June 30, 2004

Honorable Kevin Shelley
Secretary of State
1500 11th Street 6th Floor
Sacramento, CA 95814

Dear Secretary of State Shelley:

The undersigned -- State Senator Mike Machado, Jacqueline Jacobberger of the League of Women Voters of California, and Peter Scheer of the California First Amendment Coalition -- submit the following argument in support of Senate Constitutional Amendment 1 (Access to Government Information) for inclusion in the California Ballot Pamphlet:

Proposition 59 is about open and responsible government. A government that can hide what it does will never be accountable to the public it is supposed to serve. We need to know what the government is doing and how decisions are made in order to make the government work for us.

Everyone needs access to information from the government. Why was a building permit granted, or denied? Who is the Governor considering for appointment to a vacancy on the County Board of Supervisors? Why was the superintendent of the school district fired, and who is being considered as a replacement? Who did the City Council talk to before awarding a no-bid contract?

People all across the State ask these questions-and dozens of others-every day. And what they find out is that answers are hard to get.

California has laws that are supposed to help you get answers. But over the years they have been eroded by special interest legislation, by courts putting the burden on the public to justify disclosure, and by government officials who want to avoid scrutiny and keep secrets. Proposition 59 will help reverse that trend.

What will Proposition 59 do? It will create a new civil right: a constitutional right to know what the government is doing, why it is doing it, and how. It will ensure that public agencies, officials, and courts broadly apply laws that promote public knowledge. It will compel them to narrowly apply laws that limit openness in government-including discretionary privileges and exemptions that are routinely invoked even when there is no need for secrecy. It will create a high hurdle for restrictions on your right to information, requiring a clear demonstration of the need for any new limitation. It will permit the courts to limit or eliminate laws that don't clear that hurdle. It will allow the public to see and understand the deliberative process through which decisions are made. It will put the burden on the government to show there is a real and legitimate need for secrecy before it denies you information.

At the same time, Proposition 59 ensures that private information about ordinary citizens will remain just that-private. It specifically says that your constitutional right to privacy won't be
affected.

You have the right to decide how open your government should be. That's why Proposition 59 was unanimously passed by the Legislature and it is the reason widely diverse organizations support the Sunshine Amendment, including the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees and the League of California Cities.

As James Madison, a founding father and America's fourth President, said: "Knowledge will forever govern ignorance, and a people who mean to be their own governors must arm themselves with the power which knowledge gives." Tell the government that it's ordinary citizens-not bureaucrats-who ought to decide what we need to know. Vote yes on Proposition 59.

Signature

_________________________________
State Senator Mike Machado

State Senator Mike Machado
State Capitol Room 3086
Sacramento, CA 95814
916-445-2407

_________________________________
Jacqueline Jacobberger, President
League of Women Voters of California

League of Women Voters of California
801 12th Street Suite 220
Sacramento, CA 95814
916-442-7215

_________________________________
Peter Scheer, Executive Director
California First Amendment Coalition

California First Amendment Coalition
534 Fourth Street Suite B
San Rafael, CA 94901
415-460-5060

Contacts for Ballot Argument Submission
Proposition 59 (Access to Government)

Author of Measure

State Senator John Burton
State Capitol Room 205
Sacramento, CA 95814
916-445-1412
Staff Contact: Rodger Dillon

First Signature on Ballot Argument

State Senator Mike Machado
State Capitol Room 3086
Sacramento, CA 95814
916-445-2407
Staff Contact: Jodi Fujii

Second Signature on Ballot Argument

Jacqueline Jacobberger, President
League of Women Voters of California
801 12th Street Suite 220
Sacramento, CA 95814
916-442-7215

Additional Officer of Organization of Second Signer
Barbara Hopkins
Executive Vice-President,
League of Women Voters of California
801 12th Street Suite 220
Sacramento, CA 95814
916-442-7215

Pat Richardson, Secretary
League of Women Voters of California
801 12th Street Suite 220
Sacramento, CA 95814
916-442-7215

Third Signature on Ballot Argument

Peter Scheer, Executive Director
California First Amendment Coalition
534 Fourth Street Suite B
San Rafael, CA 94901
415-460-5060

Additional Officers of Organization of Third Signer
Dick Rogers, President
California First Amendment Coalition
534 Fourth Street Suite B
San Rafael, CA 94901
415-460-5060

Mel Opotowsky, Secretary-Treasurer
California First Amendment Coalition
534 Fourth Street Suite B
San Rafael, CA 94901
415-460-5060