CURRENT RESEARCH

Limitations on Public Access to State Critical Infrastructure Information

Maeve Dion. Legal Research Associate. Email.
December 2007.

SUMMARY

The Center for Terrorism Law at St. Mary’s University School of Law (San Antonio, Texas) operated a project (under grant from Congress) to study the development of non-release / non-access provisions in state open government laws (e.g., freedom of information laws, open meeting laws, etc.), with a special focus on laws passed since the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. From April - December 2007, the CIP Program participated in this project by analyzing these laws' effects on critical infrastructure protection. The project resulted in several whitepapers, which were presented at a major national conference held in Washington, D.C. in November 2007.

Go the the project's website at the Center for Terrorism Law for conference publications. The publication containing the collected laws is also available here.

PRESS INTEREST -- Read the GMU School of Law's Press Release.

Listen to the March 20, 2007, story by the Washington area's top news radio station, WTOP FM:

• LEAD #1: It's been federal, state, and local law for years...the public has a right to see most public documents. But since 9-11 that has changed. How much??? Listen.
• LEAD #2: Have you tried to get a public document lately? Since 9-11, many documents that used to be readily available have now been veiled in secrecy. Is that a good thing?? Listen.