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FOIA Facts – Ideas for Faster FOIA Processing: Scott A. Hodes notes that in the current Congress there are bills pending that would create a commission to come up with ideas for faster FOIA processing. He contends that by taking those ideas, along with a few days of congressional oversight hearings to solicit other opinions, …
EPIC: “The Senate unanimously passed the Faster FOIA Act of 2010, introduced by Senators Patrick Leahy (D-VT) and John Cornyn (R-TX), that will establish a 16-member commission to determine methods for reducing delays in processing FOIA requests. Government reports reveal substantial delays in disclosing records subject to the open government law. The legislation seeks to …
Case Study: How Open data saved Canada $3.2 Billion – 14 April 2010 | David Eaves [via Susannah Fox, Pew Internet] “…government data – information that should be made more accessible and open in an unfettered and machine readable format – helped reveal one of the largest tax evasion scandals in the country’s history. But …
News release, PEER: “A ranking of agencies Open Government Plans compiled in an independent audit reveals the strongest and weakest agency plans, with the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) at the top of the list and the Department of Justice (DOJ) at the bottom. Significantly, the audit found that key agencies assigned to oversee …
Follow up to previous postings on government implementation of whole body scanning technology at airports, this news release: “EPIC and a broad coalition of organizations sent a formal petition to the Department of Homeland Security to demand that the agency suspend the airport body scanner program. The petition states that the “uniquely intrusive search” is …
News release: “The U.S. Food and Drug Administration today announced draft guidance that would expand transparency and disclosure when the agency grants a conflict of interest waiver to permit an individuals participation at an FDA advisory committee meeting. The draft guidance would expand the information disclosed about waivers prior to committee meetings. Specifically, the FDA …
Follow up to Missing White House E-Mails Still Factor in Torture Memo Investigation, this CREW news release: “On Friday, April 16, CREW received an initial response to its Freedom of Information Act request of the Department of Justices Office of Legal Counsel (OLC) related to the failure of former OLC official John Yoo to preserve …
“The U.S. Department of State provided these thirty five Self Study Guides in response to a FOIA request. This series of study guides, each covering a country or geographic area, were prepared for the use of USAID staff assigned to temporary duty in those countries. The guides are designed to allow individuals to familiarize themselves …
“Today, U.S. departments and agencies are releasing their Open Government Plans — another historic milestone in President Obama’s campaign to change Washington. For too many years, Washington has resisted the oversight of the American public, resulting in difficulties in finding information, taxpayer dollars disappearing without a trace, and lobbyists wielding undue influence. For Americans, business …
FOIA Post: “On March 16, 2010, during Sunshine Week, the White House issued both a Presidential Statement and a Memorandum on the FOIA. First, President Obama issued a statement on the FOIA. In his Statement, the President applauded the work that has been done so far to increase transparency. He also recommitted his administration to …
Bloomberg: “The Federal Reserve Board must disclose documents identifying financial firms that might have collapsed without the largest U.S. government bailout ever, a federal appeals court said. The U.S. Court of Appeals in Manhattan ruled today that the Fed must release records of the unprecedented $2 trillion U.S. loan program launched primarily after the 2008 …
News release: “[On March 15, 2010] Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) introduced bipartisan legislation to make further improvements to the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), the nations premier open government law. Leahy is a longtime leader on FOIA issues, and has led efforts to make the federal government more open and transparent to the people it …
