Brechner News

An experiment published in Government Information Quarterly found that public record requesters who remind record custodians of the public records law are more likely to get the records they seek, particularly when asking for large amounts of data.

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Posted: May 8, 2025

Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds has filed a lawsuit against the Des Moines Register to block the release of certain government emails, citing a claim of “executive privilege” that her office says protects candid internal communications.  

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Posted: May 6, 2025

Brechner Freedom of Information Project Director David Cuillier said the University of Michigan should be more responsive in providing records to people by the state-imposed deadline.

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Posted: May 1, 2025

A recent survey by the Faculty Senate at Western Washington University found that a subset of faculty members has experienced harassment related to their areas of research – but little harassment through public records requests.

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Posted: May 1, 2025

According to new figures out this week from the U.S. Department of Justice Office of Information Policy, Freedom of Information Act requests have dramatically surged in the past year, along with denials and backlogs. 

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Posted: April 30, 2025

The Iowa Legislature has passed House File 706, a bill that would add a new exemption to keep Capitol security camera footage confidential. 

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Posted: April 29, 2025

As local newspapers continue to go out of business, researchers are turning to artificial intelligence to preserve historic image archives.

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Posted: April 24, 2025

A West Virginia bill that was set to make last-minute changes to the state’s freedom of information law, allowing more copy fees, longer delays, and more secrecy, died this month before it reached Gov. Patrick Morrisey’s desk. 

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Posted: April 22, 2025

The National Freedom of Information Act Hall of Fame is back, under the leadership of the Joseph L. Brechner Freedom of Information Project at the University of Florida College of Journalism and Communications. 

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Posted: April 21, 2025

A recent study published in the Journal of Public Administration Research and Theory examined the role of regulatory bodies' enforcement powers in building public trust. The research, conducted across several European countries, found that people showed slightly more trust in agencies regulating sectors like farming, banking, and health data when those agencies had the ability to impose large fines on violators. 

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Posted: April 17, 2025

A bill clarifying aspects of Arkansas’ public meetings law has passed the Senate and is now heading to the governor’s desk. Senate Bill 227 specifies what city councils, quorum courts, and school boards can discuss outside of a public meeting. It also allows courts to nullify decisions made by a public body if those decisions violate open meetings laws. 

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Posted: April 15, 2025

Journalists in the United Kingdom have become increasingly frustrated with roadblocks in acquiring public records, according to a study published in Journalism Practice. 

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Posted: April 10, 2025