Secrecy News – “The House of Representatives yesterday approved the Freedom of Information Act Improvement Act, which had previously been adopted by the Senate. If signed by President Obama, as expected, it will strengthen several provisions of the FOIA and should enhance disclosure of government records. The bill “reaffirms the public’s right to know and puts in place several reforms to stop agencies from slowly eroding the effectiveness of using FOIA to exercise that right,” said Rep. Mark Meadows (R-NC).”The most important reform is the presumption of openness,” according to Rep. Meadows. “Before claiming an exemption [from disclosure under FOIA], agencies must first determine whether they could reasonably foresee an actual harm.”

• FOIA Reform Passes Congress In Time for 50th Anniversary
• See also – “Streamed live on Jun 2, 2016 – Columbia Journalism School and the Columbia Law School [hosted] FOIA@50, a university-wide conference on the 50th anniversary of the U.S. Freedom of Information Act (FOIA). FOIA@50 is organized by Professors David Pozen and Michael Schudson and is sponsored by the Office of the President and the Dart Center for Journalism and Trauma.”
• Expert research posting via Rick McKinney on June 24, 2016: “On June 13, 2016, under rule suspension, the House of Representatives passed the Senate bill S.337, the FOIA Improvement Act of 2016 thus clearing the measure for the President who received the enrolled bill on June 22. The House had passed their own bill, H.R. 653, on January 11 of this year, but the House leadership had apparently decided that S. 337 (passed by the Senate on March 15, 2016) was similar enough.  The President is expected to sign S. 337 into law shortly, probably on July 4, 2016, exactly 50 years after the first Freedom of Information Act was enacted into law and it will become effective on that date as well. See the legislative history materials to most all the FOIA acts on LLSDC’s website on Freedom of Information Act Resources resources. Below is a summary of S. 337 by the Congressional Research Service.(Sec. 2) This bill amends the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) to:
  • require federal agencies to make their disclosable records and documents available for public inspection in an electronic format;
  • require agencies to make available for inspection in an electronic format records that have been requested three or more times (frequently requested records);
  • prohibit an agency from charging a fee for providing records if the agency misses a deadline for complying with an FOIA request unless unusual circumstances apply and more than 5,000 pages are necessary to respond to the request;
  • prohibit an agency from withholding information requested under FOIA unless the agency reasonably foresees that disclosure would harm an interest protected by a FOIA exemption or disclosure is prohibited by law (presumption of openness);
  • limit the FOIA exemption for agency communications to allow the disclosure of agency records created 25 years or more before the date of a FOIA request;
  • require the Office of Government Information Services (OGIS) to offer mediation services to resolve disputes between agencies and FOIA requesters;
  • expand the authority and duties of the Chief FOIA Officer of each agency to require officers to serve as the primary agency liaison with OGIS and the Office of Information Policy;
  • establish a Chief FOIA Officers Council to develop recommendations for increasing compliance and efficiency in responding to FOIA requests, disseminating information about agency experiences, identifying, developing, and coordinating initiatives to increase transparency and compliance, and promoting performance measures to ensure agency compliance with FOIA requirements; and
  • require the Director of the Office of Management and Budget to ensure the operation of a consolidated online request portal that allows a member of the public to submit a request for records to any agency from a single website.

  (Sec. 3) The head of each agency (i.e., each authority of the U.S. government, excluding the Congress, U.S. courts, governments of U.S. territories and possessions, and the government of the District of Columbia) is required to: (1) review agency regulations and issue regulations on procedures for disclosure of records in accordance with the amendments made by this bill, and (2) include in such regulations procedures for engaging in dispute resolution through the FOIA Public Liaison and OGI

  (Sec. 4) The program for the efficient management of federal agency records is expanded to require agency heads to establish procedures for: (1) identifying records of general interest or use to the public that are appropriate for public disclosure, and (2) posting such records in a publicly-accessible electronic format.

  (Sec. 5) No additional funds are authorized to carry out the requirements of this bill.

  (Sec. 6) This bill shall take effect on its enactment date and shall apply to all FOIA requests for records made after its enactment date.”