On Tuesday June 2nd, the Committee on Oversight & Government Reform, led by its new chairman Congressman Jason Chaffetz, concluded 2 days of FOIA-related hearings. The House Committee on Oversight & Government Reform (HCOGR) stated the purpose of the hearing was “to examine the use of FOIA requests as a
If you didn’t know, March 15th to March 21st is National Sunshine Week – a celebration of Open Government and Transparency across the U.S. As we reflect on the importance of the Freedom of Information Act, we think it is a great time to reaffirm our support of
Earlier this week it came to light that Hillary Clinton had been using private email to conduct official Secretary of State business. Clinton reportedly set up a private email account before becoming Secretary of State to use for State Department affairs. The type of account used by Clinton
Earlier this week it came to light that Hillary Clinton had been using private email to conduct official Secretary of State business. Clinton reportedly set up a private email account before becoming Secretary of State to use for State Department affairs. The type of account used by Clinton allows users
We are just one month away from National Sunshine Week coming up March 15 – 21. Sunshine Week is a nationwide celebration of the importance of transparency, open government, and freedom of information. The week-long event centers around National Freedom of Information Day held March 16. During Sunshine
Body Cameras are being adopted in police departments across the United States and should be considered an enormous step forward for open government, transparency, and accountability standards. However, as quickly as body cameras are being adopted, many police departments are also denying access to these records via freedom
In the wake of events in Ferguson, New York, and other U.S. cities, police use of body-worn surveillance cameras has become a national debate. Many activists have made the case for this upgrade in surveillance citing cities like Rialto, California which saw an 88% decrease in complains against officers and a
The FOIA Reform Bill passed unanimously by Senate Judiciary Committee in November was struck down in the House last week by Speaker John Boehner (R., Ohio) The bill had passed smoothly in the House earlier this year with a unanimous vote of 410-0. It then moved to the Sen. Judiciary Committee
A FOIA reform bill passed unanimously by Senate Judiciary Committee in November may pass the full Senate as early as Friday. The Freedom of Information Act bill has been championed by Sen. Patrick Leahy (D., Vt.) but was today met with a hold placed by Sen. Tom Coburn
Earlier this week the Senate Judiciary Committee proposed it’s amended “FOIA Improvement Act of 2014 and it is set for passage through the lame-duck session of Congress. Upon its release, open government advocates and FOIA followers jumped to voice their opinion of the new proposed bill, and this FOIA
