Opinion: Tribal consultation policy goes against disclosure laws

Late last month, the California Department of Business Oversight issued this draft Tribal Consultation Policy pursuant to the Governor’s executive order. I was immediately struck by the fact that the policy seemed to provide Tribes more protection from disclosure than is permitted under California’s Public Records Act, Cal. Govt. Code § 6250 et seq. In particular, the draft policy seems to commit the DBO to consult with the Tribes before releasing any information:

This seems to run counter to a fundamental precept of the PRA – government records must be disclosed to the public, upon request, unless a specific statutory exception applies.

Even if the policy is limited to confidential information, it is inconsistent with the DBO’s own rule governing confidential information.