FOIA – Page 3 – National Freedom of Information Coalition

Why agricultural industry groups could soon be exempt from FOIA laws

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After recent controversy, the US Congress has asked for Freedom of Information Act exemptions for organizations promoting agricultural products, including groups behind promotional campaigns such as “Pork, the other white meat.”

Although the US Department of Agriculture oversees advertising campaigns for different agricultural industries, which range from the meat and egg industry to Christmas tree organizations, the industries themselves pay for promotional campaigns.

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FOIA ‘still interested letters’ have uncertain effect on requesters, report finds

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Sending a so-called "still interested letter" to someone who requested responses under the U.S. Freedom of Information Act has an uncertain effect, an analysis found.

It's tough to measure these letters' effect on requesters, found part one of a study by the Compliance Team at the Office of Government Information Services, or OGIS, on the use of such letters by the 15 Cabinet-level agencies between fiscal years 1998 and 2014, according to an April 27 blog post by the National Archives' FOIA ombudsman.

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How a simple request got me blacklisted by the Pentagon

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The Department of Defense has a lot of problems — a series of wars in Iraq that never seem to fully end, a conflict in Afghanistan that just won’t end, quasi-wars in Pakistan and Yemen and Somalia with no end in sight; a proliferation of terror groups around the globe; and its numerous failed, failing, and scuttled training efforts to create local proxy armies.

And then there’s me.

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Knight Foundation: A news industry ‘less able’ to defend freedom

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Not all that long ago, a Florida state law told newspapers what they could publish.

A political candidate could have equal space in a newspaper to reply to criticism. It did not matter if the criticism was true and the reply was false. Equal time was the rule on TV. Florida thought it should apply to newspapers.

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Data diplomacy: Speak softly and carry a big FOIA

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Despite the push for government dashboards and open data portals, much of the data we use at Reveal still must be obtained through public records requests.

Summary data on government websites often comes from more granular and detailed databases.

But asking for that data can be a challenge because of the technical issues you might face. The first time I requested data from a government agency, I had no idea where to begin. How would I get the appropriate dataset for my story? How could I avoid getting summary or aggregate data or data in PDFs?

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Bill would make National Security Council subject to FOIA again

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Legislation introduced this week in the House would allow the public to request National Security Council records under the Freedom of Information Act, restoring the status quo that existed until a court ruling two decades ago effectively put the council beyond the reach of the federal government's pre-eminent transparency law.

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Editorial: Sen. Reid keeps transparency on hold

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President Barack Obama promised to run the most open administration in history. His White House website still declares: “My Administration is committed to creating an unprecedented level of openness in Government.” But the agencies under the president have fallen far short of that pledge.

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Virginia Gov. McAuliffe signs bill to reverse anti-FOIA ruling by state Supreme Court

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After initially expressing concerns about a bill to ensure nonexempt public records are released, Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe has signed it.

Ginger Stanley, executive director of the Virginia Press Association, praised the governor’s decision after open-government advocates and lawmakers from both parties last month criticized his resistance.

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Not too small for transparency

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In 28 years as Elmer Township supervisor, Leonard Brown doesn’t recall ever receiving a Freedom of Information Act request.

Clerk Lisa Schmidt has held her seat for 16 years, and she doesn’t either. It’s something they said likely doesn’t come up in a place their size. Only a few hundred people reside in the Sanilac County township — Brown added likely fewer than 600 — and they said they don’t have the same resources as bigger communities.

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FOIA reform passes! Now what’s actually in it?

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When we kicked off Sunshine Week, we noted that FOIA reform — already passed by the House — was being considered by the Senate.

Now, with some important modifications, it has passed the Senate, so let's take a look at what will change for requesters.

The first thing to know is that the FOIA reform that passed the House and Senate is actually two different bills, S.337 and H.R.653. Continue…

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