Colorado lawmakers commit to stop auto-deleting instant messages with other lawmakers
The directive is the first in the nation to expressly prohibit legislators from using so-called “ephemeral messaging” apps when discussing public business.
CFOIC
Court of Appeals: Colorado’s library user law shields identities of people who want books banned or reclassified
Colorado’s library-user privacy statute shields the identities of people who want public library books banned or reclassified, the Colorado Court of Appeals ruled, upholding a 2022 Gunnison County District Court decision.
CFOIC asks Court of Appeals to disclose discipline records of Denver school administrators
A Denver District Court judge “badly misapprehended” the scope and purpose of CORA’s “substantial injury to the public interest” exemption when she ruled in April that the discipline records of Denver Public Schools administrators should be kept confidential, the Colorado Freedom of Information Coalition argued in a court filing.
Even with new POST database and reforms, Colorado is in the minority of states keeping comprehensive police officer data secret
The refusal to release this information makes Colorado one of just 15 states that keep this type of police officer data secret, according to a nationwide reporting project, preventing the press and public from adequately monitoring the state’s oversight of wandering or second-chance officers.
9NEWS lawsuit alleges city of Denver improperly withheld text messages about Red Rocks hailstorm
A lawsuit filed by 9NEWS and reporter Steve Staeger accuses Denver city officials of improperly denying Colorado Open Records Act requests for text messages about a severe hailstorm that pummeled Red Rocks Amphitheater concertgoers on June 21.
Colorado Supreme Court reverses appeals court ruling that CFOIC, news associations argued would chill attorneys’ speech about class-action suits
A Denver attorney’s comments to the press about a federal class-action lawsuit were protected by the litigation privilege, which immunizes a lawyer who makes allegedly defamatory statements related to a civil court case, the Colorado Supreme Court decided, reversing a 2021 ruling by the Court of Appeals.
Colorado Court of Appeals considers whether the statutory definition of library ‘users’ includes those who want books banned or reclassified
Librarians in Colorado need guidance from the Colorado Court of Appeals on whether the state’s library-user privacy statute protects the identities of people who want books banned or reclassified, a lawyer for the Gunnison County Library District director told a panel of appellate judges.
CFOIC report: Colorado should bar public officials’ use of disappearing messaging apps for official business
Colorado should enact legislation like a 2021 Michigan statute that outlaws the use of disappearing messaging apps in state government, but the language should be broadened to affect all state and local officials, a law student’s report prepared for the Colorado Freedom of Information Coalition recommends.
Inflation could boost CORA’s research-and-retrieval rate 23 percent next year, according to new Legislative Council estimate
A year from now, on July 1, 2024, inflation will likely boost the maximum hourly rate governments are allowed to charge for processing Colorado Open Records Act requests from $33.58 to around $41.34 — an alarming 23 percent increase.
Douglas County judge’s ruling on serial school board meetings isn’t binding on other courts, but it still could be persuasive
A district court ruling against four Douglas County school board members doesn’t affect other government boards, councils and commissions, but it could persuade judges who examine similar cases concerning the legality of serial or daisy-chain meetings under the state’s open meetings law.