Press Room

Denver Court Finds Pinnacol Records Should be Open and Transparent

Thursday, August 19 2010

DENVER-- Today, the Denver District Court decided that Pinnacol Assurance should adhere to the same Colorado Open Records Act Requirements as any other public entity.  Pinnacol Assurance is a quasi- governmental agency which provided workers compensation insurance to more than 57% of the market.  It insures 55,000 businesses in Colorado and nearly 1.5 million workers.

“This is the right decision under the law and the right decision for the people of Colorado,” said Senator Morgan Carroll (D-Aurora).  “If we learned anything over the past year, it is that Pinnacol needs to answer to injured workers, to the businesses it serves, and to taxpayers about how it does business, just like any governmental agency. I’m glad the courts agreed.”

Senator Morgan Carroll testified in court today.  She was the Chair of the Pinnacol Interim Committee and sits on the Legislative Audit Committee which released Pinnacol’s financial and performance audit in June.

After Channel 7 found Pinnacol Board Members taking an extravagant golf trip in Pebble Beach, CA in May, Channel 7 requested any documents or information related to the expenses of the trip under the Colorado Open Records Act (CORA).  CORA “requires that most public records be open for inspection by the public. Anyone may request information that is in the possession of the Secretary of State’s office.”  Since Pinnacol is a quasi- governmental agency, Channel 7 requested these documents; however, Pinnacol refused and sued Channel 7 to block disclosure. 

The court decided today that CORA does apply to Pinnacol and all documents in question are public record.