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Top 10 Points to Remember about

Making a California Public Records Act Request

1. The agency has the burden of justifying the denial of access.

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2. The request need not be in writing.

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3. The request need not identify the requester.

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4. The request need not state the requester’s purpose.

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5. The scope of the request must be reasonably clear.

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6. The agency need not compile lists or write reports.

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". The agency must do its 3est to help the re7uester succeed.

Government Code Section 6253.1 states:

(a) When a member of the public requests to inspect a public record or obtain a copy of a public

record, the public agency, in order to assist the member of the public make a focused and

effective request that reasonably describes an identifiable record or records, shall do all of the

following, to the extent reasonable under the circumstances:

“(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) Jescribe 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.

“(b) The requirements of paragraph (1) of subdivision (a) shall be deemed to have been satisfied if

the public agency is unable to identify the requested information after making a reasonable effort

to elicit additional clarifying information from the requester that will help identify the record or

records.”

These assistance requirements do not apply, obviously, if the agency fully grants the request, or denies access based

on one of the exemptions in Government Code §6254. Also, if the agency has an index to its records and makes it

available, no further help in refining the request is required.

8. Fees are for the costs of copying, not for those of inspection.

As noted by the Attorney General in an opinion concluding that counties may charge a fee “reasonably

necessary” to recover wider costs for copying public records—costs beyond the strict “direct cost of duplication”—

inspection is free: “In any event, a Rreasonably necessary’ fee for a copy of a public record would have no effect

upon the publicTs right of access to and inspection of public records free of charge.” (Opinion Vo 01-605, Vovember

1, 2002). Moreover, the “direct cost of duplication” that, pursuant to Government Code §6253, subd. (b), may be

charged to the requester by agencies other than counties may not include overhead. “The direct cost of duplication is

the cost of running the copy machine, and conceivably also the expense of the person operating it. RJirect cost’ does

not include the ancillary tasks necessarily associated with the retrieval, inspection and handling of the file from

which the copy is extracted.” !o#$% 'o()$* Pa#e)$. /#ga)12a$1o) 34 5e6a#$7e)$ of 9:(;a$1o), 23 Cal.App.4th 146

(4th

Jist. 1994)

<. Prompt access is re7uired for clearly pu3lic records.

Jelay is allowed only to resolve good faith doubts as to whether all or part of a record is accessible by the

public. So, for example, if the requester asks to see the minutes of public meetings, there is no need to make the

“determination” as to whether or not they are public, since minutes of public meetings are, without question, public

records. That being the case, access is to be provided “promptly,” not put off for 10 days (Government Code §6253,

subd. (b))[ to underscore this point, subd. (d) states that “Vothing in (the CPRA) shall be construed to permit an

agency to delay or obstruct the inspection or copying of public records.” And while the 10-day period is not a legal

deadline for producing the records, the date of production should not lag the 10-day (or, if extended with notice to

the requester, up to 14 days more) “determination” point by much, because in most if not all cases, $%e 6e#.o)

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determination has been made, in other words, actual release of the records in question should not take much time to

accomplish.

>?. @ournalists and other people have the same rights of access.

]ournalists’ rights to inspect and copy public records are the same under the CPRA as those of any other

person—no worse and, despite the free press guarantees of the state and federal constitutions, no better. “Vo

California or federal judicial decision has ever attributed accessibility to public records upon First Amendment

freedoms of speech or press.” @eg1.$e# 5131.1o) of A#ee:o7 !e=.6a6e#. 34 'o()$* of /#a)ge, 158 Cal.App.3d 893

(1984) And while we often speak of “citiaens” having the access rights, one need not be a California resident or

even a b.S. citiaen to inspect or copy state or local public records. “(W)hen section 6253 declares every person has

a right to inspect any public record, when section 6257 commands state and local agencies to make records promptly

available to any person on request, and when section 6258 expressly states any person may institute proceedings to

enforce the right of inspection, they mean what they say.” 'o))e>> 34 B(6e#1o# 'o(#$, 56 Cal.App.4th 601 (1997)