SPOTLIGHT OF THE WEEK: PUBLIC'S RIGHT TO KNOW:

In 1966, President Lyndon B. Johnson signed the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), a landmark law that opened the government's records to public scrutiny. Because of FOIA, Vietnam War veterans learned about their exposure to Agent Orange, reporters learned that the military had given U.S. troops in Iraq body armor that failed ballistics tests, and the public learned how many times Jack Abramoff had visited the White House.

Unfortunately, under the Bush administration, federal agencies have stalled or ignored an increased number of FOIA requests, classified a record number of documents, stepped up punishment for whistleblowers, and tightened secrecy in the name of national security. A new study by the National Security Archive finds that just one in five federal agencies posts on its website all the records to file FOIA requests and just 6 percent "tell people how to request what does not appear there." Another study by the Coalition of Journalists for Open Government "found that 26 federal agencies were processing fewer FOIA requests, making petitioners wait much longer for responses and releasing less information than they were nine years ago." This week marks Sunshine Week, highlighting the public's right to know what the government is doing. Sens. Pat Leahy (D-VT) and John Cornyn (R-TX) plan to reintroduce legislation that will strengthen FOIA by giving agencies "strong incentives to act on FOIA requests in a timely fashion."

It will also "ensure that Internet-based journalists and people who write Web logs are given the same reduced FOIA fees as other members of the press" and will establish a FOIA hotline to track requests.