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California Public Records Act

Should police name officers who use deadly force?

FAC July 19, 2011

The practice of withholding the names of police officers who use deadly force is coming under scrutiny from the American Civil Liberties Union, which says it might go to court to enforce the state’s public records act. On Monday a San Francisco officer shot and killed a 19-year-old man who allegedly fired at police in the city’s Bayview district. On July 3 a BART officer shot a 45-year-old man who allegedly threatened officers with a

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California appeals court finds county pensions are public

donal brown July 5, 2011

A California appeals court ruled that the pension records of retired county employees are public upholding a lower court ruling that supported government accountability. The appeals court said the lower court was correct in finding that the  public’s interest in the records outweighed the privacy of retirees. The association representing the retirees argued that disclosure would harm retirees, but the court said the association presented no creditable evidence of harm. -db From The Reporters Committee

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California court rules Public Records Act not cover GIS database

donal brown June 2, 2011

A California appeals court ruled that a public agency does not have to provide public access to  a geographic information system or GIS database under the state’s  Public Records Act. The court denied the Sierra Club’s bid to make public the Orange County Landbase, a parcel map showing over 640,000 parcels with street addresses and names of owners. The county wanted $375,000 for the entire Landbase system. In their opinion, the court wrote that the

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California public universities agree to transparency for foundations

donal brown May 26, 2011

California state universities have opened the door to transparency for campus foundations with a compromise with state Senator Leland Yee of San Francisco. The agreement will protect the privacy of most donors but allow disclosure of other financial details. The foundations and operations such as campus bookstores would operate under the California Public Records Act. The agreement came after last year’s dispute between Yee and other open government advocates with the foundation at the CSU Stanislaus who

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California: Sacramento County ordered to turn over pension data

donal brown May 12, 2011

A California appeals court has ordered Sacramento County’s retirement system to release pension data to the Sacramento Bee. The Bee and the First Amendment Coalition had brought a lawsuit to reveal data about the pension benefits ncluding the names and benefits of individual members. Said Joyce Terhaar of The Bee, “It’s part of our mission to ensure there’s public scrutiny of government spending. We’ve been reporting for several years that local governments are facing higher

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