Freedom of Information

Feb 8, 2016

Top 400 Taxpayers See Tax Rates Rise, But There’s More to the Story

As Americans were gathering party supplies to greet the New Year, the Internal Revenue Service released their annual report of cumulative tax data reported on the 400 tax r...

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Feb 4, 2016

Chlorine Bleach Plants Needlessly Endanger 63 Million Americans

Chlorine bleach plants across the U.S. put millions of Americans in danger of a chlorine gas release, a substance so toxic it has been used as a chemical weapon. Greenpeace’s new repo...

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Jan 25, 2016

U.S. Industrial Facilities Reported Fewer Toxic Releases in 2014

The Toxics Release Inventory (TRI) data for 2014 is now available. The good news: total toxic releases by reporting facilities decreased by nearly six percent from 2013 levels. Howe...

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Jan 22, 2016

Methane Causes Climate Change. Here's How the President Plans to Cut Emissions by 40-45 Percent.

UPDATE (Jan. 22, 2016): Today, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) released its proposed rule to reduce methane emissions...

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How to Strengthen Transparency in the U.S. Open Government Plan

Sep 1, 2011 by Gavin Baker

Yesterday, OMB Watch submitted its recommendations for the Obama administration's national plan for the Open Government Partnership (OGP). The administration will unveil its plan, with new concrete commitments to increase transparency, at the international OGP meeting on Sept. 20.

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Secret Watchlists: Don’t Ask, Because Uncle Sam Won’t Tell

Aug 8, 2011 by Gavin Baker

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is operating a massive new database of personal information. But if you want to know if you're in the database, you'll be out of luck. A proposed rule by DHS would keep the database secret by exempting it from nearly every provision of the Privacy Act.

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Freedom of Information is a Human Right, UN Body Says

Jul 28, 2011 by Gavin Baker

Access to government information is a human right, according to a commentary issued today by the United Nations' Human Rights Committee. The comment is the most comprehensive statement to date embracing freedom of information as integral to human rights under international law.

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Agency Rules Could Undermine CUI Reforms

A proposed Department of Defense (DOD) rule has the open government community concerned that agencies may try to undermine the Obama administration's emerging controlled unclassified information (CUI) system before it is even formally in place.

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Agencies Will Revise Their FOIA Regulations (...Or Not)

Jul 7, 2011 by Gavin Baker

The Spring 2011 Unified Agenda was released today, reporting agencies' regulatory changes to be considered in the next six months. According to the Unified Agenda, several agencies intend to revise their Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) regulations this year, but there are reasons to take that with a grain of salt.

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Chemical Bill Keeps Americans in Harm’s Way, Weakens National Security

Jun 23, 2011 by Sofia Plagakis

On June 22, the House Homeland Security Committee approved H.R. 901, the Chemical Facility Anti-Terrorism Security Authorization Act of 2011, which would extend the Chemical Facility Anti-Terrorism Standards (CFATS) for another seven years.

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Administration Lays Foundation for New CUI System

Seven months after President Obama issued an executive order on controlled unclassified information (CUI), the outlines of a new CUI system are taking shape. On June 9, the National Archives and Records Administration's (NARA) CUI office released initial guidance on implementing the order.

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Obama Administration Reaches Plea Deal with NSA Whistleblower

Jun 10, 2011 by Gavin Baker

National Security Agency seal The Obama administration agreed to drop its controversial Espionage Act case against former National Security Agency (NSA) employee Thomas Drake, according to reports yesterday. Instead, Drake will plead guilty to exceeding authorized use of a computer, a misdemeanor. The deal calls for no jail time or fine, with up to one year of probation.

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Financial Stability Oversight Council Proposes FOIA Regulations

Jun 1, 2011 by Gavin Baker

The Financial Stability Oversight Council (FSOC) has proposed regulations to implement the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA). The council was created by the 2010 Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act to monitor risks to the financial system.

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Congress Extends Patriot Act, No New Oversight

May 27, 2011 by Gavin Baker

Congress voted yesterday to extend three expiring provisions of the USA PATRIOT Act until June 2015 without adopting any new oversight or transparency provisions. President Obama has signed the bill.

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more resources

Top 400 Taxpayers See Tax Rates Rise, But There’s More to the Story

Chlorine Bleach Plants Needlessly Endanger 63 Million Americans

U.S. Industrial Facilities Reported Fewer Toxic Releases in 2014

Methane Causes Climate Change. Here's How the President Plans to Cut Emissions by 40-45 Percent.

How to Strengthen Transparency in the U.S. Open Government Plan

Sep 1, 2011 by Gavin Baker

Secret Watchlists: Don’t Ask, Because Uncle Sam Won’t Tell

Aug 8, 2011 by Gavin Baker

Freedom of Information is a Human Right, UN Body Says

Jul 28, 2011 by Gavin Baker

Agency Rules Could Undermine CUI Reforms

Agencies Will Revise Their FOIA Regulations (...Or Not)

Jul 7, 2011 by Gavin Baker

Chemical Bill Keeps Americans in Harm’s Way, Weakens National Security

Jun 23, 2011 by Sofia Plagakis

Administration Lays Foundation for New CUI System

Obama Administration Reaches Plea Deal with NSA Whistleblower

Jun 10, 2011 by Gavin Baker

Financial Stability Oversight Council Proposes FOIA Regulations

Jun 1, 2011 by Gavin Baker

Congress Extends Patriot Act, No New Oversight

May 27, 2011 by Gavin Baker

Pages

Living in the Shadow of Danger: Poverty, Race, and Unequal Chemical Facility Hazards

A Tale of Two Retirements: One for CEOs and One for the Rest of Us

Blowing Smoke: Chemical Companies Say “Trust Us,” But Environmental and Workplace Safety Violations Belie Their Rhetoric

Gasping for Support: Implementation of Tougher Air Quality Standards Will Require New Funds for State Agencies

Citizen Health & Safety Topics

Recent Reports

Living in the Shadow of Danger: State Scorecards

Living in the Shadow of Danger: Poverty, Race, and Unequal Chemical Facility Hazards

A Tale of Two Retirements: One for CEOs and One for the Rest of Us