The FOIA blog

Birther Gets FOIA Litigation Procedures Wrong

The Washington Post reports on Head Birther Orly Taitz who is still on her mission to prove that the President's birth certificate is wrong.  It appears that Taitz has now taken to filing FOIA lawsuits to prove her case.  Unfortunately, in a suit against the social security administration she failed to properly redact social security numbers in her filings which brought the wrath of U.S. District Court Judge for the District of Columbia Royce Lamberth.

 

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WashPost Comes Out For Faster FOIA Bill, A Day After Its Death

One day after its death, the Washington Post editorializes in favor of the Faster FOIA bill and urges the House of Representatives to push for its passage. 

If the Post is really in favor of improving FOIA Operations, why doesn't it write stories about how the systems could be improved?  Even if sounds too wonkish for their diminishing subscription base, it would probably do more to improve the FOIA than the apparently now dead Faster FOIA Bill of 2011 would.

Faster FOIA Bill Becomes House Version of Debt Ceiling Bill

The bill that is being pushed by Spearker of the House of Representatives, John Boehner (R-OH) is being designated a Senate Package, namely S. 627.  S. 627 is the Faster FOIA Bill that was recently passed by the Senate.

Fox News gives this explanation as to why this is being done.  Briefly, it's to cut down on the time that will be needed in the Senate to pass the measure -- if it can make it through the House, which according to news reports is not a sure thing.

Meanwhile, OpentheGovernment.org has issued this statement denouncing the move, which I believe will cause the Faster FOIA Act to not move forward in the House.

For those who are regular readers of the blog, I believe this collateral damage to the Faster FOIA Act may be the only positive thing to come from the debt ceiling crisis.  If you want a faster FOIA, call your representatives and give them concrete ideas for legislation that will improve FOIA procedures. 

Court Rules NSA May Glomar Relationship With Google

Judge Richard J. Leon of the United States District Court for the District of Columbia has ruled that the National Security Agency ("NSA") could properly neither confirm nor deny a relationship with Google in connection with a FOIA request made by the Electronic Privacy Information Center ("EPIC").  EPIC made the FOIA request after media reports of cyber attacks on U.S. websites from China.   

EPIC had argued that the supporting affadavits were conclusory and did not meet the required standards to explain the NSA action.  The Court disagreed and granted summary judgment for the government. 

FOIA Reveals Defense Contracting Audit Agency's Problem With Access to Records

This piece in Time Magazine discusses the Project on Government Oversight's ("POGO") look into the Defense Contracting Audit Agency's (DCAA) legislative proposals for greater access to contractor records -- and whether the Pentagon ignored these requests.  The records came to POGO via a FOIA request -- demonstrating yet again how the FOIA is a great resource in the telling of a narrative about an issue.

Interior Department Seeking FOIA Officer

The Interior Department is seeking a FOIA Officer -- the deadline for applying is July 26, 2011.  More information can be found here.

Short Term FOIA Position Available

There is a very short term FOIA position available for later this year.  The details are:

Target Systems looking to hire an entry level person with FOIA familiarity/experience for a short period of time to support a government client. The length of employment will be from November 1 through December 31, 2011. Send resume to mtkramer@target-sys.com.

Target Systems is a Small, Woman Veteran Owned business headquartered in Mechanicsburg, PA. Their primary clients are mostly Navy agencies in Mechanicsburg, Washington, DC and Norfolk. Their FOIA customer is in Washington, DC. If you wish to learn more about Target Systems, visit their website at www.target-sys.com.

DOD Wants Classified Document It Released Back

The Washington Post reports that a document that the Pentagon claims is classified and was some how released to the ACLU in the processing of a FOIA request should be returned according to papers filed by the government.  The ACLU, who reported the release to the Pentagon, says the document is improperly classified and doesn't want to return it -- the ACLU actually wants to post it to its website.  The ACLU will respond to the government's filing by July 29.

This raises a larger issue for FOIA requesters -- what to do when the government makes a release that the requester knows is either classified or accidental?  It's an interesting point for discussion -- feel free to add your comments. 

Cuban v. SEC -- Part 2

The ongoing FOIA litigation in the United States District Court for the District of Columbia between Indiana University alumni Mark Cuban, owner of the NBA World Champion Dallas Mavericks and the Securities and Exchange Commission has another opinion following the 2010 decision that found that the SEC needed to better explain its searches and exemption claims.  This opinion is another split decision, granted summary judgment to the SEC on some issues and ordering yet more declarations and/or the release of additional documents on other issues.