A federal judge on Monday chastised the Environmental Protection Agency for its “mishandling” of Freedom of Information Act requests.
In a bluntly worded opinion, U.S. District Judge Royce Lamberth declared that the EPA “either intentionally sought to evade” FOIA requests filed by the conservative Landmark Legal Foundation, or “demonstrated apathy and carelessness” toward the requests.
“Either scenario reflects poorly on the EPA and surely serves to diminish the public’s trust in the agency,” Lamberth wrote.
Technically, Lamberth ruled against the Landmark Legal Foundation, which sought sanctions against the agency. Rhetorically, though, the tart-tongued Lamberth emphasized his “discontent with EPA’s continued disregard for its FOIA obligations.”
Landmark had filed a wide-ranging FOIA request, seeking documents covering communications with groups and individuals concerning potential EPA regulations. Hassles ensued, the details of which are best read in the decision itself.
“While the existing record in this case does not support a holding that the EPA acted in bad faith, it is obvious to this court that EPA has, once again, fumbled its way through its unambiguous FOIA obligations,” Lamberth wrote.
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