New US freedom of information law aimed at fixing 'broken' system

Re: UK

Well of course they do, it's not like we pay for the people who collect the information, or the hardware that stores it, or that it's about us, or that it impacts us or should inform any of our decisions or opinions about lawmakers or policy, is it?

Re: UK

I handle FOIs for a public sector organisation in the UK - we can't refuse on many grounds but that doesn't stop senior managers trying to fudge or complicate the answers as often as possible. The typical problem is how they are asked though, requestors leave too many doors open for management to use.

Top tips:

1. Keep it short,don't go after too much with one request. That opens up the old "cost too much" door and if the wording isn't specific enough you'll get inconsistent replies from different sources.

2. Supply a template and ask for it to be used. It may not always be possible but it allows you a stronger case with the ICO later (see later)..

3. Appeal if you aren't happy - In most cases these are considered by someone not involved in the initial request and I've seen about 1 in 10 be granted.

4. Do take it to the ICO if you aren't happy with the response or if even the appeal is refused. The ICO do force the release of information more often than people expect, but then they've usually asked the wrong question or for information that we don't fully hold and that's when they get garbage.

Ultimately it's usually people asking for too much or too many things in a single request which causes the problem.