Transparency News 5/15/17

Monday, May 15, 2017



National Stories
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President Trump's veiled reference on Friday to "'tapes'" of his conversation with former FBI Director James Comey, whom he abruptly fired earlier this week, has raised questions about whether the president secretly records his discussions and whether those recordings — if they exist — could expose him to federal record-keeping requirements. White House records are not subject to the Freedom of Information Act, which allows journalists and citizens to obtain documents from government agencies by filing requests. But presidential records, including tapes, that are submitted to the National Archives can be obtained through FOIA after a period of at least five and as many as 12 years after a president leaves office.
Washington Examiner

Environmentalists claim in a federal complaint that regulators refused to provide documents relating to their relationship with the pesticide manufacturer Dow Chemical. Filed Wednesday in San Francisco,  the Pesticide Action Network of North America’s lawsuit accuses the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency of withholding documents about the chlorpyrifos. Though EPA scientists have deemed the pesticide a human health hazard, the EPA has not made any changes to limit its use. “PANNA seeks these communications as part of its public education and advocacy to reverse EPA’s decision not to revoke chlorpyrifos tolerances,” the organization says in the complaint. “EPA has failed to respond to PANNA’s FOIA requests within the time required by law and is unlawfully withholding the information sought by PANNA.”
Courthouse News Service

Oklahoma Attorney General Mike Hunter said while he will continue to monitor Environmental Protection Agency-related litigation, he also is interested is directing activities toward illegal drugs and getting a handle on what he terms abuses of Oklahoma's Open Records Act. Hunter, who was named to his position by Gov. Mary Fallin in February after former Attorney General Scott Pruitt became head of the EPA, brought a broad background to his new role, from serving in the House of Representatives and as chief of staff for former U.S. Congressman J.C. Watts, to serving as Pruitt's first assistant and Fallin's Secretary of State. One of his issues is the Open Records Act, which specifies how governmental agency records are to be kept and made available to the public. Such requests for state records come to the Attorney General's Office, where those records must be scanned for confidential information that is not recoverable, before records may be released to the entity requesting them. Hunter said his office has about 100 Open Record requests pending, many surrounding emails that Pruitt sent while he was attorney general. "It's a weaponized tool," Hunter said, explaining that out-of-state entities are using the state's Open Records Act to demand reams of records and, unlike state media, are refusing negotiations to narrow requests to more reasonable searches. He said while he strongly supports what he calls blue skies laws, such broad-based requests are difficult to respond to in a timely manner without taking hours of staff time.
The Lawton Constitution

The American Civil Liberties Union filed a Freedom of Information Act request Thursday seeking any facts or evidence supporting President Trump’s claims that the 2016 presidential election was muddied by widespread voter fraud.
Fox News

Historical records reveal the late California Gov. Pat Brown misled voters about the cost of building the nation's tallest dam, ignored recommendations to delay construction and dismissed allegations that substandard materials were used to build the ambitious project. Sixty years before a damaged spillway at the Oroville Dam forced thousands of people to evacuate, Brown's administration overcame labor strikes, worker deaths and other scandals to get Oroville built on time, The Sacramento Bee reports.
McClatchy