On July 4, 1966, President Lyndon Johnson signed the federal Freedom of Information Act. As reported by the National Security Archive, LBJ wasn’t exactly thrilled to be throwing open the doors to a secretive government knee-deep in the Cold War, Vietnam and the Civil Rights movement. He even threw in a signing statement, those “yes, but” comments attached to a bill’s signing that many in Congress now criticize President George W. Bush for overusing.
Despite Johnson’s personal misgivings, the landmark legislation has had a profound impact on the way local, state, national and international governments do business.
In commemoration of FOIA’s 40th anniversary, several government watchdog groups published roundups, look backs and analyses of what FOIA has wrought.
The NSA posted the full legislative history of the bill, along with excerpts from Johnson’s presidential papers. The NSA also posted David Banisar’s 2006 survey of the 68 countries that have their own public records laws. Links to all these materials and more, can be found here: http://www.gwu.edu/~nsarchiv/NSAEBB/NSAEBB194/index.htm .
The Coalition of Journalists for Open Government marked the birthday by reporting on who uses FOIA. The report analyzes 6,439 FOIA requests made of 112 Cabinet-level departments and agencies. The report found that roughly 66 percent of FOIA requests are made by businesses. The report, in PDF, can be found here: http://www.cjog.net/documents/Who_Uses_FOIA.pdf .
CJOG also analyzed just how long processing of a federal FOIA request takes. This report shows that backlogs in processing grew from 20 percent in 2004 to 31 percent in 2005. The report, in PDF, can be found here: http://www.cjog.net/documents/.pdf .
Meanwhile, in a Washington Post op-ed piece, former President Jimmy Carter both lauds the proliferation of access laws around the world and laments what he says is the current administration’s “obstructionist policies” and “deficient practices.”
Carter also reminded us all why FOIA is emblematic of good government: “[A]ccess to . . . records increases accountability and allows citizens to participate more fully in public life. It is a critical tool in fighting corruption, and people can use it to improve their own lives in the areas of health care, education, housing and other public services. Perhaps most important, access to information advances citizens’ trust in their government, allowing people to understand policy decisions and monitor their implementation.”