Good for the good ‘ol NFOIC….
The National Freedom of Information Coalition (NFOIC) has joined media associations and good government groups in asking the Washington state Supreme Court to limit Gov. Chris Gregoire’s authority to withhold documents from public scrutiny.
The case grew out of a lawsuit filed in April 2011 by the Olympia, Wash.-based Freedom Foundation, an NFOIC member organization in Washington state, over the governor’s claims of “executive privilege” as a basis for shielding records from disclosure.
At issue in the case are Gov. Gregoire’s claims of executive privilege to conceal records regarding a controversial, $2 billion proposed tunnel along the Seattle downtown waterfront to replace the elevated Alaskan Way Viaduct, in addition to other documents.
Other organizations supporting the Freedom Foundation’s position in amicus briefs filed in the lawsuit are Allied Daily Newspapers of Washington, the Washington Newspaper Publishers Association, the American Civil Liberties Union, the Institute for Justice and the Washington Coalition for Open Government (WCOG), also an NFOIC member organization.
The Freedom Foundation and its supporters say the governor should only be able to shield records from disclosure under the provisions of the state Public Records Act (PRA), which includes a “deliberative process” exemption. Gregoire’s attorneys say she is neither seeking to invalidate the PRA nor claim general immunity from it. They contend, however, that the constitutional separation-of-powers doctrine gives her additional authority to withhold documents in some instances.
Filed under: 3. Access law | Tagged: executive privilege, FOi litigation, governors, Washington State | Leave a comment »