House Farm Bill would restrict FOIA access

As the House and Senate meet to iron out a compromise on the Farm Bill, the members will have to decide whether to include provisions currently in the House version that would undermine the Freedom of Information Act. The provisions would limit disclosure of information about farming operations and prohibit the EPA from disclosing identifying location information, such as in a water pollution law.

The Sunshine in Government Initiative said in a blog post today that “the two proposed exemptions to disclosure contained in the House-passed farm bill (HR 2642) would broadly inhibit public understanding of agriculture issues and prevent valuable uses of public information in our democracy.”