For 25 years, Carl Malamud has been fighting to make public information public
I didn&#x27;t know who Carl Malamud was an hour ago, but he is close to being one of my heroes now. I moved in to a 160 year old house with a TON of problems recently. I could tell by looking at a lot of the recent work that it wasn&#x27;t done up to code, but I had no idea what the correct way to do the work actually was. Homeowners are allowed to do their own work in Chicago, even without a license, but obviously you still have to follow code.<p>Now Chicago has it&#x27;s entire building code online, but a lot of the code for things like electrical and plumbing are incorporated by reference. Most of the work I&#x27;ve done has been based on what the guys at the supply houses have told me code is. Most people probably wouldn&#x27;t consider this a problem, because they hire licensed contractors, but I&#x27;ve also had work done by licensed contractors that doesn&#x27;t meet code, and the only way I would have known is because I called somebody who had access to the actual code. Giving people access to the code allows people to know when they are being fleeced.<p>On a similar note, access to the building code  gave me the ability to back myself up with facts in an argument with a building super who didn&#x27;t want to provide any place to lock my bike. Building code in Chicago requires a certain number of places for bikes to be parked, and the only way you can avoid having a bike rack outside is if you provide an indoor space for bikes. I initially asked the building manger nicely for a place to lock or store my bike, and he basically sent out a mass email to all tenants that belittled anyone who thought that the city bike racks two blocks away were unsuitable for locking bikes. Without access to the city code, I wouldn&#x27;t have been able to call him out on his bullshit. I&#x27;ve since used the city code several more times in arguments with him, and I&#x27;ve brought my fellow tenants on board. It&#x27;s a really powerful tool. Before we started using the city code, the building manger would just bully anyone who dared to bring concerns to him.<p>After my experiences with the building super, I can really only see positive effects from open laws. There are a lot of people in positions of power who avoid following the law by bullying others into doubting whether they are in the right. Being able to use the law to back yourself up is very rewarding.