The civic record
Read. Follow. Verify.California SB 994 bans local officials from using nondisclosure agreements to block information sharing
Record date · August 21, 2026
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What This Bill Would Do
SB 994 prohibits local agency officials and employees from entering into nondisclosure agreements (NDAs) that prevent them from sharing public business information with their fellow board members or governing bodies. Any such agreements signed after January 1, 2027, will be legally .
This bill ensures that local government officials remain accountable to their colleagues and governing bodies by preventing the use of private contracts to withhold information about public business.
Who It Would Affect
Groups the bill's text would affect if enacted, as described in the record. Being affected is not a position for or against it.
Local agency officials
They are prohibited from entering into specific types of NDAs and must disclose existing ones.
Local agency employees
They are prohibited from entering into NDAs that restrict sharing information with their governing body.
Key Facts
You don't have to trust us. Each fact below is taken straight from the official document - click any one to see the exact passage, highlighted in the original.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does this bill ban all nondisclosure agreements for local officials?
What happens if an official signed a restrictive NDA before 2027?
What else do you want to know?
News Coverage
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Votes, people, money & the original sourceWhere This Stands
Currently filed. The next step in the legislative lifecycle is Committee.
Version history & redline
5 versions on fileOfficial version history is partial: 5 linked texts are unavailable or incomplete. Source links remain available below.
The text diff for this stage has not been computed yet.
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Lobbying Activity
No state lobbying filings in our records match this bill. Federal lobbying reports (LDA) cover Congress, so they are not listed on state bills.
Full breakdown
Who this bill affects and the strongest case for and against it, written only from the bill’s own text.
Discoveries
Patterns POLISCOPE noticed across the record. These are observations to investigate, not conclusions.
Expansion of Legislative Ethics
The bill extends existing state-level legislative ethics prohibitions regarding NDAs to the local government level.
Connected Entities
Sources
openstates.org
Analysis Score
0–100- Significance75How much this matters to a regular citizen
- Controversy40Intensity of disagreement among stakeholders
- Entertainment10Compellingness for a non-policy-wonk reader
- Buzz20Current news / social attention level
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