These categories and states included are based on Messenger and Pittman’s February 2013 article, Can States Use Copyright to Restrict the Use of Public Records?
Another resource to use when trying to determine if a state has a copyright statute are the American Association of Law Libraries State Online Legal Information reports. Bear in mind this is an analysis of 6 primary legal publications in relation to UELMA; but it is a great starting point.
Category 1: Ambiguous Copyright
- Idaho
- Illinois
- Oklahoma
- Ohio
- Massachusetts
- New Hampshire
- New York
- Washington D.C.
Category 2: Explicit Copyright
- Colorado
- Pennsylvania
Category 3: Limited Copyright requiring explicit statutory authority
- California
- Florida
- Indiana
- Texas
Category 4: Law that grants access to public information
- North Carolina, N.C.G.S. § 132.1
Category 5: Explicitly Not Copyrighted
- Hoping to find a state!
The AALL document linked above has been taken down. The State Inventories and the found therein are being maintained by AALL’s Digital Access to Legal Information Committee and can be found at http://community.aallnet.org/digitalaccesstolegalinformationcommittee/stateonlinelegalinformation
Do be aware though that all of the information found on this site relates exclusively to online access…
Thanks, Erik! We’ve updated that link and the title.!