City of Seattle: Texts Not a "Public Record"

The City of Seattle (but not the City Attorney's Office) is claiming texts are not a "public record."

Oh, how wrong the City is.

A "public record" is a writing "containing information relating to the conduct of government or the performance of any governmental or proprietary function prepared, owned, used, or retained by any state or local agency regardless of physical form or characteristics." RCW 42.56.010(2).

In turn, a "writing" is: "handwriting, typewriting, printing, photostating, photographing, and every other means of recording any form of communication or representation including, but not limited to, letters, words, pictures, sounds, or symbols, or combination thereof, and all papers, maps, magnetic or paper tapes, photographic films and prints, motion picture, film and video recordings, magnetic or punched cards, discs, drums, diskettes, sound recordings, and other documents including existing data compilations from which information may be obtained or translated." RCW 42.56.010(3) (emphasis added).

The City may not be retaining the texts, but they should be.