President Obama promised much but delivered little in the way of official transparency during his first term, according to participants in an annual conference of advocates for more open and accountable government.

The conference was held at the Washington College of Law at American University in Washington, D.C. and was entitled “Collaboration on Government Secrecy.” The conference is hosted by law professor and former Department of Justice Office of Information and Privacy director Dan Metcalfe. The 2013 gathering marked the fifth time participants in the event assessed the Obama administration’s performance on improving transparency and accountability in the federal government.