FOIA Advisor

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FOIA News: Illinois congressman re-introduces transparency bill

On June 3, 2024, U.S. Representative Mike Quigley (IL-05) re-introduced the Transparency in Government Act, H.R. 8597. Although the text of the bill is not yet available, his press release indicates that it contains a number of FOIA-related items. Specifically, the bill will reportedly do the following:

  • Strengthen the Freedom of Information Act by requiring agencies to put all completed FOIA requests online in a searchable, sortable, and downloadable format.

  • Strengthen agencies' FOIA officers' ability to access unclassified agency records.

  • Institute new transparency measures to document FOIA requests and compliance. 

FOIA Advisor will provide updates on the progress of this legislation.