Q: I submitted a Public Records request to my Unified School District and paid the copy fee, but when I picked up the packet it did not contain any of the items that listed. Instead it was a copy of my Personnel file, which I am already entitled to obtain even without the request?
Can you help me obtain the items I requested and since they did not comply?
A: If the District is claiming that the records you seek are exempt from disclosure, under the California Public Records Act (PRA), it is required to state those exemptions in its response.
Gov’t Code § 6253(c).
Further, public agencies like the District are required to assist members of the public to make focused and effective requests that “reasonably describes an identifiable record or records,” and must: “(1) Assist the member of the public to identify records and information that are responsive to the request or to the purpose of the request, if stated; (2) Describe the information technology and physical location in which the records exist; (3) Provide suggestions for overcoming any practical basis for denying access to the records or information sought.” Gov’t Code § 6253.1(a).
I recommend contacting the District and reminding it of the various statutory duties under the PRA. If, at the end of the day, the District refuses to fulfill its duties under the PRA, litigation is always an option. Lawsuits to enforce the PRA are usually initiated by a verified petition (i.e., a request filed under oath) that asks the court to issue a “writ of mandate.” A writ of mandate is a type of order directing the public agency to take specified actions. The lawsuit maybe filed in the superior court of the county of the agency that is the holder of the records. If the requester prevails in a PRA lawsuit against the agency, he or she is entitled to recover attorney fees. Gov’t Code § 6259.
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