Ironically, it appears to be the laws specific to California that are putting Berkeley in a bind. In other states, they'd be able to cite administrative burden

Ironically, it appears to be the laws specific to California that are putting Berkeley in a bind. In other states, they'd be able to cite administrative burden and tell the complainants to pound sand. But CA has a well-intentioned but terribly-used law that would still allow users to claim discrimination and force Berkeley to cut them a check for damages. It is unfortunate that Berkeley couldn't transfer ownership of the archive to an institution located in a different jurisdiction. The ultimate solution would appear to require a legislative change in CA, though, so perhaps by pulling everything down and creating some public concern, they are doing the right thing in the long run. Good luck if you live in CA getting the law changed...