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Tag: Federal Government
Editorial: S.E.C. Raises Barrier to Disclosure of Information
The Freedom of Information Act is supposed to make it easier for journalists and ordinary Americans to obtain documents and other information about how the federal government conducts its business. As such, it is one of the bedrocks of our democracy. “It is often described as the law that keeps citizens in the know about their government,” boasts FOIA.gov, a website dedicated to the law.
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DHS report makes recommendations for greater open source software use in government
A report commissioned by the Homeland Security Department's Science and Technology Directorate says barriers to using and developing open source software must be addressed as IT budgets across government continue to tighten.
Security and the perceptions of security are just as problematic as "non-security" challenges to open source software, or OSS, says the report's authors ñ David Wheeler, a research staff member at the Institute for Defense Analyses, and Tom Dunn, senior research engineer at the Georgia Tech Research Institute.
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New hospice comparison tool uses government info, Washington Post calls for more transparency
In the absence of a hospice consumer guide from the government, The Washington Post has created one using available Medicare data. The newspaper unveiled the quality tool Sunday, in an article criticizing a lack of transparency around hospice quality.
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Opinion: Transparency in government a must
Since first taking office more than 30 years ago, Iíve held a firm belief that government should be conducted in an open and transparent manner. Government officials are rightly held to a higher standard of scrutiny and accountability, and that includes being truthful and forthcoming to the men and women theyíve been elected to serve.
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White House Launches More Open Data Initiatives
The Obama administration has launched a series of open data initiatives to make information across a variety of areas such as health, energy, climate, and public safety more accessible to federal agencies and citizens, a top White House official said.
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Interior’s Inspector General investigates a lot, shares little with public
The Department of the Interior's inspector general closed 457 investigations last year — and released public reports for only three.
The rest largely stayed hidden from public view, with even a redacted list of closed investigations accessible only through the Freedom of Information Act. Among them were cases exposing nepotism, contracting violations and allegations that BP America underpaid its gas royalties by millions of dollars (see related story).
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Support for Spying Kept Secret, Despite Uncle Sam’s Bad Faith
Well before Edward Snowden leaked documents about the National Security Administration's massive domestic-surveillance program, the American Civil Liberties Union sought clues through the Freedom of Information Act about how government interpreted its spying powers.
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IRS Faulted for Compliance with Freedom of Information Act Requests
The Internal Revenue Service failed to comply with Freedom of Information Act requirements for about 11 percent of the requests it received for information, according to a new report.
The report, from the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration, comes at a sensitive time for both the IRS and the Inspector General's office, when both face lawsuits from conservative watchdog groups over their failure to turn over emails and other information related to the scandal involving applications for tax-exempt status.
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Letters: Government shouldnít be afraid of transparency
Jason Grumet argued in ìGovernment wilting from the sunshineî [Washington Forum, Oct. 2] that transparency measures such as open meetings and records laws have a 'dark side,' one that is presumably responsible for the 77 percent of Americans who do not trust their government most of the time. Perhaps the fact that Congress has exempted itself from the Freedom of Information Act and has no requirements to hold all meetings in public might contribute to the mistrust that troubles Mr. Grumet.
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