Connolly cited a report by CNN that in response to a request from OPM seeking information about the DOGE projects activities there, the news network received an email saying “Good luck with that they just got rid of the entire privacy team.” Image: Lane V. Erickson/Shutterstock.com
By: FEDweek StaffThe ranking Democrat on the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, Rep. Gerald Connolly of Virginia, is seeking information on agency capacity to process FOIA requests in light of recent reports that the administration “has terminated a number of officials responsible” for that work.
“FOIA ensures that the public has a right to access federal agency information,” he wrote to two dozen departments and major independent agencies. “This administration’s efforts to dismantle agencies, impound congressionally appropriated funds, and unlawfully terminate civil servants have been rapid and capricious. Now more than ever, maintaining transparency about the operations of government agencies and officials is crucial to enforcing accountability for ongoing abuses of power.”
“To properly respond to FOIA requests in accordance with the law, agencies must have appropriately staffed and functional processing offices. These practices are the bare minimum to ensure that agencies are able to comply with their legal obligations . . . Preserving your agency’s ability to respond to FOIA requests is a critical tool to provide the American people the transparency to which they are entitled,” he wrote.
He cited a report by CNN that in response to a request from OPM seeking information about the DOGE projects activities there, the news network received an email saying “Good luck with that they just got rid of the entire privacy team.”
He asked for data including the numbers of full-time equivalent positions assigned to those duties currently vs. the end of the Biden administration; numbers of requests received and processed; guidance regarding staffing levels; and more.
The letter comes soon after the Justice Department reported that both the number FOIA requests received and those process jumped in 2024, hitting record highs.
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