Federal FOIA Mediator Begins to Use Technology to Reach Public

On Oct. 22, the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) launched the website for the Office of Government Information Services (OGIS), which will mediate disputes between the government and those who seek its information. The office, once in danger of being all but muted by the Bush administration, is showing signs of emerging as an independent arbiter seeking out creative solutions to old problems.

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House Moves to Reduce Risks from Chemical Plants

On Oct. 21, the House Energy and Commerce Committee approved two pieces of chemical security legislation that encourage plants to switch to safer and more secure technologies. Although the bills still lack crucial accountability measures, they represent a major improvement over the flawed and inadequate temporary security measures currently in place.

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Read the Bill Act Stalled in Congress

Recently introduced House and Senate resolutions seek to illuminate the legislative process, giving Congress, as well as the American people, the opportunity to read legislation and formulate an informed opinion prior to any debate or votes.

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Controversial Patriot Act Reauthorization Ready for Senate Floor

On Oct. 7, the Senate Judiciary Committee approved a bill, the USA Patriot Act Sunset Extension Act of 2009 (S. 1692), to reauthorize the Patriot Act. The bill, introduced by Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-VT), chair of the committee, passed with bipartisan support but has been denounced by civil liberties groups and privacy advocates. A week earlier, the committee voted down another reauthorization bill, the JUSTICE Act (S. 1686), introduced by Sens. Russ Feingold (D-WI) and Richard Durbin (D-IL), that would have greatly reduced surveillance powers and strengthened civil liberties protections.

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New Policy Marks First Step in Narrowing State Secrets Privilege

On Sept. 23, the Justice Department released a new policy on use of the state secrets privilege. The policy, which parallels several related recommendations from the Moving Toward a 21st Century Right-to-Know Agenda, will be implemented on Oct. 1. The long-expected announcement drew mixed reactions from public interest groups, ranging from support to criticism that the policy offers little more than a rehash of the heavily criticized policies of the Bush administration.

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Congress Braces for Patriot Act Battle

On Sept. 22, Congress began hearings on USA Patriot Act provisions that are set to expire on Dec. 31. Some legislators and the president are seeking to retain controversial portions of the act, albeit in modified form.

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OMB Watch Lauds Obama Administration's Unprecedented Move on State Secrets Policy

WASHINGTON, Sept. 23, 2009—OMB Watch strongly supports the Obama administration's unprecedented move to create a government-wide policy on use of the state secrets privilege. The policy, issued earlier in the day, is the latest in a series of decisions by the administration to make government more open and accountable.

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Secrecy Report Card Gives Modest Grades to Bush and Obama

On Sept. 8, OpenTheGovernment.org, a coalition of 70 open government advocates, released its sixth annual Secrecy Report Card. Focusing on 2008, the report card serves primarily as a final assessment of the Bush administration but also addresses early actions of the Obama administration. Overall, the report notes a decrease in secrecy at the end of the Bush years but concludes that greater efforts are needed to increase federal transparency.

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EPA Pushing Data Out to the Public

The Obama administration has made government transparency a high priority in its early months, and of all the federal agencies, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) appears to be making the quickest progress in turning rhetoric into action. Across a range of issues, the EPA is taking proactive steps to improve transparency, collecting and releasing to the public important environmental data needed to protect the environment and public health.


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Court Rules that CIA Committed Fraud in State Secrets Case

On July 20, a federal district court judge ruled that the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) committed fraud while attempting to get a fifteen-year-old case dismissed on state secrets grounds.






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