Personal services contracts: access to records.

The California Constitution establishes that the civil service includes every officer and employee of the state, except as otherwise provided in the California Constitution, and requires civil service appointment to be made under a general system based on merit ascertained by competitive examination. The State Civil Service Act establishes standards for the use of personal services contracts by state agencies and authorizes personal services contracts when prescribed conditions are met. Existing law sets forth requirements for the acquisition of goods and services by state agencies and sets forth the various responsibilities of the Department of General Services and other state agencies in overseeing and implementing state contracting procedures and policies. The California Public Records Act provides for public access to information concerning the conduct of the people's business, except for public records exempt from disclosure by express provisions of law. The act also provides that a state or local agency may not allow another party to control disclosure of information that is otherwise subject to disclosure. This bill would require personal services contracts in excess of $25,000 between a state agency and a contractor to provide the state agency with the right to review and copy any records and files related to the performance of the personal services contract and to indicate that those records and files are subject to the California Public Records Act and may be disclosed. This bill would require any California Public Records Act requests pertaining to a personal services contract, as described, to be submitted directly to the state agency.