50 Days of FOIA: Countdown to the 50th Anniversary of the Freedom of Information Act

May 17, 2016 by Jesse Franzblau

On May 15th, a broad coalition of open government and accountability organizations and media outlets are launching a “50 Days of FOIA” campaign — counting down the days to the 50th anniversary of the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) on July 4, 2016. The campaign aims to highlight the importance of the FOIA, while promoting the passage of meaningful reform legislation that now has the potential to become law by the time the statute turns 50 in less than two months.

For nearly 50 years, the FOIA has empowered the public by providing access to information essential for democratic governance and accountability. The law has also been used as a critical tool used to make the public aware of countless acts of waste, fraud, and abuse. With documents obtained under FOIA, countless media outlets, watchdog groups and individuals have broken stories about the withholding of informationabout hazardous drinking water in Flint, Michigan, the IRS’ civil forfeiture program, mistreatment of veteransat the VA medical offices, overdue inspections of the United States’ aging infrastructure, use of immigrant detention centers to hold minors,corporate abuse, and much more.

Please join us in the campaign to celebrate FOIA and help ensure that the nation can celebrate FOIA’s 50th anniversary with a stronger and better statute that enhances the public’s right to know and ability to hold officials accountable.

Each day the campaign will feature FOIA stories or issues that correspond loosely to the categories below. Look for tweets from these groups – and others – using#50DaysOfFOIA:

Week 1: FOIA stories (successes, part I)
May 15-21 OpenTheGovernment.org @OpenTheGov

Week 2: FOIA Tech Advances
May 22-28  MuckRock @MuckRock

Week 3: FOIA Champions
May 29-June 4  American Society of News Editors @NewsEditors

Week 4: FOIA stories (bad/obstructive agency responses)
June 5-11  The National Security Archive @NSArchive

Week 5: FOIA Resources
June 12-18  Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press @RCFP

Week 6: Reform ideas (in the legislation)
June 19-25  Sunlight Foundation @SunFoundation

Week 7: FOIA stories (successes, part II)
June 26-July 2  The Sunshine in Government Initiative @sunshineingov

We invite participants to share these stories widely on social media – and to tweet your own contributions.

To participate in the campaign, follow the #50DaysOfFOIA and #FixFOIAby50hashtags. 

http://bordc.org/news/50-days-of-foia-countdown-to-the-50th-anniversary-of-the-freedom-of-information-act/

Webinar: Open Government at the National Archives

Please join us for a webinar with the Archivist of the United States, David Ferriero, and other National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) executives on Tuesday, March 29 at 2:00 PM Eastern Time. We will discuss the agency’s next Open Government Plan and initiatives and seek your suggestions, ideas, and feedback on how we can improve.

Share your suggestions or questions in advance and during the webinar on History Hub, our pilot collaborative platform, or email opengov@nara.gov. You’ll also be able to make suggestions by chat or phone during the webinar, but we’d love to have your contributions on History Hub.

Do you have ideas on how to improve the researcher experience?  Do you have suggestions for better ways for NARA to collaborate, encourage public participation, or innovate? Can we provide greater transparency to our records or our processes? Let us know!

 Learn more about our efforts by reviewing our previous Open Government Plan.

What: Open Government Plan briefing and listening session, a webinar with David Ferriero and other NARA executives.

When: Tuesday, March 29, 2016 at 2:00 PM Eastern Time; you may join 10 minutes prior.  

Register today: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/webinar-open-government-at-the-national-archives-registration-23818937082    

Webinar Login: http://ems7.intellor.com/login/703482

Dial-in: After you have connected your computer, audio connection instructions will be presented. You will be connected to the conference with the AT&T Connect Web Participant Application - there is no software download or installation required.

If you are unable to connect to the conference by computer, you may listen by telephone only at 1-877-369-5243 or 1-617-668-3633 using 0996865# or Find an Alternate Number.

If you need technical assistance, call the AT&T Help Desk at 1-888-796-6118 or 1-847-562-7015.

Agenda:

·         Introduction - David Ferriero, Archivist of the United States

·         Open Government Plan Process - Pamela Wright, Chief Innovation Officer

·         Innovation - Pamela Wright, Chief Innovation Officer

·         Research Services - Ann Cummings, Access Coordinator

·         Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) - Gary M. Stern, General Counsel and Chief FOIA Officer

·         Declassification - Sheryl Shenberger, Director of the National Declassification Center

·         Records Management - Laurence Brewer, Acting Chief Records Officer for the U.S. Government, and Director, Records Management Operations Program

• Ideas, Comments, and Suggestions - Participants of the webinar are asked to share their thoughts on what NARA should do to strengthen open government.

Announcing a New Blog: ArchivesAWARE!

What is an archives? What does an archivist do? Why is the work important? Can you answer these questions? Can your employer answer these questions? What about your family and friends, or the person you strike up a conversation with in the elevator?

Archivists often commiserate with one another about how what we do is under-appreciated. We frequently complain that we are figuratively, and often literally, tucked away in the basement. Many archivists have worked hard to change that perception, making the case for how archivists change, enrich, and save lives, but there is so much more work to do to raise awareness about our profession. We know how important our work is, but that will never be enough.

ArchivesAWARE! is an online space where professionals and students engaged in all aspects of archival work can share their experiences of and ideas for raising public awareness of archives and the value that archives and archivists add to business, government, education, and society as a whole.The blog is hosted by SAA and managed by its Committee on Public Awareness (COPA).

David Carmicheal, COPA’s chair and Pennsylvania’s State Archivist, outlines the goals of the blog in its initial post, giving the following suggestions for how you can help make this blog a success.

Read this blog. Want to learn how to better express the importance of archives to colleagues, friends, or even strangers? Want to learn tips and techniques to help you make the case for archives to your boss or your board? Can’t quite get the hang of that elevator speech? Keep your eye on this site. You should find plenty of good advice here.

Write for this blog. Had a great outreach success or an advocacy disaster? Share it here. We’ll all learn from each others’ triumphs and failures. Care to talk about upcoming events related to outreach, advocacy, or awareness? This is your place.

Share this blog. Do you have friends or colleagues who might like to read this blog or write for it? Maybe even some non-archivists who have experience or expertise in public relations or outreach? Share the link!

Want to join the conversation on ArchivesAWARE? The editors are always looking for additional content! Read more about the submission process on the About page, and contact the editors at archivesaware@archivists.org.

Right now Mayor de Blasio is putting together his preliminary budget. This is our moment to make sure he remembers how important libraries are. 

Last year, thanks in part to people like you speaking out, City leaders invested in New Yorkers by investing in libraries, which means NYC’s 217 libraries now offer 6-day service, have hired over 100 new librarians, and are able to provide new programs and books. Here at NYPL, we now have 7 branches that stay open 7 days a week, and our librarians have added story time for our earliest learners, after-school programs, and English language and digital classes for adults.

We're so grateful that City leaders were there for us, and now we must make sure they build on that success.

Click here to tell Mayor de Blasio that our city mustkeep investing in libraries next year.

After years of budget cuts, Mayor de Blasio and the New York City Council made a historic investment in libraries last summer. They allocated an additional $43 million in City operating funding for New York City’s libraries–restoring two-thirds of what had been cut from the City’s three library systems since 2008.

This was in large part because of the power of your vocal support of libraries. You told our leaders how important libraries were to you, and City leaders listened.

Now, as the budget process starts anew, speaking out again can make sure our City leaders continue to invest in our libraries. As crucial as this funding has been, we still have more demand for our services than we can meet.

Make sure Mayor de Blasio remembers how much New York City loves its libraries. Send him a letter right now.

Documentary Heritage Program Grants

The Documentary Heritage Program (DHP) is a statewide program established by law to provide financial support and guidance to not-for-profit organizations that hold, collect and make available New York's historical records. Funding is available to support projects that relate to groups and topics traditionally under-represented in New York’s historical record. The New York State Education Department’s (NYSED) 2016-2017 appropriation for DHP includes $92,000 for DHP Grants. DHP Grant Project Types are Documentation and Arrangement & Description. DHP is administered by the New York State Archives, a unit of the New York State Education Department.

For further information about the DHP program, including an explanation of DHP’s Priorities, visit the Documentary Heritage Program (DHP) information page.

2016-2017 DHP Grant Application Guidelines and Forms

Prequalification requirement for all grant applicants

New York State has implemented a new statewide prequalification requirement for not-for-profits applying for grants. In order to be eligible to apply, all grant applicants (including DHP grant applicants) are required to prequalify using the New York State Grants Gateway (link is external). The prequalification registration process requests information about an organization’s capacity, legal compliance, and integrity. This process may take up to a few weeks to complete. Begin the prequalification registration process immediately if you are considering applying for a 2016-2017 DHP Grant.

2016-2017 DHP Grant Application deadline is Tuesday, March 1, 2016.

For full information, see: http://www.archives.nysed.gov/grants/grants_dhp.shtml

Join the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) in protest against the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), the Trans-Atlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) and the Trade in Services Agreement (TISA). 

The week of events is jointly organized by a huge coalition of diverse organizations and individuals concerned about how these undemocratic, corporate-captured trade deals lead to terrible policies for the public interest. 

For more on how to participate see: https://www.eff.org/event/global-week-actions-against-tpp-ttip-tisa

Also check out the full schedule of events.

SAA Opposes Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement Provisions

Issue Brief: Archivists and the Trans-Pacific Partnership Trade Agreement

This issue brief was drafted by the Society of American Archivists’ Intellectual Property Working Group, was reviewed by the SAA Committee on Advocacy and Public Policy, and was approved by the SAA Council on September 28, 2015.

SAA POSITION

The Society of American Archivists (SAA) opposes secret negotiations conducted without public consultation or debate that affect access to information. SAA opposes the following provisions of the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) trade agreement:

• Any further extension of copyright terms.
• Lack of recognition of the importance of the public domain.
• Imposition of statutory damages.
• Extension of anti-circumvention rules without exceptions for fair use and non-infringing uses.
• Lack of penalty for the misuse of copyright enforcement powers.

SAA Will:

• To the extent possible, monitor the progress of TPP negotiations;
• Work with other organizations concerned about the negative impact of the TPP; and
• Advocate against TPP provisions that impede or undermine the archival mission.

For the full brief, including background on the issues, see:

http://www2.archivists.org/statements/saa-opposes-trans-pacific-partnership-agreement-provisions

Join us at this year's Archives Education Institute!

Application forms may be found HERE-- application deadline has been extended to Thursday, October 8, 2015.

SAA Comments on Copyright Office’s Mass Digitization Pilot Program

In a September 23 letter to the Register of Copyrights (drafted by the Intellectual Property Working Group), SAA President Dennis Meissner notes that, “For the vast bulk of what is in archives, mostly unpublished or rare materials where copyright claimants do not exist, ECL [extended collective licensing] would be unhelpful, irrelevant, unduly burdensome, and a disservice to the communities that archives serve.” 

For the full letter, see: http://www2.archivists.org/news/2015/saa-comments-on-copyright-office’s-mass-digitization-pilot-program? 

Stop the TPP's Copyright Trap

Stop the TPP's Copyright Trap

Officials are now working overtime to finalize the Trans-Pacific Partnership, a secret controversial trade agreement that would trap the U.S. and its partners into excessive copyright term lengths. Speak out now and help us fight back against backroom deals that keep culture and knowledge locked up for decades.

For an update on the closed-door negotiations, see the Electronic Frontier Foundation: https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2015/09/whats-going-tpp-more-closed-door-meetings-new-chief-transparency-officer

To sign a an EFF petition, see: https://act.eff.org/action/stop-the-tpp-s-copyright-trap