A watchdog group on Thursday filed suit against the CIA for information on the role that political appointees have played in obstructing the agency’s response to requests made under open record laws.
The suit, filed by nonprofit Cause of Action, comes after the CIA refused to release records responsive to a congressional investigation into obstruction by 29 federal agencies. Though the records at the center of the suit were created by the CIA Inspector General, it’s up to the CIA to decide whether to release them.
“Although other Inspectors General have disclosed their final reports voluntarily or otherwise furnished copies” under Freedom of Information Act laws, the suit notes, “the CIA is one of the few agencies that refuses to respond to CoA Institute and release the relevant records.
“In two FOIA requests, CoA Institute requested these final reports or responses, but the CIA has yet to issue any final determination or produce the documents,” Thursday’s filing adds. “In one case, the CIA has stonewalled CoA Institute for three years and has twice indicated that it ‘will not acknowledge or respond to any additional queries regarding the status’ of the CoA Institute FOIA request.”
The group is seeking the CIA’s response to congressional inquiries into the obstruction that were sent in 2010 by Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, and Rep. Darrell Issa, R-Calif., and in 2015 by Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Wis.
The group’s president, Alfred Lechner, Jr., said the CIA’s behavior was part of a broader effort by the Obama administration to flout open record laws. “All federal agencies have the obligation to efficiently and effectively respond to FOIA requests,” Lechner said in a statement. “After three years, the CIA has demonstrated it has no intention of providing the requested documents in a timely manner.
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“The current administration has neglected its duties under FOIA and allowed federal agencies to undermine transparency requirements,” he added. “Despite numerous media reports that have criticized the Obama administration for its poor efforts to ensure transparency and openness, agencies continued to abuse the law and permit political appointees to insert themselves into the FOIA process.”
Federal agencies in Washington have done an increasingly poor job of responding to record requests since President Obama took office. An annual analysis conducted by the Associated Press indicated the administration rejected requests in a record 77 percent of cases in 2015.
