SEC. 67.27. JUSTIFICATION OF WITHHOLDING.
§ 67.27
City officials must provide written justification whenever they withhold information from public records requests, citing the specific law or exemption that permits the withholding; when a record is mostly exempt, they must describe what non-exempt material exists and suggest alternatives.
When the city refuses to give you a public record, it must explain in writing why—by naming the specific law that allows it to keep that information secret. If the city says giving you something would create a legal problem, it needs to cite the law or case that backs that up. If a document is mostly secret but has some public parts, the city should tell you what the non-secret parts are and help you find other ways to get the information you're looking for.
- Complex:The section uses nested conditional language (subsections a–d with cross-references to the California Public Records Act and 'this Article') that requires readers to track multiple legal concepts and external authorities.
AI-generated · claude-haiku-4-5 · informational only, not legal advice.
Official text
Any withholding of information shall be justified, in writing, as follows:
(a) A withholding under a specific permissive exemption in the California Public Records Act, or elsewhere, which permissive exemption is not forbidden to be asserted by this ordinance, shall cite that authority.
(b) A withholding on the basis that disclosure is prohibited by law shall cite the specific statutory authority in the Public Records Act or elsewhere.
(c) A withholding on the basis that disclosure would incur civil or criminal liability shall cite any specific statutory or case law, or any other public agency's litigation experience, supporting that position.
(d) When a record being requested contains information, most of which is exempt from disclosure under the California Public Records Act and this Article, the custodian shall inform the requester of the nature and extent of the nonexempt information and suggest alternative sources for the information requested, if available.
(Added by Ord. 265-93, App. 8/18/93; amended by Proposition G, 11/2/99)