Study Exposes Systemic Failures in FOI Laws Meant to Protect Democracy

Legal, Policy and First Amendment 

Freedom of Information (FOI) laws were created to pull back the curtain on government operations, giving the public and journalists tools to expose everything from Pentagon overspending to Flint, Michigan’s lead-contaminated water crisis. New research, however, reveals corporate interests now dominate FOI requests to the detriment of petitions from the citizens and journalists they were meant to empower.

David Cuillier, director of the Brechner Freedom of Information Project at the University of Florida College of Journalism and Communications, and A. Jay Wagner, Marquette University Diederich College of Communication associate professor of journalism and media studies, explored the contrasting experiences of public-interest and corporate requesters of government information. They surveyed 330 FOI users about their satisfaction with the process.

The findings present a growing disparity in how FOI laws function for different groups. For-profit entities like corporations and lawyers reported higher success rates than public-interest organizations. The study found business interests leverage extensive resources and legal expertise to secure information. In such cases, FOI laws are tools for private gain, with corporations using them to extract regulatory data, contract details and other government-held information to enhance their competitive edge.

In contrast, public-interest users of FOI laws encounter significant challenges, particularly with exemptions like national security and trade secrets. The study highlights excessive redactions, lengthy delays, steep fees and outright denials, which can disproportionately impact those without the resources to hire a lawyer or file a lawsuit. As a result, public interest requests can take years to fulfill.

While commercial requesters aren’t to blame for tapping the economic value of government data, their dominance has serious consequences, according to the study. For-profit users overwhelm records offices, sideline public-interest requesters, and reshape priorities. Journalists and nonprofits who rely on these laws to expose corruption and advocate for change wrestle with significant obstacles in a system meant to empower them and foster democracy.

The study also revealed numerous differences in the major problems each group experienced using FOI laws. For example, corporate requesters reported more success in receiving their records but expressed a considerably lower belief that FOI laws improve government operations or have secondary effects that benefit society.

The study illuminates a structural deficiency in processing FOI requests. While businesses extract economic value from public records, journalists and citizens struggle to access information critical for democracy. The research indicates systemic reforms are necessary to ensure FOI laws improve user access and focus on their original democratic objectives. They include digital upgrades, prioritizing public-interest requests, increasing proactive government disclosure of frequently requested records, and creating independent oversight bodies to resolve disputes quickly and affordably rather than through costly litigation.

The researchers conclude that federal, state and local FOI laws have strayed dramatically from their original intentions. While they cannot be expected to solve broader social issues of favoritism and inequality, they should not worsen them.

The original paper, “A Tale of Two Requesters: How Public Records Law Experiences Differ by Requester Types,” was published online in Journalism on March 27, 2024.

 Authors: David Cuiller and A. Jay Wagner.

This summary was written by Gisele McAuliffe.

Posted: December 16, 2024
Insights Categories: Legal, Policy and First Amendment
Tagged as: Brechner, David Cuillier, FOI, Freedom of Information