Open, Accountable Government
Freedom of Information Act Performance, 2012: Agencies Are Processing More Requests but Redacting More Often
Mar 13, 2013
A building block of American democracy is the idea that citizens have a right to information about how their government works and what it does in their name. However, citizen access to public information was only established by law in 1966 with the passage of the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA). The law has since been strengthened and improved over the years, and FOIA currently requires federal agencies to formally respond to requests for information within 20 working days or potentially face a lawsuit. While there are exemptions that agencies can use to avoid the disclosure of sensitive information or information that violates privacy rights, agencies processed over half a million FOIA requests in 2012. In about 41 percent of these cases, the information requested was released “in full” with no parts “redacted” – i.e., clean, complete documents with no blacked-out parts were provided to the person who requested the information.
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After Four Years, Obama Delivers Policy Leadership on Transparency, but Agency Implementation Is Inconsistent
Mar 12, 2013
Four years ago, President Obama entered office offering an inspiring vision for a more open and participatory government. A new report by Center for Effective Government staff credits the Obama administration for using its first term to construct a policy foundation that could make that vision a reality. However, the actual implementation of open government policies within federal agencies has been inconsistent and sometimes weak.
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Illinois Introduces Strongest Fracking Disclosure Bill in the Country
Mar 11, 2013
Illinois would have the strongest protective oversight rules on fracking in the country under legislation introduced on Feb. 21 in the General Assembly. The bill includes nearly all the key elements for an effective chemical disclosure policy identified in a previous Center for Effective Government report. The bill represents stronger model legislation for states that want to protect the public from the health and environmental risks of fracking.
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Delivering on Open Government: The Obama Administration's Unfinished Legacy
Mar 10, 2013
This report examines progress made during President Obama’s first term toward open government goals outlined in a comprehensive set of recommendations that the open government community issued in November 2008, titled Moving Toward a 21st Century Right-to-Know Agenda. We examine activity in the three main areas of the 2008 report: creating an environment within government that is supportive of transparency, improving public use of government information, and reducing the secrecy related to national security issues.
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Obama's Legacy of Transparency is Unfinished
Mar 10, 2013
WASHINGTON, March 10, 2013—In a report released today, the Center for Effective Government (formerly OMB Watch) examines the Obama administration's progress on open government during the president's first term. The review finds that the administration has issued important policy reforms, but that the implementation of White House policies has been inconsistent across federal agencies.
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Celebrating Sunshine Week 2013
Mar 7, 2013 by Gavin Baker
Sunshine Week, a nationwide initiative highlighting the importance of open government and accountability, will be held this year from March 10-16. Created by journalists in 2002, Sunshine Week is designed to educate people on their right to access public information in understandable, user-friendly formats to participate more effectively in democracy and to use such information to protect and improve their communities.
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Fracking Projected to Continue for Decades in Texas
Mar 7, 2013 by Sofia Plagakis
The significant size of natural gas reserves in Texas could mean at least another two decades of hydraulic fracturing (or fracking) in the state, according to a recent study. This means that communities will have to deal with air and drinking water contamination from the toxic chemicals used in fracking for some time to come unless greater protections are put in place by the state or federal government.
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State Department Ignores the Environmental Impacts of Keystone XL
Mar 4, 2013 by Sofia Plagakis
On Friday, the U.S. Department of State published a revised draft Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) of the Keystone XL pipeline, which essentially ignores the substantial environmental impacts associated with building the pipeline. If approved, the pipeline would transport tar sands (which are more corrosive than crude oil) from Canada through America's heartland to Texas and create air, water, and public health problems.
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Leaked BLM Draft May Hinder Public Access to Chemical Information
Feb 26, 2013
On Feb. 8, EnergyWire released a leaked draft proposal from the U.S. Department of the Interior's Bureau of Land Management on natural gas drilling and extraction on federal public lands. If finalized, the proposal could greatly reduce the public's ability to protect our resources and communities. The new draft indicates a disappointing capitulation to industry recommendations.
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Congress Asking the Right Questions on FOIA
Feb 12, 2013
A recent letter from Congress to the Justice Department represents a positive development toward strengthening the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA). The letter, sent Feb. 4 by the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, asks what steps the government is taking on a number of key transparency improvements.
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