Union Files Lawsuit Against State Officials

A California union wants the state to turn over financial records to explain why the expected shortfall continues to grow.

The Professional Engineers in California Government filed a lawsuit Tuesday after the Department of Finance turned down public records requests.

The union asked the department to hand over documents detailing how the projected budget deficit has ballooned from $21 billion dollars to $35 billion dollars. But Department of Finance officials say the documents are confidential.

Spokeswoman Anita Gore says records used for deliberative purposes to produce the budget are not public. She says the department also turned down the request because it was overly broad.

The suit was filed in Sacramento Superior Court. A hearing date hasn´t been set.