House passes FOIA bill over White House protests

The House overwhelmingly passed sweeping legislation Wednesday amending the Freedom of Information Act, despite the Bush administration's contention the bill would impose substantial administrative and financial burdens on agencies.

The bill (H.R. 1309), sponsored by House Oversight and Government Reform Chairman Henry Waxman, D-Calif., garnered bipartisan support, passing 308-117. The panel's ranking member, Rep. Tom Davis, R-Va., said the measure drew from legislation introduced by Republicans in previous sessions of Congress.

On the Senate side, Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy, D-Vt. introduced similar legislation (S. 849). That bill awaits action in the Judiciary Committee.

Leahy said the measures will make government records and information more accessible to the public, and he hoped the Senate passes its version of the bill promptly.

"At a time when government is collecting more and more information about every American, it only seems fair that the American people should also be able to find out what their government is up to," Leahy said.

In a policy statement on the House measure, the White House backed the goals of the legislation, but said the administration cannot support the bill because it would be premature and counterproductive. The White House stopped short of issuing a veto threat, however.

An executive order issued by President Bush 15 months ago is the proper means to spur improvement in agencies' FOIA responses, according to the statement. The Justice Department's preliminary review of annual reports required under the order indicated that some agencies already have achieved meaningful backlog reductions, the statement noted.

Several provisions could result in slower processing of information requests, the administration argued. Agencies might need additional personnel and funding to meet the requirements, but would have to draw from their existing resources, according to the White House.

The annual reports issued last year illustrate that the challenges agencies face in responding to FOIA requests are often unique and require tailored reforms, not a governmentwide, one-size-fits-all legislative approach, the statement said.

The administration opposed a provision that would create an Office of Government Information Services within the National Archives, and any intent that the proposed Office would take on a policy-making role with respect to FOIA compliance. The FOIA compliance function is appropriately placed with the Justice Department, the administration said.

The administration also opposed language aimed at reversing an October 2001 memorandum from President Bush's first attorney general, John Ashcroft, which urged agencies to disclose information under FOIA only after fully considering the institutional, commercial and personal privacy implications.