Please note!

This fact brief was originally published as an experiment to test the concepts behind fact briefs.

Readers should be aware that while there is still a lot of useful information in fact briefs like this one, not all of them reflect Gigafact's current methods and standards for fact briefs. If you come across any that you feel are out of date, don't hesitate to contact us at support@gigafact.org.

FACT BRIEF

Are calendars of federal government officials matters of public record?

Sunday, September 13, 2020

By Jacqueline Agustin

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YES

The appointment calendars of many executive-branch officials are routinely made public, reflecting the breadth of the Freedom of Information Act's definition of official agency records. Many agencies post officials' calendars online. When they don't, under the act, members of the public may request them. Nine categories of information are exempt from disclosure requirements, including information related to matters of national security, law enforcement, financial institutions or personal privacy.

Legal challenges to claimed exemptions have been frequent since the law's enactment. For instance, a 2006 suit by a consumer group against the Agriculture Department over rules about listeria contamination revolved around access to officials' calendars to establish if they met with industry officials lobbying against the rules. (The court granted access to five of the six requested calendars.)

This fact brief is responsive to conversations such as this one.

Sources

FOIA.gov: Frequently asked questions

FDA: Publicly posted appointment calendars

Department of the Interior: Secretarial calendars

Justia: Consumer Federation of America v USDA

ABA Journal: 50th anniversary of the Freedom of Information Act

ABOUT THE CONTRIBUTOR

Gigafact

Between 2020 and 2022, under close editorial supervision, Gigafact contracted a group of freelance writers and editors to test the concepts for fact briefs and provide inputs to our software development process. We call this effort Gigafact Foundry. Over the course of these two years, Gigafact Foundry writers published over 1500 fact briefs in response to claims they found online. Their important work forms the basis of Gigafact formats and editorial guidelines, and is available to the public on Gigafact.org. Readers should be aware that while there is still a lot of relevant information to be found, not all fact briefs produced by Gigafact Foundry reflect Gigafact's current methods and standards for fact briefs. If you come across any that you feel are out of date and need to be looked at with fresh eyes, don't hesitate to contact us at support@gigafact.org.

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About fact briefs published on Gigafact

Fact briefs are short, credibly sourced summaries that offer “yes/no” answers in response to claims found online. They rely on publicly available, often primary source data and documents. Fact briefs are created by contributors to Gigafact —a nonprofit project looking to expand participation in fact-checking and protect the democratic process. See all fact briefs here.