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The Freedom of Information Act (FOIA / ˈ f ɔɪ j ə / FOY-yə), 5 U.S.C. § 552, is the United States federal freedom of information law that requires the full or partial disclosure of previously unreleased or uncirculated information and documents controlled by the U.S. government upon request. The act defines agency records subject to ...
The Holder Memo is part of series of policy memos on how federal agencies should apply FOIA exemptions. Beginning in 1977 with Attorney General Griffin Bell, and continued by Attorney General William French Smith in 1981 and Attorney General Janet Reno in 1993, U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) has announced how the executive branch should approach FOIA, its application, and DOJ's defense of ...
Freedom of information (or information freedom) also refers to the protection of the right to freedom of expression with regard to the Internet and information technology. Freedom of information may also concern censorship in an information technology context, i.e. the ability to access Web content , without censorship or restrictions .
Freedom of information laws allow access by the general public to data held by national governments and, where applicable, by state and local governments. The emergence of freedom of information legislation was a response to increasing dissatisfaction with the secrecy surrounding government policy development and decision making. [1]
FOIA is an abbreviation for the "Freedom of Information Act," a set of laws designed to promote transparency by offering citizens access to government records, except for a few exceptions (e.g., personal privacy, national security, and law enforcement).
A second freedom of information law is in existence in the UK, the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002 (asp 13). It was passed by the Scottish Parliament in 2002, to cover public bodies over which the Holyrood parliament, rather than Westminster, has jurisdiction. For these institutions, it fulfils the same purpose as the 2000 Act.
The law expansively defines "official records" as "information produced or received by a public officer or employee, or by a government office in an official capacity or pursuant to a public function or duty," while "public records" refer to "information required by laws, executive orders, rules, or regulations to be entered, kept and made ...
The Illinois Freedom of Information Act (FOIA / ˈ f ɔɪ j ə / FOY-yə), 5 ILCS 140/1 et seq., is an Illinois statute that grants to all persons the right to copy and inspect public records in the state. The law applies to executive and legislative bodies of state government, units of local government, and other entities defined as "public ...