Cilek v. Office of Minnesota Secretary of State
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In this case involving a Minnesota voter's request for access to information in Minnesota's statewide voter registration list the Supreme Court held that registered Minnesota voters have access to "public information lists" as defined by law, as well as to information provided by the secretary of state, but the Legislature has restricted access to the other information sought.
A statewide voter registration list is contained in the Statewide Voter Registration System (SVRS). The Secretary of State is responsible for administering the SVRS, and the Legislature has allowed some of the information in the SVRS to be made available for inspection in the form of a "public information list." Plaintiff sought access to non-private government data"from the SVRS. The Secretary informed Plaintiff that he was entitled to information in the SVRS related to currently registered Minnesota voters but declined to produce SVRS information on voter status and other issues. The district court ordered the Secretary to produce the requested data. The court of appeals affirmed. The Supreme Court reversed, holding that the relevant provisions of the Minnesota Government Data Practices Act and the Minnesota Election Law provides that access to the voter registration list contained in the SVRS is limited to "public information lists" and to information provided by the Secretary.
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