FAC is an award winning nonprofit dedicated to advancing free speech, open government and public participation in civic affairs.
We're proud to offer a free membership to those who want to join our fight to defend the First Amendment and protect the people's right to know.
Have a question about access to records, open meetings, or other First Amendment concerns? We have a dedicated group of lawyers ready to help.
Full coverage of FAC’s fight for transparency and accountability in the raid of San Francisco journalist. Find the latest updates, article archive and public records.
A letter from the executive director 2019 was a year of grave threats to First Amendment rights. In San Francisco, police raided the home and
Forget Trump. Golden State governments were behind an unrelenting series of affronts to the First Amendment in 2019. Police went after a journalist’s sources with
The First Amendment Coalition today asked a judge to unseal records in the criminal case against John Lee Cowell, the man charged in the stabbing
FAC’s greatest asset is our 30 year legal record of holding governments accountable at the local, state, and federal levels, supporting journalists and citizens in how to enforce their First Amendment rights
FAC regularly holds public forums that bring lawyers, journalists and citizens together from coast to coast to advance the discussion on government transparency, free speech and citizen engagement.
Now more than ever we need people who fight to defend our rights. Every year FAC recognizes First Amendment champions who have made outstanding contributions to government transparency.
We engage in oversight of the legislative process, working with legislators and providing testimony in support of First Amendment-friendly bills, and against bills that would turn the clock back.
The Legal Hotline gives users quick, free access to FAC’s lawyers for questions about access to public records; your right to attend government meetings; and access to court documents.
A&A is a searchable database of questions posed by users like you about their rights under open government laws and first amendment safeguards that have been answered by FAC’s attorneys.
FAC’s resources for using California (CPRA) and federal (FOIA) laws to obtain public records, including FAC’s CPRA Primer; the text of the CPRA, and a template for a CPRA request letter.
Resources for California’s open-meetings law, including our Brown Act Primer on how the law works; the text of the Ralph M. Brown Act and a sample “Cure & Correct” demand letter.
The S.D.I. aims to provide pro bono or reduced-rate counsel trained in the intricacies of subpoena defense to defend journalists — particularly those from small, independent and nonprofit media outlets.
Jonathan Logan Family Foundation
Craig Newmark
Philanthropies
Will Hearst
First Look Media, Inc.
Susan McClatchy
Rowland & Patricia Rebele
Carol & Doug Melamed
Donald E. Graham
California Press Foundation
Central Valley Foundation
© 2019 First Amendment Coalition
