Wednesday, January 21, 2009

FOIA and Sec 1619

A commenter asks whether Obama's executive order on FOIA impacts Sec. 1619 of the 2008 farm bill. (See my previous post.) My answer, given with a little research but no law degree is: No.

I think 5 USC Sec.552, the FOIA, has the answer in
(b) This section does not apply to matters that are-- ... (3) specifically exempted from disclosure by statute (other than section 552b of this title), provided that such statute (A) requires that the matters be withheld from the public in such a manner as to leave no discretion on the issue, or (B) establishes particular criteria for withholding or refers to particular types of matters to be withheld;
I think Sec. 1619 exempts the data from disclosure.
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2 comments:

  1. Anonymous1/22/2009 11:06 PM

    Better question would be: If I submit a FOIA request to USDA will I receive any sort of response before the end of the decade?

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  2. Bill Harshaw1/31/2009 4:56 PM

    I suppose you think the answer is "no"? Unfortunately, or perhaps fortunately for bureaucrats, there's really no adverse consequences to violating legal provisions.

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