Among the Worst but not Alone
Jun 28th, 2007 by JamieB
Deborah Howell exploded a few myths in a column on the federal Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) last week in The Washington Post.
• This is primarily a Pennsylvania problem: “FOIA is 40 years old and has always had its problems. But getting documents has become harder as backlogs of requests have grown longer, and when documents do arrive they are often incomplete or censored.”
• The Pennsylvania legislature is unique in exempting its records: “Ellen Miller, co-founder and executive director [of the Sunlight Foundation], said, ‘Congress has erected a fire wall around itself. It’s really difficult to get any of the important documents about financial disclosure online.’”
• This is a just press issue: “Reporters use FOIA a lot less than businesses do, probably one reason the U.S. Chamber of Commerce supports reform, along with about 100 other organizations. . . . At the Food and Drug Administration, only 3 percent of requests are from the media; 10 percent come from lawyers; 20 percent from industry; 53 percent from companies and consultants that specialize in getting FOI documents; 5 percent from private individuals; and 9 percent from universities, public interest groups and hospitals.”
• People make such frivolous requests that we need level-headed bureaucrats to keep the system sane: “In an oft-cited 2002 case, the National Zoo turned down a request for animal medical records on the grounds that it would violate an animal’s right to privacy and be an intrusion into the zookeeper-animal relationship.”
• All information in the public domain is readily available: “A requested news release from the Agriculture Department was sent only after some parts of it had been censored. Censoring a news release?”
• Most politicians don’t want the system changed: “The proposed changes are bipartisan, sponsored by Sen. Patrick J. Leahy (D-Vt.) and Sen. John Cornyn (R-Tex.). . . .The bill passed the House overwhelmingly in March but has been put on hold by Sen. Jon Kyl (R-Ariz.).”
While the questionable use of private e-mail accounts to conduct public business still is making headlines in Washington, Ohio lawmakers continue a similar practice unabated.
When The Dispatch revealed two months ago that many state legislators were communicating about public business through electronic methods inaccessible to the public, the matter was referred to a committee. But that panel isn’t scheduled to issue a report until the fall.
Ohio’s top legal officer and others say public officials cannot use private e-mail accounts to avoid creating public documents.
Rep. Larry Wolpert, co-chairman of the Public Records Access Committee, said members have held basic discussions and hope to make recommendations by mid- to late September.
The Hilliard Republican concedes that the public should have access to electronic discussions of public matters that are now hidden in personal e-mail accounts – though he admits he often deletes them himself.
“To me, it’s like getting a letter to my home that is discussing state business. It’s a public record. I think it’s the same concept if you get an e-mail on your personal account,” Wolpert said.
“If I use AOL to send a letter discussing state business, that should be a public record.”
The issue continues to get national attention, with a House investigative report concluding last week that 88 White House aides improperly used private political e-mail accounts for public business. Many records appear to have been destroyed.
Presidential adviser Karl Rove alone sent more than 140,000 e-mails through the Republican National Committee’s computer system, circumventing a federal law intended to guarantee the preservation of presidential records, investigators found.