News & Analysis as of July 23, 2025

First Amendment › Public Agencies

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The First Amendment to the United States Constitution prohibits the government from making laws respecting the establishment of religion, prohibiting the free exercise of religion, abridging the freedom of speech or the press, preventing citizens from peacefully assembling, or interfering with citizens' ability to petition the government for redress of their grievances. The First Amendment is one of the most sacred aspects of the American legal tradition and has spawned a vast body of jurisprudence and commentary. less -

Federal Court Refuses to Dismiss Claims Brought Under Pennsylvania’s Criminal History Record Information Act (“CHRIA”)

Tucker Arensberg, P.C. on 6/16/2025

Deivert v. Zartman and Borough of Northumberland, 2025 WL 83747 (M.D.Pa. 2025) - (Neither a municipality nor a municipal manager had immunity under the Pennsylvania Political Subdivision Tort Claims Act (“PPSTCA”) for the...more

Face Masks, Temperature Screenings and Privacy Rights: Re-Opening Public Agencies During COVID-19

Best Best & Krieger LLP on 5/22/2020

Part 2 in a PublicCEO Series - Previously, we discussed local governments’ response to the novel coronavirus and the tension between governmental authority for emergency response and individual liberty. How does that...more

New 2020 Labor & Employment Laws for Public Agencies

Best Best & Krieger LLP on 2/7/2020

Shauna Amon Writes About Public Employer New Laws in PublicCEO - California and federal courts, along with the state’s Public Employer Relations Board, handed down a number of decisions last year that will impact public...more

Public Comment Time Limit OK'd by Court - Alexander Brand Discusses California Appellate Court Ruling in PublicCEO

Best Best & Krieger LLP on 12/4/2018

Does your agency place a time limit on public comments at meetings? So long as time restrictions placed on public comment periods are reasonable and don’t violate state or federal law, the Second District Court of Appeal,...more

Speech Is Speech And It’s Protected - Tori Hester Analyzes Ninth Circuit First Amendment Ruling For Public Agencies In PublicCEO

Best Best & Krieger LLP on 12/3/2018

A recent decision from the Ninth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals offers a key reminder for public agencies: Even within a nonpublic forum, an individual’s and/or community’s Constitutionally protected freedom of speech cannot...more

Following SCOTUS’ Lead, the Ninth Circuit Strikes Down a Ban on “Disparaging” Ads

Robins Kaplan LLP on 10/18/2018

A three-judge panel of the Ninth Circuit has ruled that Seattle violated the First Amendment by banning “disparaging” ads on city buses....more

Public Bus Ad Gets A Free Ride - County Cannot Prohibit Ad Content Solely Because It’s Disparaging Or Potentially Disruptive,...

Best Best & Krieger LLP on 10/12/2018

A county violated the First Amendment by refusing to display an advertisement related to global terrorism on its public buses, the U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals held....more

Ninth Circuit: No “Amen” To School Board Invocation - Prayers Violated First Amendment

Best Best & Krieger LLP on 8/9/2018

A public school board’s policy and practice of opening its public meetings with invocation was struck down by a federal appeals court. In Freedom From Religion Foundation, Inc. v. Chino Valley Unified School District Board of...more

First Amendment Rights of California Public Agencies Affirmed by Appellate Court - Anti-SLAPP Motion Successful in Dispute

Best Best & Krieger LLP on 12/13/2017

A court of appeal dismissed a challenge to a county’s characterization of stored chemicals as hazardous waste, holding that by making that determination and forwarding it to the district attorney, the county had engaged in...more

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First Amendment › Public Agencies

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