[govinfo] Re: FW: OPEN Gov't Act / FOIA reform gets another vote, this time in House (Out of Office Today)

  • From: "David McMillen" <David.McMillen@xxxxxxxx>
  • To: <govinfo@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
  • Date: Tue, 26 Sep 2006 20:51:53 -0400

I am out of the office Wednesday Septmber 27  through Friday September
29, 2006, and will respond to your message when I return.  If you need
help immediately, please call 202-357-5100.

>>> govinfo 09/26/06 20:28 >>>

FYI.
Patrice McDermott, Director
OpenTheGovernment.org
1742 Connecticut Ave NW, 3rd floor
Washington, DC 20009
202.332.OPEN (6736)
www.openthegovernment.org
      _____  

  From: Rick Blum [mailto:rblum@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx]
To: FOI-L@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Sent: Tue, 26 Sep 2006 14:58:26 -0400
Subject: FW: MEDIA ADVISORY: OPEN Gov't Act / FOIA reform gets another
vote, this time in House

  
Sorry for cross-posts.    
   
Rep. Todd Platts (R-PA) has scheduled a vote on the OPEN Government Act
in his subcommittee for tomorrow (Sep. 27) at 2pm in 2247 Rayburn House
Office Building.  While FOIA reform is unlikely to pass this Congress,
this move gives extra momentum to FOIA reform going into next year.  
______________  
Rick Blum  
Coordinator, Sunshine in Government Initiative  
 
  
    _____  

  From: Rick Blum [mailto:rblum@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx] 
Sent: Tuesday, September 26, 2006 2:34 PM
To: 'rblum@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx'
Subject: MEDIA ADVISORY: OPEN Gov't Act / FOIA reform gets another vote,
this time in House

  
  

MEDIA ADVISORY  

For immediate release   

September 26, 2006  

   

Contact:  Rick Blum, coordinator, Sunshine in Government Initiative  

703-807-2100 or rblum@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx  

   

FOIA Reform Bill Up for Key House Vote:  

Momentum builds to promote open government  

   

A key House subcommittee has scheduled a vote tomorrow on the OPEN
Government Act (H.R. 867), which would fix longstanding obstacles the
public faces accessing government documents under the Freedom of
Information Act (FOIA).  

   

What:  Subcommittee vote on the OPEN Government Act (H.R. 867)  

   

Where:  House Government Reform Subcommittee on Government Management,
Finance & Accountability  

   

When:  Wednesday, September 27, 2006 at 2pm  

   

When:  Rayburn House Office Building, Room 2247  

   

Who:  The Subcommittee is chaired by Rep. Todd Platts (R-PA) and the
bill is sponsored in the House by Rep. Lamar Smith (R-TX) and has 31
House co-sponsors.  The OPEN Government Act has also been pushed on a
bipartisan basis in the House by Rep. Tom Davis (R-VA) and Rep. Henry
Waxman (D-CA).    

   

The scheduled vote comes less than a week after the Senate Judiciary
Committee approved the identical Senate version (S. 394) of the OPEN
Government Act.  The attention Congress is giving this bill in both
chambers reflects the urgency members of Congress feel about removing
unnecessary obstacles the public faces getting government records and
reforming the FOIA process.  On July 26, Chairman Platts held a hearing
to review the Freedom of Information Act, which signed into law 40 years
ago on July 4, 1966.  That hearing was Rep. Platts' second hearing
focused on FOIA in as many years.  The hearings documented that FOIA has
been a less reliable, less timely and less effective tool for the
public.    

   

ABOUT THE OPEN GOVERNMENT ACT  

Among the specific reforms, the bill (1) helps FOIA requesters obtain
timely responses to their requests by restoring meaningful deadlines for
agency action, (2) requires agencies to create FOIA hotlines and request
tracking systems to help the public follow up on requests, (3) creates
an independent mediator to help resolve disputes and encourage
alternatives to litigation, (4) makes it easier for requesters to
recover attorney fees when litigation is unavoidable, and (5) penalizes
agencies for delaying responses.   

   

ABOUT THE SUNSHINE IN GOVERNMENT INITIATIVE  

The Sunshine in Government Initiative is a coalition of media groups
committed to promoting policies that ensure the government is
accessible, accountable and open. Public oversight is the ultimate
safeguard of democracy. It is the inalienable right of citizens to
examine and judge their government; and that right is served when news
media act on behalf of the public to gain access to information.   

   

-30-  

   

SGI Members:   

   

American Society of Newspaper Editors   

The Associated Press   

Association of Alternative Newsweeklies   

Coalition of Journalists for Open Government   

National Newspaper Association   

Newspaper Association of America   

Radio-Television News Directors Association  

The Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press   

Society of Professional Journalists  

   
   
   

_________________
Rick Blum
Coordinator, Sunshine in Government Initiative
1101 Wilson Blvd., Suite 1100
Arlington, VA 22209
rblum@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Phone 703-807-2100
Fax 703-807-2109
  
       
   
 

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  • » [govinfo] Re: FW: OPEN Gov't Act / FOIA reform gets another vote, this time in House (Out of Office Today)