Category «Freedom of Information»

The Trump Administration’s Continued War Against Science, Research and Public Health – Part 2

Via LLRX – The Trump Administration’s Continued War Against Science, Research and Public Health – Part 2. This is a follow up to Sabrina I. Pacifici’s July 31, 2025 article, The Trump Administration’s Continued War Against Science, Research and Public Health. In just one more month this administration has ramped up its use of unsupportable …

Subjects: Congress, Economy, Education, Freedom of Information, Government Documents, Health Care, Medicine

Reclaim the Records – Fax FOIA Requests for Veterans Administration Records

Reclaim The Records. “Today we’re simultaneously announcing a big new free database update, about 1.5 million new names and more basic biographical information about deceased American veterans from the 2020-2023 period! It’s the first public update to our big BIRLS database, a dataset that we originally released late last year, bringing the new grand total …

Subjects: E-Government, Freedom of Information, Government Documents, Legal Research

100 Mile Border Zone

ACLU – Know your rights – The Fourth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution protects people from random and arbitrary stops and searches. Although the federal government claims the power to conduct certain kinds of warrantless stops within 100 miles of the U.S. border, important Fourth Amendment protections still apply. Select a scenario: Are immigration officials allowed …

Subjects: Censorship, Civil Liberties, Free Speech, Freedom of Information, Government Documents, Knowledge Management, Legal Research

Thinking Ahead to the Full Military Takeover of Cities

How Things Work – A new executive order gives Trump his army. “Donald Trump is assembling a military force under his direct personal supervision that can be used to seize control of American cities at gunpoint. In light of the fact that he has already sent the Marines into Los Angeles and the National Guard …

Subjects: Censorship, Civil Liberties, Free Speech, Freedom of Information, Government Documents, Legal Research

Independent Census Scientific Advisory Committee

“The Independent Census Scientific Advisory Committee (I-CSAC) is a group of nationally recognized experts who provide independent, science-based advice to strengthen the U.S. Census Bureau. Formed after the federal Census Scientific Advisory Committee (CSAC) was terminated in early 2025, I-CSAC continues the same essential mission: to provide scientific and technical expertise to address Census Bureau …

Subjects: Censorship, Data Governance, E-Records, Economy, Free Speech, Freedom of Information, Government Documents, Legal Research

As PBS Stations Confront Cuts, American History Takes a Hit

The New york Times – no paywall: “The effect of the federal assault on public broadcasting in the United States has mostly been expressed in big numbers and dire forecasts: $1.1 billion taken back; the existence of more than 100 television and radio stations at risk. But the cutbacks have already had one smaller, more …

Subjects: Censorship, Civil Liberties, Education, Free Speech, Freedom of Information, Knowledge Management

House Committee Issues Subpoena for Jeffrey Epstein Birthday Book

WSJ – read free – “A House committee has issued a subpoena for the birthday book that was given to Jeffrey Epstein for his 50th birthday. On Monday, the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform issued the subpoena to Epstein’s estate for “all entries contained within the reported leather-bound book” among other documents that …

Subjects: Congress, Freedom of Information, Government Documents, Legal Research

Trump’s new chief design officer aims to make federal websites ‘satisfying’

Washington Post [no paywall] – “Joe Gebbia, an Elon Musk ally who also worked for DOGE, said navigating dot-gov websites should be just as easy as visiting the Apple Store. President Donald Trump’s new chief design officer says he wants to overhaul the interface of government websites to make them more beautiful and less complicated …

Subjects: Censorship, Civil Liberties, Data Governance, E-Records, Free Speech, Freedom of Information, Government Documents, Internet, Knowledge Management, Legal Research

How Trump Used 10 Emergency Declarations to Justify Hundreds of Actions

The New York Times [no paywall] – “In his seven months back in office, President Trump has declared nine national emergencies, plus a “crime emergency” in Washington. Those emergency declarations have been used to justify hundreds of actions — including immigration measures, sweeping tariffs and energy deregulation — that would typically require congressional approval or …

Subjects: Censorship, Civil Liberties, Climate Change, Energy, Environmental Law, Free Speech, Freedom of Information, Government Documents, Knowledge Management, Legal Research

Amid Deregulatory Blitz, Trump Quietly Deletes Key Public Comment Tool

Common Dreams: “It’s clear that Trump doesn’t want the public weighing in on these dangerous deregulatory initiatives,” said Katie Tracy of Public Citizen. On Friday, the General Services Administration—an independent agency that supports the functioning of the government bureaucracy—quietly eliminated a tool known as the POST Application Programming Interface (API) from the Regulations.gov website. Last …

Subjects: Censorship, E-Records, Economy, Environmental Law, Financial System, Freedom of Information, Government Documents, Legal Research, Legislation

The Open Source Tool That Has Preserved 150,000 Pieces of Online Evidence

bellingcat: “bellingcat’s Auto Archiver is a tool aimed at preserving online digital content before it can be modified, deleted or taken down. Publicly launched in 2022, it has preserved over 150,000 web pages and social media posts to date. The Auto Archiver has been used by Bellingcat’s journalists to preserve information on dozens of fast …

Subjects: Censorship, Civil Liberties, Courts, E-Records, Freedom of Information, Government Documents, Internet, Knowledge Management, Legal Research, Search Engines

America Is Watching the Rise of a Dual State

The Atlantic – no paywall – “This article appears in the May 2025 print edition with the headline “A Warning Out of Time.” It has been updated to clarify that Ernst Fraenkel deployed with the German army in World War I to Poland and the Western Front. As Fraenkel explained it, a lawless dictatorship does …

Subjects: Censorship, Civil Liberties, Congress, Economy, Education, Freedom of Information, Government Documents, Legal Research, Legislation