A federal judge says the Air Force has not been responsive in its handling of Freedom of Information Act requests. US District Judge Rosemary Collyer issued a
memorandum opinion on April 19, finding for the
National Security Archive, a Washington-based non-profit library of unclassified government information, which filed suit last year, claiming a “pattern” of FOIA violation that extends over numerous requests—some filed 18 years ago. Collyer notes that the Air Force admits failing to “complete processing” in a “timely manner” for 33 of the NSA’s 82 requests. She also acknowledges that the service argues “it is exercising due diligence now.” The judge says, though, that there is “reason for concern” because there is no one single person who oversees FOIA compliance and the responsibility to answer requests “is spread as wide as the Air Force is spread.” She would not order the Air Force to turn over classified documents without proper review, but she sided with the archive in its request to set a timetable.