Obtaining the Software Among all electronic records questions, perhaps the responses vary most in cases concerning the release of software. The definition of a trade secret, however, varies from state to state and does not necessarily apply to software. There are disputes over whether requesters may obtain copies of specific software to read coded electronic records. Copyright issues arise when requesters seek certain types of software. Commercial software is privately produced and licensed to the government, as with any other license.
Some software is prepared by a state agency or university.
State-created software is arguably not proprietary since it was built using state money. However, unlike the federal government, some states claim that they may copyright items such as statutory compilations and computer programs. On the other hand, many states, like the federal government, do not recognize the concept of a government copyright. Most states that have chosen to regulate access to software explicitly simply exempt it from their public records statutes, regardless of whether the program is commercial or agency-written. Cost The fees an agency charges for access to electronic data are critical to many requesters.