Defense Department Seeks New FOIA Exemption - May 2, 2005 Vol.6, No.9

May 2, 2005 Vol.6, No.9:

Published: 05/02/2005

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Additional Information:

DoD legislative proposals for FY06

Information on the 2000 Proposal:

Memorandum on FY01 authorization bill
The "Death Squad Protection" Act: Senate Measure Would Restrict Public Access to Crucial Human Rights Information Under the Freedom of Information Act
DIA Versus the Facts: What DIA Told the U.S. Congress to Get a Freedom of Information Act Exemption for DIA "Operational Files"

Defense Department Seeks New FOIA Exemption

The Department of Defense (DoD) is seeking a broad Freedom of Information (FOIA) exemption, which would remove critical information from public purview -- everything from information on human rights abuses, to historical military records. The agency sought such an exemption in 2000, but Congress rejected the measure.

The proposed FOIA exemption would be specifically for the Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA), an agency that creates and supplies intelligence information for the DoD. The exemption would allow both the DIA director and the new Director of National Intelligence to exempt operational files from public disclosure. DoD included the exemption in Section 901 of the National Defense Authorization Bill for fiscal year 2006, sent to Congress April 7.

The provisions mirror a FOIA exemption the CIA has for operational files, granted through the CIA Information Act of 1984. However, the DIA's mission and duties vary significantly from the CIA, making it impossible to apply the same disclosure standards. Currently the DIA does release certain operational files that are important to the public. Past examples include a 1990 declassified intelligence report on events in Rwanda, and a 1990 partially declassified intelligence report on arms sales between Britain and Saudi Arabia.

In 2000, the Senate passed the same provision in the FY01 Defense Authorization Act, but after significant objection from public interest groups the full Congress rejected the measure.

The text of the FY06 authorization bill can be found through the Department of Defense website. Analyses of the FY01 provision is available from the National Security Archive and the Federation of American Scientists.