On Tuesday, October 20, the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) Advisory Committee held its sixth meeting in the Archivist’s Reception Room. The purpose of the meeting was for the Committee’s three subcommittees – Oversight and Accountability, FOIA Fees, and Proactive Disclosure – to provide updates on their work. As the Committee moves into the backstretch … Continue reading FOIA Advisory Committee Meeting Round-up
One of the most common questions that we receive about OGIS’s work is: “What kinds of FOIA disputes do you see?” If you are interested in learning more about our cases, check out the case closure letters posted on our website. We first announced that we would post our case closure letters during Sunshine Week 2014. … Continue reading OGIS Case Closure Letters Available on our Website
The White House will host a public meeting Thursday July 30 at the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) to gather ideas on steps the government should take to make itself more open and accountable. RSVP now to reserve your seat for the 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. session! In October the Administration will release the third … Continue reading The Best Laid Plans: Public National Action Plan Session Set for July 30
With the proliferation of smartphones and tablets has come the development of mobile apps for everything, it seems; now you can add FOIA to that list. This week the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced the release of its new eFOIA mobile app. The app, the result of a partnership between the DHS Privacy Office … Continue reading FOIA: There’s an app for that!
A little over a month ago, 18F—the digital services shop at the General Services Administration that’s modeled after tech-sector start-ups—released openFOIA. This website gives requesters a central location to learn how to make Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests to any of the 100 federal departments and agencies that process public requests for records. The … Continue reading Where Can I Get Basic FOIA Facts?
As we’ve noted previously, the United States is a part of the Open Government Partnership (OGP), a global effort to make governments more open and accountable to the public. Countries that participate in OGP are required to develop and carry out action plans that include concrete commitments to make the government—you guessed it—more open. These … Continue reading How Would You Modernize FOIA?
Another Sunshine Week is in the history books. As always, the celebrations served as a powerful reminder about the importance of open government laws like the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) and what we can all do to open the government more to the public. Just because Sunshine Week is over, though, doesn’t mean that … Continue reading Let’s Keep the Sun Shining All Year Long
The Federal FOIA Advisory Committee is pleased to issue a joint statement, below, honoring the 10th anniversary of Sunshine Week. As regular readers of our blog know, the FOIA Advisory Committee is comprised of FOIA experts from inside and outside of government. Committee members are working collaboratively to address major issues in the FOIA process and … Continue reading Federal FOIA Advisory Committee Welcomes Sunshine Week
Previously we let you know about some of the ways OGIS and other federal agencies are celebrating the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) during Sunshine Week. Today, we’d like to tell you about how you can contribute to a special Sunshine Week project by our parent agency, the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA). … Continue reading Show Open Government Some Love this Sunshine Week
With wintry weather events closing federal offices closing practically across the country, it might be easy to miss that Sunshine Week 2015 is almost upon us. We hope you all will join our friends and colleagues inside and outside government in this weeklong celebration of openness March 15-21. What’s Happening at OGIS? We are only … Continue reading Sunshine Week 2015
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