Federal Law Does Not Block Disclosure of State Records, Court Rules

A California appellate court has ruled that, under the state’s open government law, local officials can’t withhold otherwise public information on the ground that it was submitted to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security as “protected critical infrastructure information.” The state court found that the Santa Clara county Geographic Information System basemap was relevant to understanding government decisions on zoning, taxation, and deployment of public services. CDT had joined in a legal brief arguing that local officials could not launder records through the federal government in order to evade their own freedom of information requirements.