EPA blames advisory board for controversial changes to FOIA policy

By Miranda Green, The Hill, Oct. 31, 2019

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is blaming a component of its controversial new public records policy on recommendations made by an advisory board, according to an email shared with The Hill.

In June the agency made a change to its Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) policy requiring that all record requests must first go through EPA’s Washington, D.C. office instead of its smaller bureaus. The key change was done so at the behest of advisory committee recommendations, and was not mandated under the law as previously argued, agency officials said.

Read more here.