More can be done to ensure access to info

Journalists gather information and report on their findings. When a couple of South Dakota reporters were interested in the $65 billion-a-year federal food stamps program, they asked the federal government for information on the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. They only got a fraction of what they wanted.

Now, eight years later, the Argus Leader newspaper of Sioux Falls is making news in addition to reporting it. Its battle for information has reached the U.S. Supreme Court.

In an article on its own case, Argus Leader News Director Cory Myers, who directs a staff of 18, said getting the information is about “knowing how our government is operating” and “knowing what government is doing with our tax money.”

Legal pundits are speculating about the nation’s highest court and it’s someday decision: It could be narrow, or it could significantly impact interpretation of the law that grants the public access to government records: the Freedom of Information Act.

On behalf of citizens everywhere, we hope for the latter. And more.

Newspapers and people everywhere attempt to use the FOIA to gain access to public records but find themselves waiting, often months and years, for the information to which they are entitled.

And that’s just one problem with FOIA.

In the Argus Leader case, there is an issue as to the scope of the information the newspaper is entitled to receive.

The case was argued on April 22, and questions from the justices hinted that the ruling on the scope of the information may go against the paper, which is owned by Gannett.

Created in 1967, the FOIA allows the public access to records from federal agencies.

There are exemptions that relate to national security, law enforcement, and personal privacy.

And while agencies must acknowledge within 20 days receipt of a request, actually receiving the information can take years

It is understandable that a boilerplate deadline for production of federal documents may not be reasonable.

But more can be done to facilitate access to federal information.

Many government agencies do not have the staff in place to respond to public records requests.

And while President Barack Obama signed the FOIA Improvement Act of 2016, promising there would be greater levels of transparency, no new resources were committed for implementing improvements.

This is not a matter to be dismissed lightly.

Withholding information from the public — whether intentionally or by default — is a disenfranchisement of the public. Information is power. As Thomas Jefferson is believed to have opined: An informed citizenry is the bulwark of a democracy.