FOIA

Watchdog Files FOIA Lawsuit Seeking Records about Anti-Choice Group Obria’s Management of Federal Grant Money

On February 27, 2020, CfA filed a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) lawsuit against the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, seeking documents responsive to two FOIA requests regarding the anti-choice Obria Group and its affiliate Obria Medical Clinics (collectively “Obria”) concerning their administration of funds they received through the Title X family planning program.

Watchdog Releases More than Seven Thousand Government Documents About Anti-Abortion Groups and Crisis Pregnancy Centers

On December 5, 2019, CfA released the Themis Project’s Government Records Archive, containing more than 7,000 government documents consisting of tens of thousands of pages about anti-abortion advocacy organizations, crisis pregnancy centers, and government efforts to curtail reproductive rights.

Knight Institute, on Behalf of CfA, files FOIA Lawsuit Seeking Disclosure of Office of Legal Counsel Opinions

On August 21, 2019, the Knight First Amendment Institute at Columbia University, on behalf of Campaign for Accountability (CfA) and five other plaintiffs, filed a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) lawsuit to enforce a request for formal written opinions issued by the Office of Legal Counsel (OLC) prior to February 15, 1994. The request was filed on behalf of CfA and five scholars who believe their work on U.S. history, law, and politics would benefit from a more complete understanding of the legal opinions that have bound policymakers for decades.

Inspector General Confirms Investigation as Groups Uncover More Evidence of Political Interference at Interior

Western Values Project, a Montana-based nonprofit conservation group, and Campaign for Accountability, a nonprofit watchdog group focused on public accountability, have uncovered additional evidence of political appointees interfering with public records at the Department of Interior, leading to requests being delayed or withheld – in a potential violation of open records laws. In response, the groups submitted the new information to Interior’s Acting Inspector General as part of a request for an investigation into Interior’s troubling practices. In response to the groups’ request, the Inspector General confirmed an investigation into the practice will begin.

Coalition of Watchdog Groups Calls for IG Investigation of Interior Department’s FOIA Awareness Process

On June 17, 2019, CfA along with American Oversight, American Bridge 21st Century Foundation, Democracy Forward, and Western Values Project, filed a complaint with the Office of Inspector General at the U.S. Department of the Interior (Interior) calling for an investigation of the agency’s Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) Awareness Process.  Political appointees at Interior appear to be using the Awareness Process to interfere with the release of documents in response to FOIA requests.

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