Blackout
by Torhil Dunham
"I got page after page of documents — blacked out."
Duff Wilson is a Pulitzer Prize nominated investigative reporter for the Seattle Times. While preparing to write a story on Seattle’s actions to prepare for biological attacks, he submitted a Freedom of Information Act request to Seattle Public Utilities. He said what he got back was so heavily censored that he had to scrap his story. Wilson said he’s had similar experiences in the past with FOIA, especially since George W. Bush took office.
FOIA was enacted in 1966 to provide citizens access to government information. The act requires all federal agencies to disclose requested records that don’t fall under an exemption. Each federal agency handles its own FOIA requests and any citizen can submit a request to a federal office for information.
Over the years the act has been influential in uncovering government documents that informed the public of government decisions and abuses of power. In the 1970s, for example Ford sped up production of the Ford Pinto, ignoring a flaw in the gas tank that later proved fatal. FOIA was used to reveal that both the government and Ford had knowledge of the flaw.
Wilson said he has significant experience with FOIA, using it for almost every story he’s published in the last 10 years. He said the Bush administration is making it harder to obtain information and keep the public informed by allowing agencies to restrict more information. On Oct. 12, 2001, Attorney General John Ashcroft issued a memorandum to the heads of all federal departments and agencies. He urged agencies to carefully consider what they disclose.
"They should name it the ‘Freedom to Delay Act,’ or the ‘Freedom to Deny Act,’" he said.
Wilson said the openness of FOIA changes with every administration. When Janet Reno was attorney general, the general feeling was for an open government. Reno also tried to get agencies to speed up their requests, he said.
"That ended with the Bush administration," Wilson said. "From my experience, they’ve just slowed down."
Doug Honig, public education director for the American Civil Liberties Union in Washington state, said FOIA itself has not changed. What has changed is the current administration’s willingness to honor requests.
He said the ACLU is concerned with the government’s actions. In Ashcroft’s memorandum, he told government agencies that they should withhold information if they see any legal grounds to do so, Honig said.
FOIA contains nine exemptions for the information that agencies can release, allowing agencies to deny certain requests. Exemptions include trade secrets, lawyer/client materials, personal privacy files and national security information.
Wilson said he thinks the national security exemption is used too broadly, especially in wartime. He said that the Bush administration has been secretive and the Department of Justice has followed suit.
Citizens need to have access to hold the government accountable and perform checks and balances, Honig said. FOIA was passed to curb government’s abuses of power, but withholding information sends a message that the government doesn’t want to be held accountable, he said.
"In the wake of 9-11, we shouldn’t be subverting our values of democracy," Honig said.
FOIA office Director of Public Affairs Barbara Comstock said, however, any changes made during the Bush administration have been minor. She said there are no qualitative differences in the amount of information flowing out.
"Ashcroft’s memorandum just reiterated previous policies," she said.
An official at the Department of Justice, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said that their first policy consideration is to follow the law. Agencies consider the individual exemptions that fall under the act.
The official said Ashcroft has simply put more emphasis on careful consideration for disclosure.
"Careful consideration is due to heightened security in a post-9-11 world," he said.
The official also said that Ashcroft’s October memorandum was not a reaction to the events of Sept. 11, 2001. He said the plan was already in progress prior to those events.
Rob Lopresti, librarian for government information at Western Washington University, said although he is not immediately affected by FOIA, or by denial of information, he is concerned with what the government is doing.
"Librarians are concerned with how the act is diminishing," he said. "After 9-11, access to government information has diminished."
Following the terrorist attacks, the U.S. government began pulling information away from public view. Ashcroft points to national security, the effectiveness of law enforcement and business confidentiality as key reasons for denying requests.
Dave Werntz is science director for Northwest Ecosystem Alliance, a Bellingham-based environmental advocacy group. He said they have had information requests for environmental policies returned incomplete.
When confronted with possible rollbacks of the Northwest Forest Plan, NWEA submitted a FOIA request. The plan concerns federal land management policy for land within the range of the spotted owl. NWEA said it feared the new policy included provisions that would allow access to lands that originally were off limits. NWEA feared the new provisions would allow logging in the area.
"We did not receive what we think are entire documents," Werntz said. "I haven’t experienced (this problem) until the Bush administration took office."
NWEA submitted a FOIA appeal to get more information. Depending on the outcome of that appeal, they will consider whether they want a judge to review the case.
Wilson said he thinks the current administration has a lot to do with the delays and denials. He said FOIA has always been difficult to use because agencies take so long to release information. Recently, he said he has tried to avoid using the FOIA.
"What’s bad has gotten worse (with Bush)," Wilson said. "It’s our job to oversee the government, and we need to see their files to do that."
