News Roundup: Attacks on Public Records Access in the States

On the heels of a bill in Kentucky that ignited outrage for its attempt to upend the state’s public records law, legislators in Utah have introduced a bill of their own that threatens access to elected officials’ calendars.

American Oversight released a statement condemning Utah Senate Bill 240, which would undermine the state’s public records laws by exempting local and state officials’ calendars from release.

• “The people of Utah are entitled to know how their elected representatives spend their time and with whom they meet,” said Executive Director Heather Sawyer. “Publically available calendars are an essential tool for holding our officials accountable, and this bill is a shameless attempt to allow officials to hide their activities from public view.”

The measure was introduced just days before Utah Attorney General Sean Reyes’ office is scheduled to appear in a lawsuit regarding the release of his calendars. The State Records Committee previously ruled that Reyes’ calendars, requested by a reporter at KSL News last year, are public records subject to release. But Reyes is now asking a court to overrule that decision.

The Kentucky bill, HB 509, would have dramatically changed the definition of a public record, shielding several types of documents from the public, including preliminary drafts and emails exchanged among officials.

• The bill was met with widespread criticism from media and transparency advocates. Earlier this week, its sponsor, state Rep. John Hodgson, said that he plans to revise the bill to remove the section redefining public records. Read our statement from last week here.

On the Records

A bill approved by the Virginia Senate this week would require the state to re-enter the Electronic Registration Information Center (ERIC), a nonpartisan system used to maintain accurate voter rolls across the country.

Virginia became the eighth state to withdraw from ERIC in May 2023 amid a nationwide misinformation campaign from prominent election deniers who attacked ERIC with baseless claims about funding and partisanship.

• American Oversight has been investigating the right-wing pressure campaign, and records we obtained — outlined in our report here — shed light on how Trump allies and conservative activists have taken advantage of the withdrawals to pitch severely flawed alternatives, and how election officials defended ERIC behind the scenes but are now scrambling to find viable replacements.
• Records we obtained from Virginia show that in September 2023, the state paid nearly $29,000 to access voter data used to clean voting rolls — data that would have been accessible through ERIC.

‘A Possible Discreet Assignment’
On Thursday, the House Judiciary Committee sent a letter to Attorney General Merrick Garland that cited documents obtained by America Oversight. The letter asks Garland to investigate what the committee says appears to be misleading testimony provided by Scott Brady, the former U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Pennsylvania, whose office had been charged in early 2020 with receiving supposed information from Rudy Giuliani about Ukraine and the Bidens.

• The documents we obtained, referenced in the letter, include a January 2020 email from Seth DuCharme, then a counselor to Attorney General Barr, to Brady, asking Brady whether he had time “for a quick call today in re a possible discreet assignment” from the attorney general and deputy attorney general. Read about those records here.

Other Stories We’re Following

Election Denial and Threats to Democracy

• Prominent election deniers are running again in 2024, but some have toned down their claims (NBC News)
• Election officials in the U.S. face daunting challenges in 2024. And Congress isn’t coming to help (Associated Press)
• Loss of dozens of experienced election officials could mean trouble for Pennsylvania’s 2024 election (Votebeat)
• GOP criticism of top cybersecurity agency could hurt election security (Axios)
• My Pillow CEO Mike Lindell must pay $5 million to election data debunker, federal judge confirms (CNN)
• Ongoing conspiracies pushed out the elections staff in this Texas county. The new director won’t budge (Votebeat)

Voting Rights

• U.S. Supreme Court rejects case on Kentucky felon voting rights (Louisville Courier Journal)
• Gov. Tony Evers signs new election maps, ending Wisconsin Republicans’ grip on legislative power (Milwaukee Journal Sentinel)
• GOP backs voting by mail, yet turns to courts to restrict it in battleground states (Stateline)
• Tarrant County rejects free rides to the polls program ahead of the Texas primaries (KERA North Texas)
• Voting rights advocates call for removal of Election Commissioner Spindell (Wisconsin Examiner)

In the States

• Senate Republicans have spent over $400k in surveillance lawsuit targeting Green Bay mayor (Wisconsin Examiner)
• Lawyer who’s worked with Kari Lake, Paul Gosar and Sarah Palin set for new job in Arizona government (Arizona Republic)
• Maui fire survivors struggle to find long-term housing, half a year after the blazes (NPR)
• Missouri Senate approves measure to make it harder for voters to amend state constitution (Kansas City Star)
• DeSantis calls takeover of Disney government a ‘success’ despite worker exodus, litigation (Associated Press)
• Tennessee Constitution allows tickets to legislative session, says attorney general (News from the States)
• St. Louis police chief receives a third of his pay from a local foundation, raising concerns of divided loyalties (ProPublica)

National News

• Tax records reveal the lucrative world of Covid misinformation (Washington Post)
• College admissions face new turmoil after Biden’s Education Department fumble (Politico)

LGBTQ Rights

• Tennessee governor signs bill allowing public officials to refuse to perform same-sex marriages (The Hill)
• Iowa Senate passes ‘religious freedom’ bill that Democrats call ‘blank check to discriminate’ (Des Moines Register)
• Idaho asks Supreme Court to allow enforcement of gender-affirming care ban (The Hill)
• Maryland House committee to hear bill restricting gender-affirming care for children (CBS News)
• In Congress and courts, a push for better care for trans prisoners (Roll Call)
• House committee holds hearing on bill codifying definition of man, woman (News from the States)

Abortion and Reproductive Rights

• Alabama rules frozen embryos are children, raising questions about fertility care (New York Times)
• Conservatives are already using Alabama’s ‘frozen embryos are children’ ruling to go after abortion (Vanity Fair)
• 2 more Alabama clinics pause IVF fertility treatment after court ruling (ABC News)
• Bible-quoting Alabama chief justice sparks church-state debate in embryo ruling (Associated Press)
• Republican DA asks Wisconsin Supreme Court to decide abortion lawsuit without lower court ruling (Associated Press)
• Kansas lawmakers can’t ban abortion, but here’s what they might do instead (KMUW Wichita)
• Disabled Texans face more barriers to accessing abortion (Texas Tribune)
• Dozens of Idaho obstetricians have stopped practicing there since abortions were banned, study says (Associated Press)
• ‘Something needs to change.’ Woman denied abortion in South Carolina challenges ban (NPR)
• Republican states can’t join appeal in abortion pill case, Supreme Court rules (Reuters)
• GOP lawmakers try to thwart abortion rights ballot initiative in South Dakota (Associated Press)

Threats to Education

• ‘Divisive concepts,’ anti-DEI bill passes Alabama Senate (Alabama Reflector)
• Oklahoma colleges still determining impact of Stitt’s diversity, inclusion order (Oklahoma Voice)
• Wisconsin Assembly passes constitutional amendment to limit diversity efforts (Associated Press)
• Georgia Senate considers controls on school libraries and criminal charges for librarians (Associated Press)
• Conservatives push back at GOP effort to regulate gender content in Georgia private schools (The Hill)
• Georgia confirms firing of teacher who read book about gender identity to class (Axios)

Civil Rights

• GA legislators seek to ban life without parole for juveniles following AJC investigation (Atlanta Journal-Constitution)
• Michigan State Police releases independent report on racial bias, ACLU calls it ‘concerning’ (Michigan Advance)
• Judge says Texas school district can punish Black student for length of his hairstyle (Texas Tribune)

Immigration

• The White House is weighing executive actions on the border — with immigration powers used by Trump (Associated Press)
• Texas has spent more than $148 million busing migrants to other parts of the country (Texas Tribune)
• Ken Paxton sues to revoke an El Paso nonprofit’s state registration after it didn’t immediately hand over client records (Texas Tribune)
• Trump and allies planning militarized mass deportations, detention camps (Washington Post)

Trump Accountability and Jan. 6 Investigations

• Supreme Court allows sanctions against Trump-allied lawyers over 2020 election lawsuit (NBC News)
• Ex-Trump aide Navarro faces contempt in White House email records fight (Washington Post)
• How judges in DC federal court are increasingly pushing back against Jan. 6 conspiracy theories (CBS News)
• Trump’s lawyers call for dismissal of classified documents case, citing presidential immunity (Associated Press)