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.| Colorado Freedom of Information Coalition
A bill in the Colorado legislature aimed at curbing the “abuse of CORA” no longer contains a provision for labeling certain requesters of public records as “vexatious.”| Colorado Freedom of Information Coalition
This may come as a surprise to Coloradans who have been quoted hundreds or thousands of dollars by cities, state agencies, school districts and other government entities for “research and retrieval” in response to their public records requests: Not every state allows such charges.| Colorado Freedom of Information Coalition
A bill advanced by state senators would give county clerks up to 20 working days to comply with Colorado Open Records Act requests during election seasons, except for requests made by journalists.| Colorado Freedom of Information Coalition
A reworked Colorado Open Records Act bill endorsed by a House committee shifts the legal burden of proving that a requester of records is “vexatious” to a government entity’s records custodian.| Colorado Freedom of Information Coalition
Steve Zansberg, First Amendment attorney and president of the Colorado Freedom of Information Coalition, is a new member of the Colorado Press Association’s hall of fame.| Colorado Freedom of Information Coalition
Citizens, media representatives and nonprofit organizations asked legislative leaders to repeal Colorado Open Meetings Law changes affecting the legislature that were adopted earlier this year.| Colorado Freedom of Information Coalition
Members of the appointed board that oversees the broadcasting of Colorado House and Senate floor proceedings say it’s time the General Assembly joins the long list of state legislatures that provide the public with video webcasts of committee meetings.| Colorado Freedom of Information Coalition
An online clearinghouse of pre-introduced legislative proposals — an idea that died on the General Assembly’s calendar in 2024 — gained new life when a Colorado House committee unanimously passed a measure that delays the project’s implementation until 2028.| Colorado Freedom of Information Coalition
The Colorado Court of Appeals ordered the dismissal of a libel case against the Arvada Press because plaintiff Jeffco Kids First failed to show “actual malice” by the newspaper or that statements made in an article by reporter Rylee Dunn “were materially false.”| Colorado Freedom of Information Coalition
Citing the separation of powers as “a core tenet of our democracy,” Gov. Jared Polis signed into law a bill that narrows the definition of “public business" in the Colorado Open Meetings Law as it applies to the legislature and lets members of the General Assembly communicate by email and text message without it being a “meeting” under the law.| Colorado Freedom of Information Coalition
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.| Colorado Freedom of Information Coalition
A judge ordered Aurora to release all unedited body-worn camera footage of police shooting and killing Kilyn Lewis, finding that the city denied 9NEWS’ requests for the video in violation of Colorado's Law Enforcement Integrity Act.| Colorado Freedom of Information Coalition
The town of Bennett is pulling its municipal advertising from two weekly newspapers on the Eastern Plains because board members did not like an article about a sexual assault that allegedly happened in the locker room of a middle school.| Colorado Freedom of Information Coalition
State senators killed a bill that would have given state and local government entities more time to respond to Colorado Open Records Act requests to address what proponents called the “abuse” of CORA.| Colorado Freedom of Information Coalition
Colorado senators narrowly defeated a bill to create an online clearinghouse of pre-introduced legislative proposals in between sessions of the General Assembly.| Colorado Freedom of Information Coalition
Legislative leaders again discussed providing video coverage of Colorado General Assembly committee meetings, possibly starting with a pilot program.| Colorado Freedom of Information Coalition
Writing that “all legitimate requests for public transparency” under the Colorado Open Records Act “should be treated equally under the law,” Gov. Jared Polis on Thursday vetoed a bill that gave government entities more time to respond to requests made by the public and businesses but kept deadlines the same for journalists.| Colorado Freedom of Information Coalition
A bill close to passage in the Colorado legislature requires most metropolitan districts to post online “in plain, nontechnical language” information about their debt, mill levies and how residents can serve on their boards.| Colorado Freedom of Information Coalition
Gov. Jared Polis noted an “unfortunate trend of legislative proposals that ultimately impede access to official records” when he signed House Bill 25-1041, which makes name, image and likeness contracts between public universities and student athletes confidential.| Colorado Freedom of Information Coalition
The Colorado Freedom of Information Coalition examined more than 12,000 CORA requests made last year to the governor, treasurer, attorney general, secretary of state and legislature, along with selected other state agencies, county clerks, school districts and cities.| Colorado Freedom of Information Coalition
A bill that extends CORA response deadlines cleared another legislative hurdle Monday while a wide-ranging Republican-sponsored government transparency measure died on a party-line vote in a House committee.| Colorado Freedom of Information Coalition
A bill that shields the identities of people who seek and get state compensation for property damage caused by wildlife is headed to the desk of Colorado Gov. Jared Polis.| Colorado Freedom of Information Coalition
A bill that extends Colorado Open Records Act response times for public and commercial requesters won the support of a state Senate committee.| Colorado Freedom of Information Coalition
Two Republican lawmakers introduced a bill that would undo open meetings law exemptions for the General Assembly enacted last year and make a host of other changes to Colorado’s government transparency statutes.| Colorado Freedom of Information Coalition
A state senator is trying again to curb what she has referred to as the “abuse” of the Colorado Open Records Act by certain records requesters.| Colorado Freedom of Information Coalition
Welcome to the Colorado Freedom of Information Coalition’s “Guide to Colorado’s Open Records and Open Meetings Laws.”Previously published in booklet format, this online version of CFOIC’s sunshine laws guide is more comprehensive, searchable, indexed by topic and kept up to date.| Colorado Freedom of Information Coalition
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.| Colorado Freedom of Information Coalition
