Improving Access

The Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), enacted in 1966 and amended several times, establishes the public's right to obtain information from federal government agencies to "ensure an informed citizenry, vital to the functioning of a democratic society, needed to check against corruption, and to hold the governors accountable to the governed." OpenTheGovernment.org works with our partners, the Administration, and Congress to secure full implementation of the FOIA, the amendments to it, and the FOIA reform promised by the White House and the Attorney General

Groups Support Effort to Reinforce Privacy Protections, Support Open Government, in Farm Bill

On Tuesday, June 4 we joined several of our partners and open government allies in support of an effort by Senator Cardin (D- MD) to reinforce existing privacy protections for farmers and protect the ability of the public to access government information.

06/05/2013

A Successful Fight for FOIA in the Farm Bill

Urgent action by the open government community yesterday helped keep FOIA-damaging amendments to the Farm Bill (S. 954) from reaching the floor. Senator Chuck Grassley’s nearly identical amendments 970, 1011, and 1097 would create a provision impeding the public’s right to know about the location of livestock operations, information that is important for public health and safety.

05/24/2013

Groups Recommend Changes FOIA Litigation Data Report

OpenTheGovernment.org joined the Center for Effective Government and others in welcoming the decision by the Office of Information Policy (OIP) at the Department of Justice (DOJ) to make data from the 2012 FOIA Litigation and Compliance Report available in a machine-readable for

05/14/2013

Supreme Court Ruling Hurts Open Government

On April 29 the Supreme Court unanimously decided that that Virginia, and by extension any state, is not obligated to honor or respond to FOIA requests from people not residing in the state.

05/14/2013

The FOIA Process and Common Problems

Our blog, Managing FOIA, has covered some of the many frustrations the public encounters when trying to use FOIA to get government records. We thought it might also be useful though, to take a more holistic look at the federal FOIA process, and some of the most common problems.

05/08/2013

Improving the FOIA Reform Bill, HR 1211

As many of you may know, the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee recently passed a bill authored by the Committee's Chair and Ranking Member, Representative Darrell Issa and Representative Elijah Cummings, to improve the federal government's system of processing Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests.

04/30/2013

SECURE IT's "Technical Amendment" is Really a Massive Change to FOIA

The recently-introduced Strengthening and Enhancing Cybersecurity by Using Research, Education, Information, and Technology Act (SECURE IT), HR 1468, includes a "technical amendment" that actually would be one of the most far-reaching substantive changes to the Freedom of Information Act’s (FOIA) exemptions since 1986.

04/17/2013

House Intel Committee Says Openness on Cyber would be Inconvenient

On Wednesday April 10, the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence amended the controversial Cyber Intelligence Sharing and Protection Act (CISPA), HR 624, and passed the bill out of the Committee.

04/16/2013

A 100 Day Agenda for Open Government?

In February our Executive Director took to the pages of The Hill to challenge President Obama to recommit to creating an "unprecedented level of openness in Government" during his second term. She outlined a 100-day agenda to put the US on the path to accomplishing this goal. With more than half of the 100 days gone, we thought it would be an appropriate time to look at what the government has made progress on, and what issues remain to be tackled.

04/05/2013

Our Focus Issues

Improving Access