FOIA Advisor

FOIA News: Interior IG report addresses FOIA "awareness review"

FOIA News (2015-2023)Allan BlutsteinComment

Watchdog report raises new questions for top Interior lawyer

By Rebecca Beitsch, The Hill, Aug. 10, 2020

A new report from the Interior Department’s watchdog reignites questions over the involvement of the agency's top lawyer in withholding public documents.

The report could give ammunition to Democrats who have accused Interior Solicitor Daniel Jorjani of perjuring himself before lawmakers.

The report from Interior’s Office of Inspector General (OIG) centers around the “awareness review” process at Interior that allowed political appointees to review Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests — something critics say gave Trump appointees undue influence over what records were released.

Read more here.