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SACRAMENTO –Yesterday, Assemblyman Scott Wilk, R-Santa Clarita, presented Assembly Bill 1648, which would ensure state publications produced at the cost of taxpayers belong to the people and they be able to copy, share, or distribute any publication that is authored by the state. The measure passed the Assembly Committee on Accountability and Administrative Review.
“The bottom line here is that taxpayers own this information,” Wilk said. “AB 1648 simply guarantees the public's autonomy in sharing information such as codes and state resource handbooks; information they pay for without the threat of copyright infringement.”
Existing law known as the Library Distribution Act establishes a depository library system with the goal of making all state publications freely available to the citizens of California. AB 1648 clarifies that any member of the public is allowed to copy, share, distribute, or republish any publication that is owned by California taxpayers.
AB 1648 will be heard next in the Assembly Appropriations Committee.