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Explainer

Under the California Public Records Act ("CPRA"), a state or local agency must generally disclose public records on request unless they are covered by a specific exemption from disclosure. Govt. Code §§ 7922.525, 7922.530. Among other provisions, the CPRA contains an exemption, in relevant part, for "[r]ecords of complaints to, or investigations conducted by […]

September 5, 2025
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2023 Impact Report

Our Fight for Government Transparency, a Free Press, and Free Expresssion

May 1, 2024
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SB 331, a secrecy bill masquerading as a transparency bill, deserves a veto

BY PETER SCHEER--I’m always suspicious of legislation that increases government secrecy. But what really gets my attention is legislation that purports to make government more transparent---when in fact its true purpose and effect are just the opposite. SB 331, which is awaiting the Governor’s signature, is just such a sham: an official secrecy act […]
- Government Transparency and Accountability
September 16, 2015
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FAC Supports CA Senate Bill 1244 to Protect Public Records Requesters

[…] explained to the court, the CPRA explicitly protects the public from efforts by public agencies to seek financial revenge for the act of seeking information about the government. "The CPRA is designed to protect the public from efforts like that of the Newark school district, but unfortunately there is language in the current law […]
- Government Transparency and Accountability
May 2, 2018
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The U.S. is alone among western democracies in protecting “hate speech.” Chalk it up to a healthy fear of government censorship.

[…] freedom of expression. Although we share other countries' repugnance for hate speech, particularly the race- and religion-baiting variety, the First Amendment reflects a uniquely strong aversion to government censorship of any kind. As interpreted in Supreme Court decisions going back nearly a century, the First Amendment forbids government suppression of ideas, no matter how […]
- Free Expression
March 14, 2011
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The first amendment is in trouble when EU bureaucrats get to decide what US citizens can read on US-based websites

[…] law. A first amendment red line had been crossed. A major publisher of information--which is what Google, in its search business, most emphatically is--had been directed by government authorities to censor its content. But the impact on free speech could soon get much worse. Google has received over 186,000 requests for deletion of search […]
- Government Transparency and Accountability
December 15, 2014
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Supreme Court’s much-maligned First Amendment decision will, in fact, expand freedom of speech

[…] announced its decision in New York Times v. Sullivan, rewriting centuries of "common law" on libel and defamation, in order to boost constitutional protection for criticism of government policies and government officials. One of the most important free speech decisions in Supreme Court history, New York Times was heralded by constitutional lawyers and First […]
- Free Expression
April 5, 2010
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Blog Cases

Successful outcome in FAC suit pulls back curtain on “deliberative process”

[…] because it was the product of an agency's decision-making process," the ruling said. "If that were the case, the Public Records Act would not require much of government agencies.'" Judge Haakenson noted that Mr. Schnapf had made a "focused" records request about documents shedding light on the "poison pill" provision which prevented the stream […]
- Government Transparency and Accountability
August 23, 2015
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FAC News

Now Hiring: 2023 Legal Fellow

[…] to the health of our democracy – that the values expressed by the First Amendment provide a blueprint for an inclusive, equitable society and a responsive, accountable government. To that end, FAC educates, advocates and litigates to protect and promote government transparency and First Amendment protections for all. The Legal Fellow will report to […]

September 9, 2022
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New ruling in FAC case opens door to release of state bar records needed for affirmative action research

[…] academic research into the effects of affirmative action policies. The decision, in a lawsuit filed by UCLA Professor Richard Sander and the First Amendment Coalition, an open- government organization, establishes that administrative records of the State Bar, which is an arm of the Judiciary, do not get a free pass from all government-access requirements. […]
- Government Transparency and Accountability
June 10, 2011