s 7 47728 1196917200 false 1196917200 2427 677 110 300065

12/6/2007--Introduced.<br/>Openness Promotes Effectiveness in our National Government Act of 2007 or the OPEN Government Act of 2007 - Amends Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) provisions to define &quot;representative of the news media&quot; and &quot;news,&quot; specify examples of news-media entities, and provide that a freelance journalist shall be regarded as working for a news-media entity if the journalist can demonstrate a solid basis for expecting publication through that entity.<br/>Provides that, for purposes of recovery of attorney fees and other litigation costs under FOIA, a complainant has substantially prevailed if the complainant has obtained relief through either: (1) a judicial order or an enforceable written agreement or consent decree; or (2) a voluntary or unilateral change in position by the agency, provided that the complainant's claim is not insubstantial. Requires attorney fees to be paid only from appropriations of an agency against which a claim or judgment has been rendered.<br/>Directs the Attorney General to notify the Special Counsel of and report on civil actions taken for arbitrary and capricious rejections of requests for agency records.<br/>Sets forth provisions concerning: (1) the tolling of the time limit within which agencies determine whether to comply with a request for records; and (2) refunding search fees if an agency fails to comply with time limits. Requires each agency to make available its FOIA Public Liaison to assist in resolving requester disputes.<br/>Requires agencies to establish: (1) a system to assign an individual tracking number for each FOIA request that will take longer than ten days to process; and (2) a telephone line or Internet service to provide information on the status of requests.<br/>Revises certain reporting requirements relating to FOIA requests and agency responses. Establishes the Office of Government Information Services within the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) to: (1) review agency compliance with FOIA policies; (2) recommend policy changes; and (3) offer mediation services between FOIA requesters and administrative agencies as a non-exclusive alternative to litigation. Requires each agency to designate a Chief FOIA Officer and at least one FOIA Public Liaison.<br/>Requires the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) to report on personnel policies related to FOIA.<br/>

1196917200 2007-12-06 Fri Nov 07 17:21:07 -0600 2008 introduced 47728 'act':3 '2007':5 'open':1 'govern':2 56798 false short introduced 47728 'act':8 '2007':10 'open':1 'effect':3 'govern':7 'nation':6 'promot':2 56799 false short introduced 47728 '5':17 '552':14 'act':29 'bill':2 'code':20 'open':8 'titl':16 'unit':18 'refer':22 'state':19 'access':5 'common':21 'govern':10 'inform':28 'promot':4 'purpos':33 'account':6 'freedom':26 'section':13 'strengthen':12 55287 false official introduced 47728 1196917200 Thu Dec 06 00:00:00 -0600 2007 139040 L000174 1940-03-31 12917 433 Russell Senate Office Building http://leahy.senate.gov/contact.cfm 202-224-3479 Patrick 'd':4 'vt':5 'sen':1 'leahi':3,7,9 'patrick':2,6,8 M 300065 Leahy Patrick_Leahy J. Sen. Patrick Leahy [D, VT] 6689 N00009918 10273 Democrat 202-224-4242 Roman Catholic VT Patrick Leahy 4.11764705882353 http://leahy.senate.gov/ SenatorPatrickLeahy C001056 1952-02-02 14202 517 Hart Senate Office Building http://cornyn.senate.gov/public/index.cfm?FuseAction=Contact.ContactForm 202-228-2856 John 'r':4 'tx':5 'sen':1 'john':2,6,8 'cornyn':3,7,9 M 300027 Cornyn John_Cornyn Sen. John Cornyn [R, TX] 6606 N00024852 33180 Republican 202-224-2934 Church of Christ TX John Cornyn 4.2093023255814 http://cornyn.senate.gov/public/ senjohncornyn introduced 47728 1196917200 Thu Dec 06 00:00:00 -0600 2007 139040 action 47728 1196917200 Thu Dec 06 00:00:00 -0600 2007 139041 Sponsor introductory remarks on measure. (CR S14853-14854) action 47728 1196917200 Thu Dec 06 00:00:00 -0600 2007 139042 Read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary.