More evidence that AG Eric Holder neglects FOIA

Earlier this month, the Washington Free Beacon reported that the U.S. Department of Justice “...has not challenged a single instance of a federal agency withholding records from Freedom of Information (FOIA) requestors since 2009.”

The story, written by C.J. Ciaramella and published June 11, quotes a deputy assistant attorney general as saying that while DOJ’s “...Office of Information Policy gives guidance to other agencies on proper applications of FOIA exemptions, it has not determined that any of those exemptions were improper in four years.”

Citing George Washington University’s National Security Archive as a source, Ciaramella goes on to report that, since Attorney General Holder’s 2009 directive to agencies to employ a presumption in favor of disclosure, most agencies have ignored it.

http://freebeacon.com/doj-hasnt-found-one-improper-foia-exemption-since-2009/

Feds cited "privacy" for most FOIA denials last year.

The Investigative Reporting Workshop at the American University School of Communication reported June 20, 2013 that:

"[Federal] FOIA requests were denied under the privacy exemption in 2012 in more than 232,000 cases, or 53 percent of all requests, the highest level since the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. Privacy exemptions include 'personnel and medical files and similar files' when the disclosure of such information 'would constitute a clearly unwarranted invasion of personal privacy' or protection for law enforcement information, the disclosure of which 'could reasonably be expected to constitute an unwarranted invasion of personal privacy.' "

The law enforcement exemption came in second at 26 percent, and executive privilege was claimed 15 percent of the time.  National Security accounted for less than one percent of the denials.

http://investigativereportingworkshop.org/blogs/exemption-10/posts/2013/jun/20/freedom-information-act-requests-and-denials-climb/

Finding Software for Municipal FOIA Applications

Do any of you readers want to describe your experiences with municipal FOIA software?  Add a comment.  Below are several examples of software that I've seen mentioned recently:

 (1)

"Welcome to Minutes-On-Demand™

In an attempt to better serve the residents of the City of Southfield [MI], we have created a searching tool that will allow you to view AGENDAS and MINUTES of City Council. Not only will you be able to look at the current meeting information but you will be able to search past meetings for specific meeting detail. Meeting Minutes will be posted once they are approved by the Council Board."  http://southfieldcitymi.minutesondemand.com/

(2)

"Sonasoft Corp., a leader in enterprise-class email archiving, announces a special no-cost email archiving promotion to help U.S. city and county governments meet the demands from the Freedom of Information Acts (FOIA) and states’ Open Public Records Laws, such as OPRA (New Jersey) and CORA (Colorado), without taxing their resources or breaking their budgets. Through this offer, city and county governments are eligible to acquire SonaVault, Sonasoft’s Email Archiving Solution, free with the purchase of Sonasoft’s professional installation and the first-year’s maintenance contract. City and county governments can lock in their savings as long as they obtain an estimate on or before July 1, 2013, which is when this promotion ends."
http://www.prweb.com/releases/email-archiving/freedom-information-act/prweb10724359.htm

(3)

"With the right technology, agencies can locate and assemble documents for FOIA requests more efficiently and effectively. The Google Search Appliance connects to any data source, such as SharePoint, SQL, and Oracle databases, and Lotus Domino and Apache servers, to search files quickly. Users can type a phrase or words associated with the FOIA request and the Google Search Appliance will immediately begin compiling data that contains the information in the query. The Google Search Appliance can search over 250 of the most common file formats, and even crawls through geospatial databases, withdrawing data in minutes."

"Once all data has been located, the Google Search Appliance compiles the information into a single PDF, making it easier to review. The Google Search Appliance can be customized for a particular agency’s needs, including setting up parameters for the system to identify documents that meet FOIA exemptions and easily redact sensitive information."  http://www.business2community.com/strategy/the-key-to-responding-quickly-and-easily-to-foia-requests-0494218

Obama's FOIA schizophrenia

On June 16, 2013, Calvin Woodward of the Associated Press reported, inter alia:

"[President Obama] established a center devoted to declassifying records and making them public. He announced an open government initiative. Dizzying quantities of information poured into public databases. New ways were devised to show taxpayers how their money is spent. Allegiance was pledged to the rule of law."

Simultaneously, the Obama Administration "...prosecutes leakers like no administration before it. It exercises state-secrets privileges to quash court cases against it. It hides a vast array of directives and legal opinions underpinning government actions — not just intelligence and not all of it about national security."

http://www.boston.com/business/technology/2013/06/16/glasnost-the-potomac-under-obama-not-quite/zNpD9tuTrfsoVJWjaab1MK/story.html

One definition of schizophrenia is, "a state characterized by the coexistence of contradictory or incompatible elements."