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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more news

Public Meeting for National Infrastructure Advisory Council

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced in the Federal Register that the National Infrastructure Advisory Council (NIAC) will hold a public meeting on the security of information systems for critical infrastructure on Tuesday, July 22, 2002. The Council advises the President on issues around security of information systems relating to the critical infrastructure supporting sectors of the economy including banking, finance, transportation, energy, manufacturing, and emergency government services.

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FOIA Officers Meet Over News of Secrecy

The principal administrative Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) officers gathered on June 25th for a conference on the relationship between homeland security matters and FOIA. Homeland security matters have been among the leading rationales used for recent broad restrictions in public access to government information.

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Administration Hides Favorable Data for 'Clear Skies' Alternative

The Bush administration recently attempted to hide an analysis showing that a rival Senate plan would achieve greater public health and environmental benefits than the president’s Clear Skies Initiative, at only a slightly higher cost.

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OSHA Drops Ergonomics Recordkeeping Requirement

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) altered standards on June 30 for recording workplace injuries and illnesses, eliminating a provision that required employers to document workers’ ergonomic injuries.

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House Companion "Restore FOIA" Bill Introduced

On June 19th, Rep. Barney Frank (D-MA) introduced the Restoration of Freedom of Information Act of 2003 (H.R. 2526) or “Restore FOIA” in an attempt to address the recent problems of information access. Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-VT) introduced the Senate companion bill (S. 609) in March. The bill amends the Homeland Security Act of 2002 (Public Law 107-296) and provides for the protection of voluntarily furnished confidential information.

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DHS Internal Investigation Shows No Misuse of Resources

Last week, an internal Department of Homeland Security (DHS) investigation cleared the department of any wrongdoing when it used federal resources to track down Texas Democratic state legislators in a partisan battle last month. As reported in a June 2 Watcher article, the Democrats fled the state in order to avoid quorum for hearings on redistricting. The department’s Air & Marine Interdiction Coordination Center (AMICC) was called in order to track down a private plane belonging to one of the lawmakers.

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Secrecy wins in court, but excesses exposed

The courts recently addressed government secrecy in a set of actions that yield mixed results for government efforts to carve out a bigger zone of secrecy in open society in the name of national security.

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Fact Sheets on the Homeland Security Act and CII

Side-by-Side of the Restoration of Freedom of Information Act of 2003 and the Homeland Security Act of 2003 (03/12/03) OMB Watch Factsheet on Secrecy and Immunity Provisions (08/29/02) 10 Key Differences: Levin-Bennett amendment and the Administration/House approach (07/25/02) U.S. PIRG Memo entitled "Bush Administration Concedes that New FOIA Exemption Unnecessary" (07/17/02) Homeland Insecurity? Chemical Safety and the Homeland Security Department (07/08/02)

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Government Increasingly Citing Privacy for FOIA Denials

A study completed for the Investigative Reporters and Editors (IRE) Conference last week found that federal agencies are increasingly using privacy exemptions when denying requests under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA). The study, which examined FOIA annual reports from the 13 Cabinet-level departments in existence as of September 30, 2002, reported that over the past five years almost two out of three request denials cited privacy exemptions.

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OMB Watch Analysis on the Proposed CII Rule

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) recently announced its proposed rule for the handling of Critical Infrastructure Information (CII). The rule is required by the CII provision in the Homeland Security Act of 2002 and the development of the legislation was very controversial. The legislation allows corporations that voluntarily submit information on infrastructure vulnerabilities secrecy, civil immunity, preemption of state and local disclosure laws, and protection from whistleblowers.

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