In the last week of negotiations, Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME) acceded to pressure from the White House and other House Republicans to keep the total intelligence budget secret. Other language to encourage federal agencies to keep fewer secrets was narrowed from its already humble starting point. A proposal from several senators to let the public appeal decisions by government agencies to keep information secret was narrowed so only the chairmen of already powerful congressional committees could make such appeals. The Center for National Security Studies expressed concern that the legislation would expand intelligence agencies' ability to withhold documents from the public. And finally, congressional staff appeared unsure how to address the need for Congress to exercise stronger oversight over the way the new National Intelligence Director would control the flow of information.
While the 9/11 Commission and families of the 9/11 victims pushed for passage of the bill, in the end the bill may have enshrined bad policy into a law that could increase government secrecy for years if not decades.
It is still possible for Congress to complete work on the bill and schedule a vote next week. But it is more likely that intelligence reform will not be voted on until next year. If so, that could provide open government advocates an opportunity to regain some ground or clarify what problems really exist.