From the DOJ website:
New Attorney General FOIA Memorandum Issued
A new statement of Administration policy on the Freedom of Information Act has been issued by Attorney General John Ashcroft and has been transmitted to all agencies across the executive branch of the federal government.
On October 12, Attorney General Ashcroft issued a memorandum to the heads of all departments and agencies that supersedes the Department of Justice FOIA policy memorandum that had been in effect since October 1993. The new Ashcroft FOIA Memorandum was effective immediately upon issuance, and the presidential statement on the FOIA that was issued in 1993 remains in effect as well.
The Ashcroft FOIA Memorandum emphasizes the Administration's commitment to full compliance with the FOIA as an important means of maintaining an open and accountable system of government. At the same time, it recognizes the importance of protecting the sensitive institutional, commercial, and personal interests that can be implicated in government records -- such as the need to safeguard national security, to maintain law enforcement effectiveness, to respect business confidentiality, to protect internal agency deliberations, and to preserve personal privacy.
In replacing the predecessor FOIA memorandum, the Ashcroft FOIA Memorandum establishes a new "sound legal basis" standard governing the Department of Justice's decisions on whether to defend agency actions under the FOIA when they are challenged in court. This differs from the "foreseeable harm" standard that was employed under the predecessor memorandum. Under the new standard, agencies should reach the judgment that their use of a FOIA exemption is on sound footing, both factually and legally, whenever they withhold requested information.
Significantly, the Ashcroft FOIA Memorandum also recognizes the continued agency practice of considering whether to make discretionary disclosures of information that is exempt under the Act, subject to statutory prohibitions and other applicable limitations. It also places particular emphasis on the right to privacy among the other interests that are protected by the FOIA's exemptions.
The text of the Ashcroft FOIA Memorandum is as follows:
Memorandum for Heads of all Federal Departments and Agencies
From: John Ashcroft, Attorney General
Subject: The Freedom of Information Act
As you know, the Department of Justice and this Administration are committed to full compliance with the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. § 552 (2000). It is only through a well-informed citizenry that the leaders of our nation remain accountable to the governed and the American people can be assured that neither fraud nor government waste is concealed.
The Department of Justice and this Administration are equally committed to protecting other fundamental values that are held by our society. Among them are safeguarding our national security, enhancing the effectiveness of our law enforcement agencies, protecting sensitive business information and, not least, preserving personal privacy.
Our citizens have a strong interest as well in a government that is fully functional and efficient. Congress and the courts have long recognized that certain legal privileges ensure candid and complete agency deliberations without fear that they will be made public. Other privileges ensure that lawyers' deliberations and communications are kept private. No leader can operate effectively without confidential advice and counsel. Exemption 5 of the FOIA, 5 U.S.C. § 552(b)(5), incorporates these privileges and the sound policies underlying them.
I encourage your agency to carefully consider the protection of all such values and interests when making disclosure determinations under the FOIA. Any discretionary decision by your agency to disclose information protected under the FOIA should be made only after full and deliberate consideration of the institutional, commercial, and personal privacy interests that could be implicated by disclosure of the information.
In making these decisions, you should consult with the Department of Justice's Office of Information and Privacy when significant FOIA issues arise, as well as with our Civil Division on FOIA litigation matters. When you carefully consider FOIA requests and decide to withhold records, in whole or in part, you can be assured that the Department of Justice will defend your decisions unless they lack a sound legal basis or present an unwarranted risk of adverse impact on the ability of other agencies to protect other important records.
This memorandum supersedes the Department of Justice's FOIA Memorandum of October 4, 1993, and it likewise creates no substantive or procedural right enforceable at law.
http://www.usdoj.gov/oip/foiapost/2001foiapost19.htm
No comments:
Post a Comment