Yesterday, FAC Executive Director David Snyder testified before the Judiciary Committee of the California Assembly against AB 1821, which would extend the amount of time government agencies have to answer public records requests.
No matter your politics, I think we can all agree that transparency is essential for government accountability. And not just transparency, but timely transparency.
Yesterday, I testified against AB 1821, a bill before the State Assembly’s Judiciary Committee that would extend the amount of time government agencies have to respond to public records requests. When I wrote this op-ed for CalMatters about the bill, it also included potentially hefty fees that would have prevented many requestors from accessing public records at all.
Fortunately, the fees were removed in the current, amended version of the bill. But the bill still allows agencies to take more time to provide the public with even the most basic information such as whether the agency has responsive records, and whether and when the agency will provide those records.
This is a recipe for more delays — something requestors already face far too often.
You don’t have to be a journalist on deadline to know how important a timely response to a records request is. As our letter with a broad coalition of opponents points out:
Advocates rely on government records to evaluate public employee pension spending. Civil liberties advocates need transparency to investigate implementation of policy reforms such as the Racial Justice Act. Legal aid groups need it to examine police treatment of unhoused people. Immigration rights groups need it to monitor sheriff’s deputies’ activities at controversial and deadly federal immigration raids in our state. Privacy advocates use it to track police surveillance, such as through automated license plate reader programs (ALPR).
Despite the many groups opposed to this bill, it still passed the Judiciary Committee last night on a 8-2 vote, with two assemblymembers abstaining. It now heads to the Assembly’s Appropriations Committee.
Delays in access to basic public records amount to a delay in the fulfillment of a fundamental right all Californians have under our state’s constitution — the right to records about their government.
Stay tuned for updates as we continue to fight for everyone’s right to public information.