“Have no doubt. This bill would shut down any semblance of a free flow of information in Washington. It is certain to create an icy chill, if not a freeze, among sources and potential sources other than those engaged in official, sanctioned leaking.”
— Pete Weitzel, coordinator, Coalition of Journalists for Open
Government
SENATE BILL 3774 (a) PROHIBITIONComplete text
Whoever, being an officer or employee of the United States, a former or retired officer or employee of the United States, any other person with authorized access to classified information, or any other person formerly with authorized access to classified information, knowingly and willfully discloses, or attempts to disclose, any classified information to a person (other than an officer or employee of the United States with authorized access to classified information) who is not authorized access to such classi- fied information, knowing that the person is not authorized access to such classified information, shall be fined under this title, imprisoned not more than 3 years, or both.
BILL SPONSORS
A continuously-updated list of Senators who have sponsored the bill can be found
here.
The Official Secrets Act bill was introduced to Congress on Aug. 2, 2006 by Sen. Kit Bond, R-MO and is sponsored by a 14 other Republican Senators. The language is identical in wording to legislation approved by the 2000 Congress and then pocket-vetoed by President Clinton after a strong lobbying effort by the media and others.
The bill criminalized the disclosure of classified information. According to the First Amendment Center, current law already criminalizes the most dangerous of leaks and Congress has rejected version of this law for more than 50 years.
The broad definition of “classified information” in the bill would silence important sources, including whistelblowers and elected officials, who would fear inadvertly releasing information.
The law would authorize grand jury subpoenas for journalists and search warrants for their records and notes, according to the First Amendment Center.
Contact your Senator
Every journalist should contact their Senator regarding the act. However, the bill is currently in the Committee of the Judiciary, so it's especially important to contact those leglislators. They are: Arlen Specter, Penn.; Orrin Hatch, Utah; Patrick Leahy, Vt.; Charles Grassley, Iowa; Edward Kennedy, Mass.; Jon Kyl, Ariz.; Joseph Biden, Jr., Del.; Mike DeWine, Ohio; Herbert Kohl, Wisc.; Jeff Sessions, Ala.; Dianne Feinstein, Calif.; Lindsey Graham, S.C. Russell D. Feingold, Wisc.; John Cornyn, Texas; Charles E. Schumer, N.Y.; Sam Brownback, Kan.; Richard J. Durbin, Ill.; Tom Coburn, Okla.
Write a column
Newspaper reporters and editors can communicate their readers how important this issue is to preserve role as government watch dogs. Write a column on issue encouraging readers to contact Senators.
FOI Committee This committee is the watchdog of press freedoms across the nation. It relies upon a network of volunteers in each state organized under Project Sunshine. These SPJ members are on the front lines for assaults to the First Amendment and when lawmakers attempt to restrict the public's access to documents and the government's business. The committee often is called upon to intervene in instances where the media is restricted.
Freedom of Information Committee Chair David Cuillier
Assistant Professor
Department of Journalism
University of Arizona
Marshall Building, Room 323
Tucson, AZ 85721-0158
Work: 520/626-9694
Fax: 520/621-7557 E-mail Bio (click to expand)
David Cuillier, a former newspaper reporter and editor, is an assistant professor in the Department of Journalism at the University of Arizona. He researches public attitudes toward freedom of information and is one of the SPJ newsroom trainers for acquiring government documents.
Joe Adams, vice chair
Editorial writer
The Florida Times-Union
One Riverside Avenue
Jacksonville, FL 32202
Work: 904-359-4534
Fax: 904-359-4390 E-mail Bio (click to expand)
Joe Adams is an editorial writer at The Florida Times-Union and author of The Florida Public Records Handbook published by the First Amendment Foundation in Tallahassee.
Eight universities in Florida have used the book as a textbook, the only one of its kind in the nation, and more than 1,000 journalists have attended his workshops on how to use public records for success. He is the recipient of the national 2007 Eugene S. Pulliam First Amendment Award sponsored by the Sigma Delta Chi Foundation and has earned two national Sunshine Awards from the Society of Professional Journalists. In December 2000, Presstime magazine profiled him as one of the top 20 under 40 newspaper industry professionals to watch in the future.
As an editorial writer, Adams has received awards from the Florida Press Club, Florida Society of Newspaper Editors and the Society of Professional Journalists. His year of public records research of the Jacksonville City Council uncovered widespread open meetings abuses. The resulting work by Adams and the newsroom inspired a grand jury probe and prompted the council in 2007 to create the state's first known local ordinance to ensure better compliance with Florida's Sunshine Law. He is originator of the www.iDigAnswers.com Web site about Florida FOI news and public records use.
Adams is founder and past coordinator of Times-Union University, the Jacksonville newspaper's newsroom training program, and is also former director of the National Newspaper Diversity Job Bank on the Internet. He also taught information gathering for two years as an adjunct professor at the University of North Florida.
Society of Professional Journalists
Eugene S. Pulliam National Journalism Center, 3909 N. Meridian St., Indianapolis, IN 46208
317/927-8000 | Fax: 317/920-4789 | Contact SPJ Headquarters | Employment Opportunities
David Cuillier, a former newspaper reporter and editor, is an assistant professor in the Department of Journalism at the University of Arizona. He researches public attitudes toward freedom of information and is one of the SPJ newsroom trainers for acquiring government documents.
Joe Adams is an editorial writer at The Florida Times-Union and author of The Florida Public Records Handbook published by the First Amendment Foundation in Tallahassee.