FOIA requests: chipping away at government's culture of secrets

Happy Independence Day! 

On Independence Day 50 years ago, President Lyndon Baines Johnson reluctantly signed into law the Freedom of Information Act. President Johnson thought it was terrible legislation and considered a veto after it was passed by Congress. He signed the bill into law on his Texas ranch instead of at a celebratory event at the White House.


Johnson’s comments at the low-key signing ceremony at the ranch illustrated his mixed feelings about the new law. “I signed this measure with a deep sense of pride that the United States is an open society,” he said. “I have always believed that freedom of information is so vital that only the national security, not the desire of public officials or private citizens, should determine when it must be restricted. At the same time, the welfare of the nation or the rights of individuals may require that some documents not be made available. As long as threats to peace exist, for example, there must be military secrets.”

Article here  (via aba journal).

As a side note: I use FOIA requests a lot - sometimes for police reports (depending on the police department, it may be required), utility companies, etc. It's fun! You have rights, protect them!

Did you know: In Michigan, the governor and legislature are exempt from FOIA requests

Michigan's FOIA (Freedom of Information Act) law, passed in 1976, is silent on whether state lawmakers are covered, but former Attorney General Frank Kelley, in a 1986 opinion, said "the Legislature has exempted state legislators" from the law. (For those laws where the legislature's intent is hard to interpret, the AG's office comes out with "opinions," also called OAGs, that will give guidance to the rest of the public.)

Combined, the exemptions for the governor and lawmakers make Michigan's open records law one of the country's weakest, in terms of who is covered and who is not.

Article here. 

Michigan's FOIA says the parts of state government it covers "does not include the governor or lieutenant governor, the executive office of the governor or lieutenant governor, or employees thereof."

Some records in the Michigan governor's office still must be released since the state constitution — which trumps the FOIA — says "all financial records ...and other reports of public moneys shall be public records and open to inspection."

But records related to the governor available in many other states — such as correspondence, reports, appointment schedules and phone records — are not available in Michigan.

(credit where credit is due: Blog article idea credit goes to attorney Carri Briseno.

What's my expectation of privacy in a cellphone call?

The answer: not very much at all. But you knew that already, when the NSA and related scandals broke earlier this year. The good news is that an organization has made the FBI release records of its of cellphone surveillance technology. Article here.

From the article: "The FBI says it uses the tools to track the locations of individual suspects. But the technology is controversial because, by design, it collects data on innocent bystanders’ phones, and it also interferes with cellphone signals in a way that may be prohibited under a section of the federal Communications Act."