First Amendment Coalition
First Amendment Coalition
Defending Free Speech & The Public's Right To Know
OUR MISSION
FAC is an award-winning nonprofit dedicated to advancing free speech, open government and public participation in civic affairs.
BECOME A MEMBER
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.
LATEST NEWS
Our California Legislative Priorities Focus on Police Transparency and Press Protections
Our priorities for the 2021 California Legislative session focus on advancing police transparency, strengthening press protections and opposing government secrecy.
FAC Opposes Effort to Keep Autopsy Reports Secret
AB 268 runs afoul of the First Amendment and would allow a troubling level of secrecy in death investigations.
FAC Sues Ventura County Sheriff for Violating Public Records Act
It’s FAC’s latest effort to enforce a landmark police transparency law.
WHAT WE DO
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.
WHAT WE OFFER
The Legal Hotline gives users quick, free access to FAC’s lawyers for questions about access to public records, meetings and the courts and your rights under the First Amendment.
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; a Police Transparency Guide; and a template for 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.
FAC defends press freedom by ensuring journalists in need receive pro bono legal defense in the event they are subject to subpoena or other legal threat seeking their confidential sources or unpublished materials.