AALL's Washington Blawg

Retiring the Washington Blawg

aallwash — Wed, 19 Oct 2016 19:02:07 +0000

As of October 2016, this blog is no longer being updated. For the latest policy and advocacy news from AALL, please visit us on AALLNET.

July Washington E-Bulletin

aallwash — Fri, 01 Jul 2016 14:55:20 +0000

The July issue of the Washington E-Bulletin is available now on AALLNET.

IN THIS ISSUE
Vol. 2016, Issue 07

A LOOK AHEAD

Approaching Recess
Advocacy Programs at Annual Meeting

ACT NOW

Tell Us: Reactions to Office of Law Revision Counsel Proposal to Eliminate Print Annual Supplements to U.S. Code

ROUNDUP AND REVIEW

AALL celebrates net neutrality victory
GPO changes regional discard policy implementation plans

AALL Celebrates Net Neutrality Decision

aallwash — Wed, 15 Jun 2016 18:42:38 +0000

Yesterday, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit ruled in favor of the Federal Communications Commission’s Open Internet Order, which reclassified broadband under Title II as a common carrier service to protect net neutrality. The decision upheld reclassification and rejected the First Amendment challenge by several Internet service providers (ISPs) and their trade associations.

AALL strongly supports the Open Internet Order, which regulates broadband Internet service under Title II of the Communications Act of 1934 and Section 706 of the Telecommunications Act of 1996. The Order lays out several key prohibitions on ISPs that protect law libraries, including banning ISPs from blocking or slowing down (“throttling”) web traffic or speeding it up in exchange for money (“paid prioritization”), and applies to both fixed and wireless carriers.

AALL celebrates the decision, which helps to ensure that law libraries can continue to provide equal access to the Internet and nondiscriminatory access to online legal content.

Congress Passes FOIA Reform in Time for FOIA’s 50th Anniversary

aallwash — Tue, 14 Jun 2016 13:13:51 +0000

Yesterday, the House passed the FOIA Improvement Act (S.337), sending the comprehensive Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) reform bill to the President’s desk. The bill will update FOIA by codifying the “presumption of openness” established in President Barack Obama’s Open Government Memorandum, subsequent Open Government Directive, and Attorney General Eric Holder’s FOIA memorandum; requiring that information be made available to the public in an electronic format; limiting, to a period of 25 years, the ability of agencies to keep internal deliberations confidential; creating a centralized online portal for FOIA requests; and increasing the effectiveness of the FOIA by strengthening the Office of Government Information Services. AALL and open government groups have advocated for these changes for nearly a decade. Passage of the bill comes just weeks before FOIA’s 50th anniversary on July 4.

AALL’s Government Relations Policy clearly expresses our view that a strong FOIA is necessary for a healthy democracy. We commend the many advocates and members of Congress who have worked tirelessly for reform, including House Oversight and Government Reform Committee Chairman Jason Chaffetz (R-Utah) and Ranking Member Elijah Cummings (D-Md.) and Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Charles Grassley (R-Iowa), Ranking Member Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), and Senator John Cornyn (R-Tex.). We urge President Obama to sign S. 337 without delay.

June Washington E-Bulletin

aallwash — Wed, 01 Jun 2016 18:55:58 +0000

The June issue of the Washington E-Bulletin is available now on AALLNET.

IN THIS ISSUE
Vol. 2016, Issue 06

A LOOK AHEAD

Privacy
Appropriations

ACT NOW

Don’t Miss Out! Register Now for the 2016 Legislative Advocacy Training

AALL IN THE STATES

Arizona Enacts UELMA
MichALL Advocates for UELMA
NOCALL Opposes Overbroad Copyright Bill
SANDALL Supports Urgent Funding Increase for County Law Libraries

ROUNDUP AND REVIEW

AALL submits comments to the Federal Communications Commission in support greater privacy protections for public law library internet users
Copyright Office holds Section 1201 roundtables
Open gov groups prepare for 50th anniversary of FOIA

May Washington E-Bulletin

aallwash — Tue, 03 May 2016 15:40:45 +0000

The May issue of the Washington E-Bulletin is available now on AALLNET.

IN THIS ISSUE
Vol. 2016, Issue 05

A LOOK AHEAD

Hayden Breezes through Nomination Hearing, Awaits Committee Vote

ACT NOW

Be Your Best Advocate: Register Now for AALL’s Advocacy Training in Chicago

ROUNDUP AND REVIEW

The House approved the Email Privacy Act (H.R. 699)
Learn about recent and coming changes to the Federal Depository Library Program
AALL thanks Mary Alice Baish for her many years of service
AALL reiterates strong support for the Uniform Electronic Legal Material Act

House Judiciary Committee Acts on ECPA

aallwash — Wed, 13 Apr 2016 17:08:14 +0000

Today, the House Judiciary Committee approved a version of the Email Privacy Act (H.R. 699) to bring the Electronic Communications Privacy Act into the 21st century.

The Email Privacy Act would require a warrant for law enforcement to obtain the content of emails, online documents, and other private electronic communications. The Manager’s Substitute Amendment, introduced by Chairman Bob Goodlatte (R-Va.), creates no special carve-outs for federal civil agencies, as had been the subject of some debate.

Support for ECPA reform was one of AALL’s top priorities during our recent Virtual Lobby Day. We commend the Judiciary Committee for unanimously approving the Email Privacy Act and urge the House to act quickly to pass the bill.

April Washington E-Bulletin

aallwash — Mon, 04 Apr 2016 18:01:30 +0000

The April issue of the Washington E-Bulletin is available now on AALLNET.

IN THIS ISSUE
Vol. 2016, Issue 04

A LOOK AHEAD

Congress Considers Librarian of Congress Nominee
Appropriations Process Inches Along

ACT NOW

AALL IN THE STATES

NOCALL Chapter News: Sunshine Week
California Chapters Support Online Archives Program

ROUNDUP AND REVIEW

AALL comments to the Copyright Office on IT modernization plan
Copyright Committee update on GSU case
Register for the upcoming Depository Library Council Virtual Meeting
GPO releases more bulk data

AALL Celebrates Senate Passage of FOIA Reform

aallwash — Tue, 15 Mar 2016 20:47:31 +0000

Today, the Senate passed a bipartisan bill, the FOIA Improvement Act of 2016 (S.337), to strengthen the Freedom of Information Act by codifying the presumption in favor of disclosure (often referred to as the presumption of openness) outlined in President Obama’s Memorandum on the Freedom of Information Act; harnessing technology to improve the FOIA process, including requiring the creation of a consolidated online request portal; ending secrecy for 25-year-old drafts and other internal deliberations not otherwise exempt from disclosure; and increasing the independence of the Office of Government Information Services. The House passed its own FOIA improvement bill, the FOIA Oversight and Implementation Act of 2015 (H.R. 653), in January 2016.

AALL commends Congress for recognizing the importance of a strong FOIA law. It is especially meaningful that the Senate took this step during Sunshine Week 2016 (March 13-19), a nationwide initiative to highlight the importance of open government, and just months before the 50th anniversary of the FOIA on July 4th, 2016. We encourage the House and Senate to join together to work out the differences and send the FOIA reform bill to the President’s desk.

February Washington E-Bulletin

aallwash — Tue, 02 Feb 2016 15:38:54 +0000

The February issue of the Washington E-Bulletin is available now on AALLNET.

IN THIS ISSUE
Vol. 2016, Issue 02

A LOOK AHEAD

Waiting for the FY 2017 Federal Budget
Copyright Modernization Discussions Continue

ACT NOW

AALL IN THE STATES

UELMA in Washington

ROUNDUP AND REVIEW

Letter to the FCC in support of a rulemaking on the privacy of broadband consumers
Letter in support of House FOIA bill