Access to Information: Half of U.S. Federal Agencies Still Use Outdated Freedom of Information Regulations

A new report re: FOIA from the National Security Archive at George Washington University.
From the Report:

Nearly half (50 out of 101) of all federal agencies have still not updated their Freedom of Information Act regulations to comply with Congress’s 2007 FOIA amendments, and even more agencies (55 of 101) have FOIA regulations that predate and ignore President Obama’s and Attorney General Holder’s 2009 guidance for a “presumption of disclosure,” according to the new National Security Archive FOIA Audit released today to mark Sunshine Week.
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The Archive’s FOIA Audit also highlights some good news this Sunshine Week: New plans from both the House of Representatives and White House have the potential to compel delinquent agencies to update their regulations.
“Both Congress and the White House now recognize the problem of outdated FOIA regulations, and that is something to celebrate,” said Archive director Tom Blanton. “But new regs should not follow the Justice Department’s terrible lead, they must follow the best practices already identified by the FOIA ombuds office and FOIA experts.”

Read the Complete Report, Review Audit Chart

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