Press

PRESS

January 31, 2011

CREW and 24 Others Express Concern over Government’s Position on FOIA Exemptions in Supreme Court

Federal Agencies, Department of Justice, Supreme Court, Transparency, Press Releases

Today CREW and 24 other organizations and individuals sent a letter to White House Counsel Bob Bauer expressing concern with the position articulated recently by the government during oral arguments before the Supreme Court in Fed. Communications Commission v. AT&T. The case involves the privacy protections of exemptions to the Freedom of Information Act.

Although the Supreme Court has held repeatedly that the Freedom of Information Act's (FOIA) exemptions are to be construed narrowly, consistent with the FOIA's purpose of disclosure not secrecy, the attorney from Department of Justice's Solicitor General's office arguing on behalf of the government disagreed with this well-established proposition, insisting in the face of repeated questions from several justices that a narrow construction would "distort" the "very important values" Congress intended to protect through the exemptions.

The government's position is directly at odds with the FOIA policy directive President Obama issued on his first full day in office commanding agencies to apply the presumption of disclosure to all decisions involving the FOIA.

Click here to read the letter.

Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW) is a non-profit legal watchdog group dedicated to holding public officials accountable for their actions. For more information, please visit www.citizensforethics.org or contact David Merchant at 202.408.5565 or dmerchant@citizensforethics.org