WSPC05430 - Laserfiche WebLink

Home Browse Search

dJ1953 l,'reuom of Information Act unU.er the Freedor:-l of lliforI.:1<.l tion Ac t tile lJublic nas til~ right to see certain dOCUdents. 'r"he ..:~ct lists only '9 tYiJes of inronnatioll .....:rhicl1 are not public documents ~ 3 include data. tHat you l:1il~ht Hailt. (4) trade secrets (5) inter and intra a:":'2ncy IileTiloranda available only t~lrour,h litL:1ation (~) geological data concerninr, IJells 1:.xception (4) can be an obstacle if you are seekin:';,econmnic or inventory uata about a particular timber sale, mine or graziuL allotment. IJhenever Jata can be applied to a specific percl1aser or permittee ttlere is a ~ood Cllance it llill be 'vit~lheld to protect his business. .L:.xcel)tion (.)) is very broac.l. l-'~ltllough approved factual material cannot be '_dtilheld, unapproved drafts or expert opinion -nay be. Since controversial d.ecisions are often based on informed o~_::.nion~ this secrecy is frustratinr.;. As unapproved opinion internal reports statin3 that a proposed development would be an error are often not public inforQation. Inventory data also is not available until published. Iio\\rever ~ once an Environaental Impact ~tatement llas been released ~ inter and intra agency memoranda \-lhich --transmit comments of Federal a-encies on the environmental impact of the proposed action" become public information. ~l'o protect arclleolo~ical sites from vandalism archeolo[jical site dnte may be kept secret. Oil, gas and water 'Jells are specifically exempted from information disclo- s~re in exemption (~) Federal land managers are usually quite open ~lith factual data. If you know of a document denied to you, reread the current re0ulations (Forest Service danual 6271). You cannot demand information in general, you must describe a particular document. It is not necessary to know the title and location of the document but you must be able to describe it well enough that a "reasonable searchl. \>Jill turn it up_ If after rereading the re.c;ulations you are still confident that the information is puLlic, encourage the official to read the reijulations and indicate to you the provision under \vhich tile c.locument is being ke~t secret. If the official declines to provide tll" report follm, the steps outlined in the regulations for making an F01A request. Filing an official request may be slo'" and frustrating but it protects the ranger and it l.Jill probably be approved. In addition to al1o'Hing you to revie\>l dOCUI:lants, the agency must either allo" you to copy them or provde you cOi:ies at "reasonable'- prices, they \Jill, now-ever, usually deny ~ermission to remove the uocuments from the office. If the document Has previonsly J~stributed free, or if you ask for copies of only a fe't"J paGes 'I or if you are sweet -and charming, tile charge is often '\vaiveu.