US citing security to censor more public records

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http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/U/US_SUNSHINE_WEEK?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2013-03-11-13-35-07

Mar 11, 1:35 PM EDT
US citing security to censor more public records
By JACK GILLUM and TED BRIDIS

WASHINGTON (AP) -- The Obama administration answered more requests from the public to see government records under the Freedom of Information Act last year but more often than ever cited legal exceptions to censor or withhold the material, according to a new analysis by The Associated Press. It frequently cited the need to protect national security and internal deliberations.

The AP's analysis showed the government released all or portions of the information that citizens, journalists, businesses and others sought at about the same rate as the previous three years. It turned over all or parts of the records in about 65 percent of all requests. It fully rejected more than one-third of requests, a slight increase over 2011, including cases when it couldn't find records, a person refused to pay for copies or the request was determined to be improper.

The AP examined more than 5,600 data elements measuring the administration's performance on government transparency since Obama's election.

People submitted more than 590,000 requests for information in fiscal 2012 - an increase of less than 1 percent over the previous year. Including leftover requests from previous years, the government responded to more requests than ever in 2012 - more than 603,000 - a 5 percent increase for the second consecutive year.