The public is demanding answers in the aftermath of the massive blackout that swept through Cleveland, Detroit, New York, parts of New Jersey, and southern Canada. What went wrong? How reliable is our electrical grid? Is there sufficient generating power? Could it happen again?

Unfortunately, these questions could be more difficult to answer thanks to a new rule -- issued March 3 by FERC -- that claims “critical energy infrastructure information” is exempt from disclosure. For example, FERC no longer discloses “historical transmission planning reports,” in which utilities describe their power flow, transmission plans and reliability, and present a detailed evaluation of system performance. Utilities amazingly no longer have to even disclose plans for building a new plant.
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The Bush administration recently shut down a number of Muslim-based nonprofit organizations using new powers under the Patriot Act. No criminal charges were made against these organizations, nor were they officially designated terrorist supporters. Law enforcement officials simply froze their assets and seized their property "pending an investigation" without producing any evidence.

Consequently, the burden of proof has shifted to the organizations, which must prove their innocence even though, in many cases, the government has not specified wrongdoing. Moreover, they must do this without access to their own documents, computers, records, or other materials that might make their case. On top of this, the government controls the information judges see and how they see it; investigators can label evidence confidential for national security reasons and then bring it before a court without the target being represented.
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Iraq Contracts Shrouded In Secrecy

Before bombs even began falling on Baghdad, the Bush administration awarded a secret, no-bid contract to repair and operate Iraq's oil infrastructure -- worth up to $7 billion -- to Kellog Brown & Root (KBR), a subsidiary of Halliburton, a Houston-based oil services and construction company.

The fact that competitive bidding was foregone -- that KBR was handpicked by the administration -- has caused many to cry foul.
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Following the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, the Bush administration moved to broadly restrict public access to information in the name of security. Federal agencies began summarily removing tens of thousands of documents from their web sites, purportedly because they might be useful in preparing another attack.

White House Chief of Staff Andrew Card affirmed this action in a March 2002 memo ordering agencies to “safeguard” information that is “sensitive but unclassified.” This new category broadly includes, in each agency’s judgment, “information that could be misused to harm the security of our nation and the safety of our people” -- a virtual catchall since most information (even the phone book, for instance) at least carries the potential to be used for harm.

Shortly after Card’s memo, a provision codifying the “sensitive but unclassified” category was slipped into the Homeland Security Act (which created the Department of Homeland Security), drawing little attention. Specifically, the act instructs the executive branch to "identify" and "safeguard" "homeland security information that is sensitive but unclassified," which includes any information about terrorist threats, potential vulnerabilities, and disaster response. The law gives the administration legal authority to “prescribe and implement procedures” for sharing classified or protected information with federal, state, and local government agencies.
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Recent Stories from the OMB Watcher

EPA Rolls Back Clean Air Standards For Power Plants

Agencies Cite Privacy More Often When Denying FOIA Requests

Administration Pushes For Increased Oil and Gas Development

EPA Response to 9/11 Influenced by the White House

EPA Agrees to Act on Air Pollution in National Parks

Report Documents Administration's Political Interference with Science

FDA Rolls Back Olestra Labeling Requirements

Administration Issues Long-Awaited Listeria Standards

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