Requests for applications of public positions
Q: I live in a City with a deep history of closed government.The City Clerk has just notified me that I can not review (partially redacted) copies of job applications of the director of the City’s planning department. I will not be allowed to see anything.It is my understanding that CFAC’s stance is that I should be allowed to review such materials. Do you have any suggestions as what to do now that I have been noticed that I will not be allowed to see the materials?
A: The information you are requesting is not expressly exempt from required disclosure under the Public Records Act. However, as you may already know, there are two cases addressing comparable situations that the City may be using to justify non-disclosure: Wilson v. Superior Court, 51 Cal. App. 4th 1136 (1997) and California First Amendment Coalition v. Superior Court, 67 Cal. App. 4th 159 (1998). Both cases involved applications submitted to the Governor for appointment to vacancies on county boards of supervisors. In both cases, the court of appeal held, for a variety of reasons, that the applications were exempt from disclosure under the Public Records Act. One of the main justifications was the so-called “deliberative process privilege.”
The argument made by the Governor, and accepted by the Courts, was that disclosure of the applications would deter applicants from providing complete and detailed information about themselves, and thereby interfere with the Governor’s selection process.Proposition 59, which added Article I, section 3(b) to the California Constitution, was intended to do away with the deliberative process privilege. The ballot argument in support of Proposition 59, which was passed by more than 83 percent of the vote, states in part as follows: “What will proposition 59 do? … It will allow the public to see and understand the deliberative process through which decisions are made.” In addition, the argument states: “Everyone needs access to information from the government. Why was a building permit granted or denied. Who is the Governor considering for appointment to a vacancy on the County Board of Supervisors?”
This illustrates the type of information that Prop 59 was intended to make public.The ballot argument can be found at the following link: http://vote2004.ss.ca.gov/voterguide/propositions/prop59-arguments.htm
If you have not already done so, you should send the city a written request, under the PRA, for access to the applications you are seeking. A link to a sample letter can be found on the CFAC web site:http://www.cfac.org/templates/cpraletter.htmlIn your letter, you should cite to Prop 59 and point out the relevant ballot arguments. Under Government Code section 6255, if a public agency denies a PRA request that is made in writing, it must respond to that request in writing, explaining the basis for denying the request.