to obtain an investigator’s report on the [...]

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 [...]

Judge rules challenge to records release a SLAPP

While acknowledging that a plaintiff had no right to keep pension records private, a Superior Court judge ruled that the plaintiff’s concern about her privacy was legitimate and dismissed a motion for attorney fees brought by media concerns. -DB Metropolitan News-Enterprise September 8, 2009 By Steven M. Ellis An action by a group of newspapers against [...]

Law proposed to shed light on state university foundations

University officials claim that a law forcing disclosure financial dealings of nonprofit university foundations serving state institutions would be too costly. Open government advocates say that recent expenditures, illegal or questionable, show the need for disclosure. -DB Capitol Weekly August 13, 2009 By Maryam Ali Free-speech groups are trying to force the state’s public universities to [...]

Judge says government pension records subject to disclosure

The California Supreme Court ruled in 2007 that names and salaries of government employees are public record but did not specifically mention retirees. A Contra Costa judge has now ruled that that records of county’s pension funds must be disclosed. -DB Metropolitan News-Enterprise July 15, 2009 By Sherrim M. Okamoto A county’s pension records are not [...]