Nina Srejovic, a visiting professor at Georgetown University Law Center, said that the organizations’ strict control over safety codes can undermine state employees who must implement those regulations. She co-authored an amicus brief for the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees supporting Public Resource. “If local governments are forced to choose between whether they spend their injury prevention budgets on safety goggles or access to the law, it’s the union members that pay the real price,” Srejovic said in an interview.

The standards organizations said they have made their codes available online through free “reading rooms,” but Srejovic argued that such access isn’t sufficient. The reading rooms don’t allow downloads or printing and generally require the reader to sign up with an account.