New EPA rule would expand Trump officials' powers to reject FOIA requests

[riversedge]

Source: the hill





By Miranda Green - 06/25/19 09:50 AM EDT


The EPA’s new Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) rule will expand the ability of the agency’s administrator and other administration officials to withhold sought-after documents by labeling them “non-responsive,” according to a copy of the final rule obtained by The Hill.

The rule is expected to be published in the Federal Register as early as Wednesday and will not allow for a public comment period.

According to the new language in the FOIA rule signed by EPA chief Andrew Wheeler last week, the administrator and other officials would be allowed to review all materials that fit a FOIA request criteria, known as responsive documents, and then decide “whether to release or withhold a record or a portion of a record on the basis of responsiveness or under one or more exemptions under the FOIA, and to issue ‘no records’ responses.”

EPA officials who would be authorized to make that decision include the administrator, deputy administrators, assistant administrators, deputy assistant administrators, regional administrators, deputy regional administrators, general counsel, deputy general counsels, regional counsels, deputy regional counsels and the inspector general or delegates of those individuals, according to the final rule.

A “no records” response would allow records seekers to be told there are no documents meeting their search criteria, even if they were found but withheld by the political appointees.....................................

Read more: https://thehill.com/policy/energy-environment/450169-new-epa-rule-would-expand-trump-officials-power-to-reject-foia-requests

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gawd. this is really happening to us. damn. damn!!

Link to tweet

And this tweet is another part of the new rules!!!!

Link to tweet

[KPN]

1. From "some would say, many people say, probably the most transparent President ever"

But on the upside, absent a specific and relevant law that excepts it, Federal Regulations require a public comment period. This will get challenged in the courts immediately.

[mahatmakanejeeves]

2. Got those links right here:

https://www.federalregister.gov/public-inspection/current#regular-filing

Environmental Protection Agency

Rules
Freedom of Information Act Regulations Update

Filed on: 06/25/2019 at 8:45 am
Scheduled Pub. Date: 06/26/2019
FR Document: 2019-13290
PDF 42 Pages (331 KB)
Permalink

Freedom of Information Act Regulations Update
An unpublished Rule by the Environmental Protection Agency on 06/26/2019

PUBLIC INSPECTION DOCUMENT
This document is unpublished. It is scheduled to be published on 06/26/2019.

Once it is published it will be available on this page in an official form. Until then, you can download the unpublished PDF version.

Although we make a concerted effort to reproduce the original document in full on our Public Inspection pages, in some cases graphics may not be displayed, and non-substantive markup language may appear alongside substantive text. If you are using public inspection listings for legal research, you should verify the contents of documents against a final, official edition of the Federal Register. Only official editions of the Federal Register provide legal notice to the public and judicial notice to the courts under 44 U.S.C. 1503 & 1507. Learn more here.

DOCUMENT DETAILS
Filed at:
06/25/2019 at 8:45 am
Scheduled Publication Date:
06/26/2019
Agency:
Environmental Protection Agency
Document Type:
Rule
Pages:
42
Document Number:
2019-13290

[underpants]

3. I cNt imagine this will hold up in court

But it’s very telling that they’d even try this.

[Haggis for Breakfast]

7. This will NOT hold up in a court of law

especially the part about "No public Comment period." BS. That is NOT how these things work. Just another end-run around the rules, laws and The Constitution by this thug government.

[Ilsa]

4. These are the things that need to be pounced on

by candidates and MSM. We need a running list of everything this admin is trying to keep secret.

[pecosbob]

5. The Exec doesn't get to arbitrarily re-write FOIA.

and it doesn't get to set up it's own 'version' of FOIA.

[FBaggins]

6. Yes and no

The act doesn't change... but each department (etc.) has to have written procedures for how they handle FOIA requests, and they certainly have the ability to modify those as long as they are not inconsistent with FOIA itself.

And, perhaps not coincidentally, SCOTUS just ruled 6-3 that federal agencies have more ability to keep things secret than we thought.