Prepared Opening Statement by Senator Chuck Grassley of Iowa
Chairman, Senate Judiciary Committee
Hearing titled “The Freedom of Information Act: Perspectives from Public Requesters”
Tuesday, April 8, 2025
Good morning.
We’re here today to discuss an important issue – the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA).
This statute is a critical tool Americans use to keep our government transparent and accountable.
FOIA was recommended for passage by the Senate Judiciary Committee on October 4, 1965, and it became law in 1966.
This watershed legislation signaled a sea change. No longer would government information be assumed to be out of reach for the average American.
Instead, the assumption became that Americans would have access to their government and its workings.
The language from the Judiciary Committee report from October 1965 reads, “The committee feels that this bill, as amended, would establish a much-needed policy of disclosure, while balancing the necessary interest of confidentiality. A government by secrecy benefits no one. It injures the people it seeks to serve; it injures its own integrity and operation. It breeds mistrust, dampens the fervor of its citizens, and mocks their loyalty.”
Sixty years later, these words still ring true. And, 60 years later, this Committee continues to be the champion and caretaker of this law. That’s why we’re here today.
The federal government has often been resistant to required disclosure.
FOIA has been attacked, circumvented, ignored, bypassed, and skirted. FOIA has also been used as a shield against congressional oversight. Specifically, my oversight.
I can’t tell you how many times I’ve requested records from the executive branch, and in return I get records with FOIA redactions.
Congress didn’t create FOIA for it to be used against the people it was intended to serve. It wasn’t created to allow the federal government to hide information from Congress or the American people.
We’ve accordingly come back again and again to end the workarounds and loopholes bureaucrats use to avoid disclosure.
This Committee also keeps the law up-to-date in our rapidly changing world.
When FOIA was signed into law in 1966, there was no Internet, no electronic records, not even fax machines.
In our digital era, the government must adapt to serve its citizens – especially when it comes to transparency. This is especially important given the volume of requests we’re starting to see.
Let’s consider where we are today: FOIA requests reached a record high in FY 2024, with more than 1.5 million requests filed. This is a 25 percent increase from the previous fiscal year.
The number of requests processed by agencies also reached a record high at just under 1.5 million. This represents a 34 percent increase over the previous year.
FOIA is therefore, clearly a tool the American people value and use.
Problems remain, though. Backlogs continue to be a problem, for example. The time it takes for agencies to fulfill requests varies greatly – from less than a day in some cases, to over seven years in others.
Access continues to be a problem as well. Too often the only remedy for a FOIA denial is for the requester to file a lawsuit. But this option is expensive for individuals and small nonprofits.
The quality of records received also continues to be a problem. A document chock full of black-out lines isn’t meaningful disclosure, and it happens too often.
This administration must turn a new leaf and be more transparent than the last. And so far, I commend their efforts to that end.
Many say that sunshine is the best disinfectant.
FOIA is a vital law that shines bright sunlight on those who govern our nation and steward its resources. That’s why we continue to amend and improve it. That’s why it’s worth our time and oversight today.
With that, I’ll open things up to Ranking Member Durbin to give his opening remarks. Then we can introduce the witnesses.
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