FAS Asks Court to Compel NRO Compliance with FOIA
The Federation of American Scientists yesterday asked (pdf) a federal court to enforce a court order directing the National Reconnaissance Office (NRO) to process a Freedom of Information Act request for unclassified budget information after the NRO said it had “decided” not to do so.
In a July 24, 2006 order, D.C. District Judge Reggie B. Walton rejected an NRO claim that the requested budget information was an “operational” file that is exempt from the FOIA. He ordered the agency to process the request.
On September 20, the NRO filed notice that it would appeal that ruling.
Last month, the agency said that in light of the pending appeal it had “decided not to produce the document(s) in question.”
By law, however, the NRO is not entitled to make such a decision. Rather, it must request and receive a stay of the court order, which it failed to do.
In a December 18 motion in the case, Aftergood v. National Reconnaissance Office, we asked Judge Walton to enforce his July 24 order.
At a time when universities are already facing intense pressure to re-envision their role in the S&T ecosystem, we encourage NSF to ensure that the ambitious research acceleration remains compatible with their expertise.
FAS CEO Daniel Correa recently spoke with Adam Marblestone and Sam Rodriques, former FAS fellows who developed the idea for FROs and advocated for their use in a 2020 policy memo.
In a year when management issues like human capital, IT modernization, and improper payments have received greater attention from the public, examining this PMA tells us a lot about where the Administration’s policy is going to be focused through its last three years.
Congress must enact a Digital Public Infrastructure Act, a recognition that the government’s most fundamental responsibility in the digital era is to provide a solid, trustworthy foundation upon which people, businesses, and communities can build.