Today we present an interview with Margaret Kwoka, professor at The Ohio State University Moritz College of Law and a member of the 2024-2026 FOIA Advisory Committee. This is part of a series of posts on the Committee, whose members are FOIA experts from inside and outside of government and who are appointed by the Archivist of the United States.
Why did you wish to serve on the FOIA Advisory Committee?
As an academic who has studied FOIA for nearly 15 years, I am deeply committed to understanding all aspects of FOIA administration and implementation from a variety of perspectives. I hope that some of the previous studies I have done on types of FOIA requesters, affirmative disclosure regimes, and alternatives to judicial review, to name a few, can help inform the Committee discussions. I appreciate that this body works toward common ground between the requester community and FOIA officers, and makes recommendations that are supported across FOIA constituencies. I am always looking for opportunities to translate my academic studies into potential policy proposals or reform efforts, and this is a terrific venue in which to do so.
How do you think this experience will help you in your work?
I learn a huge amount from listening to the experiences of other requesters, FOIA officers, and FOIA oversight administrators. I have always found that folks are very willing to share their perspectives and that these perspectives help inform my own understanding of the issues and challenges facing the future of FOIA. Building relationships with folks upon whom I can call when I am seeking greater understanding in a particular area is invaluable to my research, and connecting with a smart, dedicated, interesting group of people who all share my passion for government transparency is always fulfilling.
What is FOIA’s biggest challenge?
Compliance. The law’s requirements on the books could be improved in meaningful ways, but its basic premises are not bad. Instead, the biggest challenge is finding a way to increase and improve compliance with the obligations to promptly disclose nonexempt records upon request and to affirmatively publish listed categories of records. Agencies have struggled mightily to meet deadlines, to curb over-withholding, and to keep up with affirmative obligations. Figuring out how to ensure agencies are empowered and incentivized to comply with the law’s strictures is, I believe, the central challenge for the next generation of FOIA reforms.
Tell us about your favorite FOIA moment.
I treasure my opportunities to peek behind the FOIA curtain and see FOIA operations on the inside. During the course of a research project, I was allowed to tour the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services facility known as “the Cave,” where official immigration history files are kept in a literal cave full of millions of files in football-field-sized stacks. Getting to see this unbelievable facility in person was an absolute highlight of my research career!
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