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Getting Your Government Files Via the FOIA

Posted by Zonk on from the let-my-info-go dept.

An anonymous reader writes "The Bad Guys blog is marking America's third annual Sunshine Week: 'a national effort to cast light onto the growing recesses of government secrecy'. US News is offering up the latest information on the Freedom of Information Act, with links to filing FOI requests to US states, the federal government, and 67 other countries. 'Often the records can be obtained by simply asking for them, but since 9/11, federal agencies have grown increasingly stubborn about what they release. A just-released survey by the National Security Archive found that only 1 in 5 federal agencies meets congressionally mandated requirements for online information access. There's hope, though: A new bill is making its way through the House of Representatives, with bipartisan backing, that would strengthen the FOIA, one of a host of open government measures being looked at by the new Congress.'"

5 of 38 comments (clear)

  1. Oh nooooes! by LinuxGeek · · Score: 2, Interesting

    How many of us /.ers are going to find out we are so uninteresting that we dont have anything on file?

    --

    Kindness is the language which the deaf can hear and the blind can see. - Mark Twain
  2. How about a new law? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Interesting

    How about a law where if you find something about yourself that doesn't serve a legitimate, warranted law enforcement purpose, the person who recorded that information on you receives a lengthy prison sentence?

    In that name of personal liberty and freedom from government abuse, it would only be fair.

    1. Re:How about a new law? by LinuxGeek · · Score: 4, Interesting

      Prison!? That is too harsh, just make it a stiff fine, but payable to the person wrongly reported or surveiled.

      --

      Kindness is the language which the deaf can hear and the blind can see. - Mark Twain
  3. Irony by cyberbob2351 · · Score: 2, Interesting

    In contrast, the U.S. legislation, as generally interpreted, presumes that all government records should be public-unless officials can show very good reasons to exempt them,

    Read : Yeah you can have this information, so long as for some reason you can't.

    Anyone else find it ironic that we are hard pressed to definitively outline the rights given to us, seeing as how the information about the act is cast in such a vague light by all those that quote it in daily life. The only anecdotal stories I hear concerning it involve lots of black markers, and a ton of hogwash project bluebook manuscripts that appear in underground ufology rings.
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  4. Transparent email/phone? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Interesting

    Speaking of transparent government, why don't we require all government officials (sans national security) to have their email and phone communication openly viewable by anyone? I think the folks in charge like to throw stones, and it would only be fitting to put them in a glass house. FOIA may allow this now but it should be instant, online, 24/7/365.