Lassen County took 90 days to fulfill a California Public Records Act request

I have been quietly and patiently waiting for three long months for Lassen County to provide information regarding state funding allegedly earmarked specifically for Lassen County CPS workers I requested through a California Public Records Act request way back on Sept. 11.

Late last week during a completely different discussion with a Lassen County elected official, I mentioned the term of my patience regarding my CPRA request had expired. A Dec. 4 email I received from Lassen County Counsel sought an additional 30-day extension until Jan. 3, 2025 — an extension needed because county counsel said information from this elected official’s office needed further redaction.

I expressed my frustration, and told the elected official I had retained an attorney to explore my legal options because I felt my only option must be filing a lawsuit against the county to obtain the information I had requested.

The elected official took exception to all this, made some inquiries and helped to finally resolve the issue. Monday morning, according the county counsel, I had received all the information I had requested. Let me express my gratitude to this elected official for the assistance.

I first became interested in this matter because whistleblowers employed by the county contacted me. They suspect state money earmarked specifically for them had been wrongfully moved into the county’s general fund. For that reason, those whistleblowing county employees feel they have been wronged by the county.

When I first inquired about their situation, county brass informed me the CPS whistleblowers were simply disgruntled employees involved in negotiations between their bargaining unit and the county attempting to improve their bargaining position.

Later county brass provided me with a document that allegedly approved the county’s moving that money into the general fund, but I don’t see anything like that when I read the document.

In subsequent conversations these whistleblowers expressed their concerns even more fervently, more strongly urging me to inquire about the disposition of the state funding earmarked for them.

So, in response to the concerns of those whistleblowers and county CPS workers, I filed a California Public Records Act request in September, simply seeking the opportunity to review the public record and possibly discover the facts of this matter.

While the county’s Dec. 4 letter represents that final disclosure of these requested records would happen by Jan. 3, 2025, this is far beyond the statutory deadline. And this is the fourth time an intended disclosure date was provided by the county. Despite the county’s repeatedly stated intentions, I should note the previous extensions the county provided itself did not result in the dispatch of the requested information by the extended deadlines the county itself announced.

As the Ralph M. Brown Act, California’s Open Meeting Law adopted in 1953, more than 70 years ago, states, “The people of this State do not yield their sovereignty to the agencies which serve them.”

California Government Code section 7921.000 provides that “… the Legislature … finds and declares that access to information concerning the conduct of the people’s business is a fundamental and necessary right of every person in this state.”

While California Government Code section 7921.300 prohibits limitation to access to public records based upon the purpose for which the record is disclosed, my request’s purpose has clear constitutional footing under the First Amendment’s free press guarantee and the people’s expressly stated fundamental and necessary right to know exactly how the government conducts the people’s business.

And in a recent response to a Lassen County Grand Jury Report, Lassen County proudly proclaimed its commitment to transparency.

I don’t know about y’all, but 90 days to fill a California Public Records Act request doesn’t feel much like transparency to me.

To those whistleblowers and CPS workers — I’ll do the best to review these documents to try and unravel this mystery. If you have any information that may assist me in this endeavor, don’t hesitate to call me at (530) 310-0459.