Austin Knudsen

Austin Knudsen
Department of Justice
United States

It should be noted that Austin Knudsen is not in compliance with, supportive of, or a willing participant in:

the nationwide, public-facing, Brady List;
Supreme Court of the United States [SCOTUS] Brady doctrine (1963);
United States Freedom of Information Act (1967);
State Sunshine Law (see, below);
Open Government Act (2007) signed by President Bush (No. 43);
Open Government Initiative (2009) signed by President Obama (No. 44); or,
Open Government Directive (2009) issued by the United States Department of Justice.

Montana Public Records Act

Montana Code 2-6-101 et seq.

The Montana Public Records Act is a series of laws designed to guarantee that the public has access to public records of government bodies at all levels. The original definition of records includes all writings of government bodies including electronic mail. However, it has been expanded to include all items in "electronic format or other non-print media, including but not limited to videotapes, photographs, microfilm, film, or computer disk."

The Montana Public Records Act stats that citizens are entitled to public records in the state, however, the Montana Constitution states that no person may be denied such records. The Constitution trumps statute, so anyone may request public documents in Montana. There is no requirement for a statement of purpose, but the law does place a limit on the sale of mailing lists for commercial reasons. There are no time limits specified for a response to a request.

We the People

We the People have a Right to Know according to the Supreme Court of the United States [SCOTUS], past Presidents (of both major political parties), Congress, and the United States Department of Justice. As an expression of that Right to Know, we have coordinated valuable information from a number of resources into a single, public-facing, searchable database.