[Libs-Or] Fwd: [ALA-WO:374] House Passes Open Government Legislation, Senate Introduces Companion Bill

[Diedre Conkling]

fyi
   

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Subject: [ALA-WO:374] House Passes Open Government Legislation, Senate Introduces Companion Bill
Date: Thu, 15 Mar 2007 10:54:34 -0400
From: "ALAWASH E-MAIL" <ALAWASH at alawash.org>
To: ALA Washington Office Newsline <ala-wo at ala.org>

If you are unable to view this newsletter, please visit District
Dispatch, the Washington Office blog:
http://blogs.ala.org/districtdispatch.php. 
________________________________

American Library Association
Washington Office Newsline

ALAWON
Volume 16, Number 030
March 15, 2007




________________________________

House Passes Open Government Legislation, Senate Introduces Companion
Bill

________________________________


With support from both sides of the aisle, the U.S. House of
Representatives yesterday passed three important open government bills
<http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/03/14/AR20070
31402300_pf.html> . Open government is something that ALA has long
fought for and we support equal, ready, and equitable access to
government information.

The bills that passed the House yesterday are:




*	H.R. 1309
<http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/bdquery/z?d110:h.r.01309:> , the Freedom
of Information Act Amendments of 2007, which includes reforms to reduce
backlogs and delays in responding to [Freedom of Information Act (FOIA)]
requests and remove recent restrictions, such as those imposed by former
Attorney General John Ashcroft in 2001, that have undermined the FOIA;
	
	
*	H.R. 1255
<http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/bdquery/z?d110:h.r.01255:> , the
Presidential Records Act Amendments of 2007, which revokes one of
President's Bush's executive orders and other restrictions on access to
presidential records imposed in 2001;
	
	
*	H.R. 985
<http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/bdquery/z?d110:h.r.00985:> , the
Whistleblower Protection Enhancement Act of 2007, which overturns a
harmful U.S. Supreme Court decision from 2006, Garcetti v. Ceballos,
which ruled that public employees could not claim First Amendment
protection when they voice concerns to their supervisors. Over 21
million public employees rely on the First Amendment as their sole means
of whistleblower protection. Whistleblowers have time and again been
instrumental in revealing information that the public, press, and
legislators have needed to know to investigate and assure oversight and
public accountability. 
	

At the above links, you can see if your Representative voted for these
bills. If they did, thank them!

On March 13, Senator Patrick Leahy (D-VT) introduced S. 849, a companion
Freedom of Information bill that would "promote accessibility,
accountability, and openness in Government by strengthening section 552
of title 5, United States Code (commonly referred to as the Freedom of
Information Act), and for other purposes."

Senator Leahy's press release
<http://leahy.senate.gov/press/200703/031307c.html>  on the bill lists a
broad coalition of organizations that support open government, including
ALA.

Contact your Senators and tell them you support this bill!


________________________________


  <http://www.capwiz.com/ala/home/> 

Click here <http://www.capwiz.com/ala/home/>  or the logo above to:


*	
	Jump to ALA's Legislative Action Center
*	
	See what library legislation is hot
*	
	Send a letter or fax to Congress

U.S. Capitol switchboard 202-225-3121

Other News:

Sports Illustrated will make swimsuit issue available to libraries
<http://www.ala.org/Template.cfm?Section=News&template=/ContentManagemen
t/ContentDisplay.cfm&ContentID=152668> 

YALSA celebrates the first-ever Support Teen Literature Day as part of
National Library Week
<http://www.ala.org/Template.cfm?Section=News&template=/ContentManagemen
t/ContentDisplay.cfm&ContentID=152444> 
	
ALAWON Editor:
Andy Bridges 


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<http://www.ala.org/ala/washoff/washnews/news.htm> .


All materials subject to copyright by the American Library Association
may be reprinted or redistributed for noncommercial purposes with
appropriate credits.

ALA Washington Office
Emily Sheketoff, Executive Director
1615 New Hampshire Ave NW, First Floor
Washington, D.C. 20009
202.628.8410 (V)
202.628.8419 (F)

Office of Government Relations
Lynne Bradley, Director;
Melanie Anderson, Don Essex, Erin Haggerty, and Miriam Nisbet, Rosalind
Reynolds


Office for Information Technology Policy
Rick Weingarten, Director;
Mark Bard, Carrie Lowe, Kathy Mitchell, Carrie Russell

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