Brechner Freedom of Information Project

🌞 Celebrate 20 years of National Sunshine Week at Sunshine Fest 2025 in D.C.! 🏛️ 📅 March 19-20, 2025 📍 Hosted by @BrechnerFOI & @NFOIC 🎟️ Registration opens Jan. 2025 | $50/$25 Learn more: sunshineweek.org/sunshine-fest #SunshineFest25 #NationalSunshineWeek #Brechner #UFCJC

🚨 New Brechner Report out now! This edition features a powerful new collab: @MuckRock, @NFOIC, @rcfp & the Brechner FOI Project are teaming up to support local journalists with legal help, AI tools & more. Read it here: brechner.org/resources/brec… #FOIA #opengov #transparency

🔔 Call for proposals! Journal of Civic Information is seeking ideas for its special issue & research competition. 💰 Prizes + DC travel + publication 🗓️ 1-page proposals due 10/1/25 Info: brechner.org/2025/07/22/cal…

📲 New @MuckRock guide on requesting text messages as public records. Learn what counts and how to request them. Read it here: muckrock.com/news/archives/… #FOI #FOIA #openrecords

☕️ FOI Tip: Build trust. Grab coffee with a records custodian. Learn what they value in requests and discover records others don’t think to ask for. #FOITip #FOI #FOIA

📈 Study: SEC FOIA requests can move markets. • Investigations → avg -2.4% drop • Investment firm requests → avg +9.2% rise Check out the study here: brechner.org/2025/07/17/stu…

🗂️ Remember: Secrecy Tracker is free Find bills in any state or Congress that could limit access to records or meetings. Stay informed: secrecytracker.org

🗞️ Watchdog sues DOJ for records on judicial nominee Emil Bove. FOIA lawsuit seeks emails about deportations, NYC Mayor Adams’ case, and other controversies as Bove’s confirmation vote nears. Details: brechner.org/2025/07/15/wat…

💊 FDA proactively releases 200+ drug rejection letters explaining initial non-approvals for medicines later approved. reuters.com/business/healt…

FOIA Tip: Build a request kit. ✅ Blank forms ✅ State records law ✅ Case law summary ✅ Thumb drive for files Stay prepared to file anytime. #FOITip #FOIA

Ivan Oransky & Adam Marcus say universities should publish misconduct records online to build trust and prevent fraud. Other countries already do it. 📖 brechner.org/2025/07/10/stu…

🗞️ Did you miss this in the Brechner Report? 📌 69% of investigative journalists say limited access to records is the biggest barrier to accountability. Frequent delays, denials, high fees, and political pressure are worsening the problem. Read more: brechner.org/resources/brec…

WA’s bear hunt ban fight exposes bigger problem: Group says Fish & Wildlife commissioners told each other to delete texts on official business. They're demanding Gov. Ferguson remove them for violating Public Records Act. 🔗 brechner.org/2025/07/08/was…

FOIA at work: Docs reveal EPA cuts labs, slashes 1,000+ scientist jobs, and adopts out lab animals as it guts research. Critics warn less oversight, more industry influence on chemical safety. 🔗 peer.org/epa-putting-la…

🧾 FOI Tip: Want to see how your state’s records laws compare? Use @RCFP’s Open Government Guide to explore topics like copy fees & response times across all 50 states. Click “compare” for side-by-side views. 🔗 rcfp.org/open-governmen… #FOITip #foi #foia

What did Edward Kennedy, Ralph Nader, and Antonin Scalia have to do with the 1974 FOIA amendments? Thomas M. Susman breaks it down in a new Journal of Civic Information article—including what proposals didn’t make it into law. 📖 brechner.org/2025/07/03/foi… #foi #foia

Gov. DeSantis signed SB 1652, shielding some stricken court records from public release. 🧾 The law applies to noncriminal filings deemed defamatory or irrelevant by a judge—aimed at curbing “vexatious litigation.” 📄 floridapolitics.com/archives/74482… #FOI #FOIA

The Center for Biological Diversity is suing the EPA for failing to release records on Clean Air Act exemptions granted under Trump. 📄 brechner.org/2025/07/01/foi… #foia #lawsuit #foi

KY AG says City of Union violated Open Records Act 📄 The city failed to respond on time, explain redactions, or conduct a full search. No court action expected, but new phones for officials coming July 1. 🔗 linknky.com/news/2025/06/2… #foi #foia

Should the right to know be a constitutional right in the U.S.? UNC's David Ardia says yes—in an @AZLawReview piece on how access to info supports popular sovereignty and checks tyranny. 🧾 Read: brechner.org/2025/06/26/stu…

🗞️ New edition of The Journal of Civic Information is here! 📚 Open-access, peer-reviewed research on transparency + public records. 🔗 Read now: journals.flvc.org/civic