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Latest News

Rating the leading Presidential candidates on First Amendment issues. And the winner is . . .

[…] rights. As a lawyer with an elite legal pedigree whose first professional gig was investigating Richard Nixon's predations against civil liberties during Watergate, she has an appreciation for both the danger of excessive governmental secrecy, and the importance of the press as an institutional counterweight. On the other hand, as a subject of Congressional […]

June 3, 2009
Latest News

FAC News Press Release

Former FAC Executive Director Peter Scheer Awarded Society of Professional Journalists Career Achievement Prize

[…] Peter Scheer has been named the 2017 recipient of the Northern California Society of Professional Journalists’ career achievement award--a signal honor marking his advocacy, over many years, for free speech, a free press and the public’s right to know. Scheer, 65, will accept the Norwin S. Yoffie Award for Career Achievement on March 22 […]

February 22, 2017
Latest News

Cases Press Release

FAC and Local Community Group Sue San Jose Over Secret Negotiations With Google

[…] produce records under public records laws." WPUSA deputy executive director Maria Noel Fernandez said the public shouldn’t be left in the dark when it comes to plans for Google’s large campus—which will hold up to 20,000 employees—given what it might do to the city’s housing crisis, homelessness, eviction rates, and the cost of living. […]
- Government Transparency and Accountability
- Public Records
November 13, 2018
Asked and Answered

Newsgathering

What Are Newsgathers’ Rights Regarding Private Homes Involved in Major Wildfire Area?

I got a question about legal right (protected by First Amendment or any other Constitutional law) for our reporter here in California to gather news (pictures, videos) being on the private property during a recent major wildfire. We have all permissions from local authorities to gather news in a nearby burned out town (they […]

January 7, 2020
Cases

City of Gilroy v. Superior Court

In City of Gilroy v. Superior Court, the Court of Appeal held that trial courts lack the authority to hold public agencies accountable for violations of the California Public Records Act beyond ordering the disclosure of specific records. According to this decision, a court could not mandate remedies if an agency failed to conduct […]
- Government Transparency and Accountability
- Public Records
December 20, 2023
Asked and Answered

Brown Act First Amendment

Rules for public comment at council meetings

The Brown Act provides that "very agenda for regular meetings shall provide an opportunity for members of the public to directly address the legislative body on any item of interest to the public, before or during the legislative body's consideration of the item, that is within the subject matter jurisdiction of the legislative body […]

June 14, 2009
Latest News

Blog

Your right to COVID-19 outbreak data

[…] matter of law, notwhim or unsubstantiated hunch." Read our full letter to the California Supreme Court. And find more about the case here. Thank you, as always, for your interest in our work. David Snyder Executive Director P.S. Did you hear? We launched our first-ever $1million campaign—theFAC for Allcampaign. We’realready 80% of the way […]
- Government Transparency and Accountability
- Public Records
September 2, 2021
Asked and Answered

Brown Act First Amendment

What the Brown Act Rules on a Postponing Public Meeting?

[…] public comment, at which point the Executive Director approached me, asked why I was still there, and asked me to leave. I told him I was there for the public comment portion, and would be leaving after the public portion. The ED then proceeded to ask me to leave and escort me out. I […]

December 13, 2018
Latest News

Blog

Appeal judges hear arguments in CFAC’s suit for release of county’s digital mapping database

CFAC is awaiting a decision in an appeal of its trial court victory against Santa Clara County for release of the county's digital "basemap" of real estate parcels, which can be used in various digital mapping applications. Santa Clara County, which has licensed the basemap for tens-of-thousands of dollars, now claims release of the […]
- Government Transparency and Accountability
June 2, 2009
Latest News

Blog

Pultizer Prize-winning reporter describes quest for truth in Las Vegas construction deaths

By Donal Brown Wall Street Journal reporter Alexandra Berzon said that favorable circumstances set the stage for the stories on Las Vegas construction deaths that earned her a 2009 Pulitzer Prize for Public Service when she was with the Las Vegas Sun. It is clear, though, that her success in the project derived centrally […]
- Government Transparency and Accountability
- Public Records
November 11, 2009