FOIA News: Copyright Office proposes revision to FOIA regulations

On April 26, 2021, the U.S. Copyright Office issued a proposed rule that states, in conformity with the Copyright Alternative in Small-Claims Enforcement Act, only Copyright Claims Board “determinations, records, and information” that are published on the Office’s website and that relate to a CCB final determination are subject to disclosure under FOIA. Written public comments will be accepted through May 26, 2021.

FOIA News: OGIS to host discussion with CDC

On May 6, 2021, the Office of Government Information Services will host a discussion with the CDC’s FOIA Office concerning CDC’s search process for electronic records. The two-hour discussion is open to the public and will begin at 9:30 AM on the National Archives’ YouTube Channel. See more here.

FOIA News: Trump-obsessed FOIA requesters still busy at work

Groups see new openings for digging up dirt on Trump

By Rebecca Beitsch, The Hill, Apr. 20, 2021

Public interest groups determined to stay focused on the Trump administration say they have new openings for unearthing information now that the past government’s political appointees have departed.

Various groups that flooded the government with Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests say the departures have greased the wheels of various agencies’ public records shops. 

Read more here.

FOIA News: Yale hosts "Fixing FOIA" discussion

The Information Society Project at Yale Law School posted this remote discussion entitled “Fixing FOIA: Comparative Solutions to America’s Transparency Deficit.” Panelists included representatives from Mexico, Canada, and the Administrative Conference of the United State.

FOIA News: 1st Circuit hears Facebook arguments

Facebook Tells 1st Circ. To Reverse FTC Doc Release Order

Law360, Apr. 12, 2021

Facebook has urged the First Circuit to reverse an order requiring the Federal Trade Commission to respond to a Freedom of Information Act request for documents related to a $5 billion settlement with Facebook, saying dissenting comments from two FTC commissioners are not "official" disclosures triggering the official-acknowledgment doctrine. The doctrine is a three-prong test courts use to determine if a government agency or official waived a FOIA exemption by publicly discussing previously undisclosed information.

Read more here (accessible with free trial).

District court opinion and docket here.

FOIA News: Chief FOIA Officers Council meeting

The Chief FOIA Officers Council will meet virtually on April 29, 2021, from 9:30 am to 11:30 am. Members of the public can watch the on National Archives YouTube Channel or register to attend via Webex. See details here.

FOIA News: Agency FOIA issues in Illinois may sound familiar to feds

The flip side of FOIA: Mountains of paper, small government staffs and — for some — an attitude problem

By Courtney Kueppers, Chicago Tribune, Apr. 9, 2021

Inside a nondescript warehouse on Chicago’s Southwest Side, rows of white-and-blue boxes sit below flickering fluorescent lights, holding a vast number of documents belonging to Cook County government.

One agency alone, the assessor’s office, has about 12,000 boxes here. Each is stuffed with roughly 40 pounds of paper, things like property assessment appeals from 2009 or certificates of error issued in 2014.

Nearly every weekday, an assessor’s office employee drives to the warehouse, signs in at the front desk, then gets to work searching for the boxes that contain records people have requested under the Freedom of Information Act.

Read more here.

FOIA News: Federal Reserve announces final FOIA rules

Federal Reserve announces final rule making technical, clarifying changes to the Federal Open Market Committee’s rules describing its Freedom of Information Act procedures

Press Release, Bd. of Gov. of the Fed. Res., Apr. 8, 2021

The Federal Reserve on Thursday announced a final rule that makes technical, clarifying updates to the Federal Open Market Committee's rules describing its Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) procedures. The final rule is generally similar to the proposal from October 2020, with a few changes in response to public comments.

Read more here.

FOIA News: Nominations open for "Golden Padlock Award"

The nonprofit organization Investigative Reporters and Editors (IRE) is accepting nominations for the “Golden Padlock Award,” which recognizes the “most secretive publicly-funded agency or person in the United States.” Fill out your form here. Last year’s winner was the city of Detroit and its mayor, Mike Duggan.

FOIA News: Advocacy groups petition Garland for FOIA guidance

Politico, Transition Playbook, Apr. 5, 2021

For FOIA’s Sake

Dozens of groups advocating for government transparency will push Attorney General Merrick Garland to begin the process of fixing a broken public records system at DOJ, Anita Kumar writes.

The coalition, convened by the group Open the Government, will ask Garland in a letter to be sent this week to issue a directive to agencies about the Freedom of Information Act, review pending FOIA lawsuits within two months and support legislative reforms to the law. (The groups will also write to Sens. DICK DURBIN (D-Ill.) and CHUCK GRASSLEY (R-Iowa), leaders of the Senate Judiciary Committee, this week to push for FOIA oversight.)

Read more here.