Over the past seven years, we have both acknowledged this administration’s progress on open government and decried its failures.
Continue readingThe Department of Defense should never be exempt from the Freedom of Information Act
Sunlight has opposed using the NDAA as a vehicle for weakening FOIA before, but we're now calling attention to one of the most ridiculous proposals we've seen in recent history.
Continue readingDepartment of Justice seeks public feedback on proposed Freedom of Information Act policy
As the Justice Department proposes reforms to FOIA, they need your help to figure out what changes should happen.
Continue readingFederal FOIA Advisory Committee grapples with challenges, technology and capacity
The federal Freedom of Information Act Advisory Committee met recently at the National Archives. Here's what the members discussed.
Continue readingGovernments should use FOIA demand to drive open data disclosure
Governments should connect the demand expressed in freedom of information requests to the proactive disclosure of open data.
Continue readingFederal court ruling extends FOIA’s reach to private messaging systems
Public business is public business, regardless of where a public service conducts it. That's the essential conclusion of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, which issued a decision this week reversing a lower court's ruling. The opinion held that a federal agency cannot shield records from search or disclosure under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) by storing them in a private email account controlled by the agency head.
Continue readingIn a victory for open government, President Obama signs FOIA reform into law
Today, we are celebrating President Barack Obama signing much-needed reforms to the Freedom of Information Act into law.
Continue reading7 ideas to make the Freedom of Information Act better
Here’s a some ideas to improve FOIA that don’t require more legislation, along with some that probably will.
Continue readingCelebrating Freedom of Information Act reform in Congress, and the road ahead
Monday’s vote to send the FOIA Improvement Act of 2016 to the president's desk is the culmination of a decade of work from a coalition of advocates to reform the Freedom of Information Act.
Continue readingWhat a State Department’s inspector general can tell us about open government
The release of a critical report by the State Department’s inspector general on Hillary Clinton’s email practices answers questions that have lingered since last March — and raises new ones.
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