Public Policy Connections

U.S. National Declassification Center Issues First Report

The U.S. National Archives National Declassification Center (NDC) has issued its first status report, covering the reporting period of January 1- June 30, 2010. During this time, nearly 8 million pages of material were processed and made available to the public.

The creation of the NDC is specified in the Executive Order on Classified National Security Information signed by President Obama on December 29, 2009. The NDC is charged with streamlining declassification processes, facilitating quality assurance measures, and implementing standard training for declassification reviewers.  NDC status reports will be issued biannually in July and January, and will cover the preceding six-months, focusing on events and activities, interagency cooperation, and a NDC’s progress on the records processing backlog.

Read Press Release  

U.S. National Archives Unveils New Federal Register 2.0 Web Site

To mark the 75th anniversary of the Federal Register Act on July 26, 2010, the National Archives Office of the Federal Register (OFR) and the Government Printing Office (GPO) will launch FR 2.0 on FederalRegister.gov.

The FR 2.0 web site will be similar to a daily web newspaper and will display individual news sections for Money, Environment, World, Science & Technology, Business & Industry, and Health & Public Welfare.  The site takes advantage of social media and integrates  with Regulations.gov and the Unified Agenda to allow users to submit comments directly into the official e-Rulemaking docket, and view the history of rulemaking activity through a regulatory timeline.

FR 2.0 will be posted as an unofficial prototype on July 26, 2010, on FederalRegister.gov to gather public feedback, and may be approved as an official edition in 2011.

Organizations Urge Supreme Court to Preserve First Sale Doctrine for Imports

SLA joined several other organizations in filing an amicus (friend of the court) brief with the Supreme Court asking it to reverse a decision that Costco was infringing upon copyright by selling genuine Omega watches without the watchmaker’s permission.

Omega sued Costco for selling genuine Omega watches at a discount, basing their claim on the idea that a small, copyrighted design stamped on the back of the watch was being infringed upon when Costco sold the watches. Ordinarily, copyright law’s first sale doctrine holds that the owner of a copy of a work can distribute it as he or she likes. However, Omega claimed that this limitation on copyright did not apply because the watches were not made in the United States.

The brief, filed 8 July 2010, was joined by the Electronic Frontier Foundation, the American Free Trade Association, the American Association of Law Libraries, the Medical Library Association, and the Special Libraries Association.

Read News Story: Can you sell your imported gadgets? Court guts "First Sale"

Canada Supreme Court Finds Limited Right to Government Information

The Supreme Court of Canada on 17 June 2010 ruled 7-0 that Canadians have a limited right to government information unless the information is necessary to the effective exercise of the freedom of expression and is not privileged. The court held that under the Charter of Rights and Freedoms guaranteeing freedom of expression a claimant must show that denial of access to withheld information "effectively precludes meaningful public discussion on matters of public interest."

Read Story in JURIST: Canada Supreme Court finds limited right to government information information