Larry Klein
Mayor
Richard Mehlinger
Vice Mayor
Alysa Cisneros
Councilmember
Murali Srinivasan
Councilmember
Linda Sell
Councilmember
Charlsie Chang
Councilmember
Eileen Le
Councilmember
June 23, 2026
T
he Honorable Blanca Pacheco
California State Assembly
1021 O Street, Suite 4510
Sacramento, CA 95814
R
E: Assembly Bill 1821 (Pacheco): California Public Records Act: agency response time – SUPPORT
D
ear Assemblymember Pacheco,
T
he City of Sunnyvale writes in strong support of AB 1821 (Pacheco), which would help strengthen local agencies’ ability to effectively comply with the California Public Records Act (CPRA).
U
nder current law, public agencies are required to review and respond to requests for public records within 10 calendar days, with an extension of no more than 14 calendar days permitted under unusual circumstances. However, these timelines include weekends and holidays when public agencies are often closed or operating with limited staffing. At the same time, cities continue to face increasing volumes of complex and time-intensive CPRA requests while absorbing the full costs associated with compliance.
A
B 1821 would provide a practical and reasonable update by measuring response timelines in business days rather than calendar days. This adjustment would allow public agencies additional flexibility to thoroughly review requests, ensure that confidential or exempt information is appropriately protected, and provide more accurate and complete responses to the public.
T
his reform is especially important when requests involve sensitive information such as attorney-client communications, personal identifiers, or law enforcement records.
Allowing agencies to calculate timelines using business days would improve consistency, reduce administrative strain, and support more effective compliance without diminishing the public’s right to access records.
Attachment 4
The Honorable Blanca Pacheco, State Assembly
June 23, 2026
Importantly, AB 1821 also provides a mechanism by which agencies can seek relief from the Court if the agency has cause to believe the request was submitted with malicious intent, including for the purpose of delaying the agency. Public Record Requests are an important part of our democracy. Government belongs to the people. Public Record Requests were never mean t to be used as an avenue to stall regulations, investigations, or a manner by which requesters could discover competitors’ trade information.
AB 1821 is also consistent with the City of Sunnyvale’s Long-Term Advocacy Positions under Council Policy 7.0, which support preserving local government administrative flexibility and reducing operational burdens associated with state mandates. The bill provides a reasonable modernization of CPRA timelines that would improve agencies’ ability to effectively and responsibly comply with public records request requirements while also providing agencies with protection from malicious actors.
For these reasons, the City of Sunnyvale supports AB 1821. Thank you for your leadership on this important issue and for your efforts to improve the implementation of the CPRA for local governments across California. Please do not hesitate to contact me or David Carnahan, City Clerk, at [email protected] if you have any questions.
Sincerely,
Larry Klein
Mayor
cc: Senator Dr. Aisha Wahab
Assembly Member Patrick Ahrens
City Council
Tim Kirby, City Manager
Rebecca Moon, City Attorney
Sarah Johnson-Rios, Assistant City Manager
David Carnahan, City Clerk
Attachment 4