Originally posted by the Voice of America.
Voice of America content is produced by the Voice of America,
a United States federal government-sponsored entity, and is in
the public domain.


US Supreme Court Limits Access to Commercial Data Shared With Federal
Agencies

Carolyn Komatsoulis

   WASHINGTON - In a ruling that critics say could hinder access to public
   records, the U.S. Supreme Court has made it easierforthe government
   andbusinesses to keep commercial information that is shared with
   federal agencies confidential.

   The 6-3 decision, released Monday, came in a case that pitteda South
   Dakota newspaper, the Argus Leader, against the food marketing
   industry. The paper sought records about grocery store transactions in
   the U.S. Department of Agriculture's $67 billion-a-year food-stamp
   program for Americans with low- or no income.

   The record request came under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), a
   law that allows public access to federal documents and other records,
   although with certain exemptions.

   One such exception, meant to protect trade secrets, was at the center
   of the case.

   Overturning a 45-year precedent, the majority ruled that normally
   private commercial or financial information shared with the government
   on assurance of privacy is "confidential" and must be protected.
   Previously, such information was subject to release unless disclosing
   it would cause "substantial competitive harm"to the submitting company.

   The FOIA law was passed in 1966 and strengthened after the Watergate
   scandal led to the resignation of President Richard Nixon. The law has
   become a vital tool for journalists and others working to shine a light
   on the inner workings of government.

   Reaction to the court's ruling has been mixed.

   Adam A. Marshall of the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press
   said the decision is bad for government transparency. He said the
   effect may be limited, however, because the newspaper's request was
   made before Congress amended the law in 2016 to make it harder for
   agencies to withhold information, even under the law's exemptions.

   "The state of FOIA is not great to begin with, and this certainly
   doesn't help," Marshall said. "I don't think anyone would really say
   that FOIA is working well in terms of informing the public."

   The Argus Leader in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, is owned by Gannett Co.,
   whose flagship paper is the national daily USA Today.

   "The court's decision effectively gives businesses relying on taxpayer
   dollars the ability to decide for themselves what data the public will
   see about how that money is spent," USA Today publisher Maribel Perez
   Wadsworth said in the paper's report on the ruling.

.