FOIA b(3) Exemptions

Dept. of Energy FOIA Exemptions

9.9
Use Rate 		65.0
Total claims 		655
Denials

Dept. of Energy Annual Reports: '08 |
The Dept. of Energy used b(3) exemptions to withhold information from FOIA requesters 655 times in 2008-2009.

Category

  • All
  • Armed Forces
  • Crimes and Criminal Procedure
  • Public Contracts
  • The Public Health and Welfare
Statute Description Claims
41 USC 253b(m) Proposals submitted by unsuccessful contract bidders 30.0
42 USC 2011 et seq. Information classified as Restricted Data, Formerly Restricted Data, or Unclassified Controlled Nuclear Information 23.0
10 USC 2371(i) Research Projects: Transactions Other Than Contracts and Grants 10.0
18 USC 1905 Cost information 1.0
10 USC 130 Unclassified Technical Data with Military or Space Application 1.0

About This Project

This project uses data compiled by the Sunshine in Government initiative, a coalition of journalism and transparency groups. SGI compiled data from federal agency annual FOIA reports to track how often b(3) exemptions were used. SGI also standardized the exemptions since some agencies used slightly different citations of the same laws. In some cases, agencies listed general laws without specifying a section under which information was withheld. This project does not include information from agencies that use no b(3) exemptions in 2008 or 2009. ProPublica compiled information about FOIA denials.

FOIA Resources