State legislators introduce new measure to extend CORA response deadlines
By Jeffrey A. Roberts CFOIC Executive Director A state senator is trying again to curb what she has referred to as the “abuse” of the…
Colorado Court of Appeals
Court of Appeals: Requesters can’t sue judicial branch over delayed response if records eventually provided
The Colorado Judicial Department cannot be sued for delaying its response to a request for administrative records if the records eventually are provided to the requester, the Court of Appeals ruled.
CFOIC: Colorado Supreme Court should affirm executive session announcement provision in open meetings law
CFOIC asked the state’s highest court to affirm that when a public body fails to properly announce the “particular matter” to be discussed in an executive session, the recording of that closed-door meeting becomes a public record.
CFOIC brief: Lakewood’s appeal of body-cam footage ruling ‘an attempt to turn back the clock’ on Colorado’s Law Enforcement Integrity Act
Lakewood’s appeal of a judge’s order to disclose blurred body-worn camera footage of police shooting and killing a 17-year-old robbery suspect in 2023 “is a transparent attempt to turn back the clock” on Colorado’s Law Enforcement Integrity Act, the Colorado Freedom of Information Coalition and other organizations say.
CFOIC’s 2024 year in review: a more opaque legislature, pricier public records, closed disciplinary records, child autopsies, police officer database and CORA ‘abuse’
Coloradans in 2024 lost ground in the never-ending battle for access to government information.
Rejecting news organizations’ appeal, Colorado Supreme Court keeps police officer database confidential
A ruling by the state’s highest court means that the bulk of Colorado’s licensing database of law enforcement officers will remain confidential.
Colorado Supreme Court affirms a litigant’s right to use CORA to obtain public records, but two justices object
People who sue state and local government entities are still entitled to get public records from those entities by using the Colorado Open Records Act, a majority of the Colorado Supreme Court ruled.
Court of Appeals: Disciplinary records of Colorado school administrators are off-limits to the public
A Denver Gazette reporter is not entitled to inspect the disciplinary records of Denver school administrators because a state statute protects the confidentiality of educator evaluations and all documents “used in preparing” those reports, the Colorado Court of Appeals decided.
Is the Aurora Sentinel a ‘citizen’ entitled to attorney fees for winning an open meetings law case?
The Colorado Supreme Court is examining whether a newspaper is considered a “citizen” and therefore entitled to attorney fees when prevailing in open meetings lawsuits.
CFOIC brief: Eliminating penalties for ‘cured’ violations ‘eviscerates’ enforcement of open meetings law
Public bodies must not be permitted to “cure” infringements of the Colorado Open Meetings Law without being held accountable to the citizens who file lawsuits to enforce compliance, the Colorado Freedom of Information Coalition argues in a brief submitted to the state’s highest court.