Sunshine Week Special: Cato v. Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board

Patrick G. EddingtonSunshine Week annually marks efforts to promote government transparency and accountability, largely centered on the use of the nearly six-decade old Freedom of Information Act (FOIA). It ' s unfortunate and alarming when governmental bodies refuse to release requested information, particularly where the request involves governmental activities that potentially threaten the constitutional rights and protections afforded citizens. It ' s exactly that scenario that has forced the Cato Institute to initiate aFOIA lawsuit against the federal Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board (PCLOB).Created in 2004 in response to a specific 9/11 Commission recommendation, the PCLOBbills itself as " an independent agency within the Executive Branch " with the mission of ensuring that " the federal government ' s efforts to prevent terrorism are balanced with the need to protect privacy and civil liberties. " Since January 2014, the PCLOB hasreleased seven major public reports, including a few on key provisions of the PATRIOT Act and on surveillance legislation made necessary by the exposure of the unconstitutional NSA STELLAR WIND program. But in May 2019, the PCLOBrefused a Cato FOIA request that it make public a versions of any Executive Order 12333 reports.Specifically, Cato sought the following:Any Board reports issued on federal department and agency activities conducted pursuant to Executive Order 12333, as amended; andAny correspondence in any form to or from th...
Source: Cato-at-liberty - Category: American Health Authors: Source Type: blogs