The city of Paso Robles is suing its own councilmember in what may be a “first of its kind” lawsuit to compel Chris Bausch to comply with the California Public Records Act.

In its frank and detailed cross-complaint filed Monday afternoon, the city argues that a lawsuit is the only legal means it has to get Bausch to follow the law and turn over records requested by The Tribune.

It comes two days after Bausch filed his own cross-complaint in the case, which says the city caused him an “undue hardship” in denying him legal representation and labeled the The Tribune’s requests as “vexatious and deceptive.”

The Tribune filed its lawsuit against the city and Bausch on March 10 after the city informed The Tribune’s lawyer that Bausch would not produce public records requested from his personal devices without a court order.

Like The Tribune, the city asked the judge to find Bausch in violation of the California Public Records Act, order him to comply with the law and compel him to search his personal devices and accounts for responsive records, while asking that he complete the search within a reasonable time and provide the records to the city for processing and review.

It also asked for the court to order Bausch to pay its attorney’s fees and costs associated with the litigation.

The city believes Bausch willfully and/or knowingly violated the Public Records Act in an effort to obstruct or delay the production of public records “based on excuses that are not legally sufficient to justify withholding of such records.”

“The City has suffered harm” because of “Bausch’s failure to comply with his obligations under the CPRA,” the city said in the lawsuit.

The Tribune’s attorney, Karl Olson, said it’s unusual for a city to sue its own city councilmember for violating the Public Records Act — something he has not personally seen in his decades-long career of public records litigation.

“It may be that the city is doing this strategically in an effort to avoid having to pay fees in a case where they know that The Tribune is entitled to access records which have been withheld,” Olson said.

While it appears both the city and The Tribune are in agreement that Bausch has violated the law, “the city is not blameless in this case. We think that they could have and should have taken a more aggressive stance in encouraging and enforcing Mr. Bausch to search his private device,” Olson said.

Bausch did not immediately respond to The Tribune’s request for comment, but his automatic out-of-office reply read, “I’m working on multiple PRA’s so I will be out of the office through May 31, 2025. My apologies.”

Paso Robles City Attorney Elizabeth Hull told The Tribune in an email that the city takes its obligations under the Public Records Act seriously.

“The City has complied with the Public Records Act and made every effort to secure Councilmember Bausch’s compliance with the Public Records Act,” Hull said.

The city also filed its formal response to The Tribune’s lawsuit on Monday, generally denying all of the Tribune’s allegations of it violating the Public Records Act.

Councilmember’s reasons for delay are ‘unsubstantiated and unlawful,’ city says

Out of 19 requests The Tribune submitted to the city, the only six that are outstanding are those in which records are kept on Bausch’s personal devices, the city said. And from those requests, the only record Bausch had turned over to the city was a recording of a meeting between him, former City Manager Ty Lewis and Mayor John Hamon.

The city said it provided each of The Tribune’s requests for records from Bausch’s personal devices directly to Bausch, as they were filed, beginning in October.

However, the lawsuit said, “Bausch simply did not respond” to many of the city’s requests for him to search his devices.

The councilmember then expressed both in December and January that he would not perform a search and/or produce records, the city said.

The city claims it went to great lengths to compel Bausch to comply with his obligations under the Public Records Act. Among those efforts were numerous conversations between him and city staff — including Hull — in which he was reminded of his obligations to follow the law and given the option to have the city’s IT department perform a search of Bausch’s personal devices and accounts.

Bausch refused the city’s efforts to get him to comply with the law until early January, the lawsuit said, when he “indicated that he would search his personal, electronic accounts and/or devices for public records potentially responsive to The Tribune’s requests for records.”

Later that month, he turned over the March 8, 2024, recording from Angela’s Pastries, the lone record he has produced.

Other than that, the city has received nothing from him, it said, other than what amounts to excuses.

“Bausch has provided varied, unsubstantiated and unlawful reasons for his refusal to comply with the CPRA,” the lawsuit said.

The councilmember’s main argument is that the attorney who was appointed to represent him in former City Manager Ty Lewis’ $2.275 million claim advised him not to comply with The Tribune’s requests.

But the city disputed that claim as well.

“The city has not and cannot verify that such advice was given,” it said in the lawsuit.

He also claims that disclosure of records could violate the non-disparagement clause of Lewis’ settlement agreement, despite there being a clause in the settlement that acknowledges documents relating to Lewis’ claim may be released under to the California Public Records Act.

And Bausch claims he has not been able to perform the search due to the volume of requests — even though the city has offered to do the search for him. He has also claimed some records are exempt or privileged from disclosure but has not provided any facts to support him claims, the lawsuit said.

The lawsuit noted Bausch’s recent appearance on Cal Coast News reporter Karen Velie’s radio show “Sound Off” on Wednesday, Aprl 15, where he stated, “I want to make very clear that I am fulfilling the records requests. It’s not that I’m not doing those searches. I am searching for the records that The Tribune has requested. What I’m not doing is turning them over to BBK.”

BBK is the law firm that represents the city.

“I don’t think I need to give (the records) to BBK, the city’s attorney, if the city isn’t going to represent me,” Bausch continued on the radio show. “I think I should just either give them to my attorney, or if I don’t have an attorney, I should just give them directly to The Tribune.”

The city has the right to review records from Bausch’s devices, it argued in the lawsuit. This is consistent with statements from San Luis Obispo Superior Court Judge Michael Kelley, who told Bausch in an April 9 court hearing that the city has the right to examine the records.

Olson said The Tribune’s position is that any further delays in record production should be avoided.

Councilmember received multiple trainings on California Public Records Act

According to the city, Bausch had received extensive training on Public Records Act compliance — including on his personal devices — both during his tenure on the Paso Robles Joint Unified School Board from 2012 to 2022 and since he was appointed to the City Council in 2022.

The lawsuit noted that Bausch took an oath of office twice — once when he was appointed and again when he was elected — in which he swore “to faithfully discharge his duties as a city councilmember.”

The school board’s policy stated that board members must search for public records, including emails, text messages and instant messages, regardless of whether the record was transmitted from a district-provided or a personal device or account. The city believes Bausch received multiple trainings during his decade-long tenure on the school board regarding his obligations under the Public Records Act.

The city’s policy also encourages employees and government officials to use city accounts and devices to the “greatest extent practicable” when corresponding about public business. Councilmembers receive city cellphones and computers to conduct city business from their homes, the lawsuit said.

The city routinely provides Public Records Act trainings to city councilmembers specifically regarding what electronic devices city councilmembers should use for city business, it said in the lawsuit. It also pays for councilmembers to attend conferences that provide presentations on public officials’ obligations to comply with the Public Records Act.

Bausch received at least two trainings from the city on California open government and transparency laws — including his obligations under the law and his obligations to search his personal devices and accounts — in September 2022, the city said. Bausch was also admonished that he should not use his personal devices and accounts to conduct city business during these trainings, the lawsuit said.

The next court hearing in the case is scheduled for 9 a.m. on April 30 at the courthouse in Paso Robles.

This story was originally published April 22, 2025 at 1:39 PM.