The House and Senate adopted a new Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) exemption without the overly broad language originally proposed by the Senate, which would have provided a blanket prohibition on disseminating any commercial satellite imagery or derived products. The exemption was part of the 2005 Defense Authorization Act passed Oct. 9.

OpenThegovernment.org, a broad-based coalition of more than 30 groups dedicated to fighting government secrecy and strengthening open government, placed a quarter-page ad in the Washington Post Oct. 13. The primary message states, "Our Safety Depends on the Free Flow of Information … Let's Turn the Tide on Secrecy." The coalition placed the ad as part of its campaign to raise awareness about the problems of unnecessary government secrecy, which undermines public health and security. Learn more.

Congress recessed without taking action on Senate Finance Committee staff proposals outlined in a July discussion draft. However, the Finance Committee is pursuing the nonprofit accountability issues. It has asked Independent Sector (IS) to form a panel to recommend measures that would increase accountability and good governance in the sector. Independent Sector recently announced its panel, comprised of 25 nonprofit and philanthropic leaders from both public charities and private foundations.

The corporate tax bill has been sent out of conference without provisions from the "Free Speech Restoration Act," which would have allowed churches to endorse candidates and fund partisan electioneering activities. However, that has not stopped a rash of churches from directly or indirectly endorsing candidates this election season.