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22 Food Drug Cosm. L.J. 563 (1967)
FDA's Obligations under the 1966 Public Information Act

handle is hein.journals/foodlj22 and id is 589 raw text is: FDA's Obligations Under the 1966 Public Information Act By JOSEPH M. MAMANA The Following Article Is Reprinted from the FDA Papers (September 1967, p. 16). Mr. Mamana Is With the Office of Policy Management. Knowledge will forever govern ignorance and a people who mean to be their own governors must arm themselves with the power knowledge gives. A popular govern- ment without popular information or the means of acquiring it, is but a prologue to a farce or a tragedy or perhaps both. James Madison T HE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT, PUBLIC LAW 89-487, was signed by President Johnson on July 4, 1966, and be- came effective July 4, 1967. It amended Section 3 of the Administra- tive Procedure Act and is known as the Public Information Act of 1966. Under this legislation, executive agencies are required to adopt new guidelines for publication and disclosure of information under their dominion and control. Public Law 89-487 has precipitated in the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) a critical and searching examination of its past disclosure policies and practices. The report of the Senate Committee on the Judiciary found the following deficiencies in the Administrative Procedure Act before amendment: Section 3 of the Administrative Procedure Act, that section which this bill would amend, is full of loopholes which allow agencies to deny legitimate infor- mation to the public. Innumerable times it appears that information is withheld only to cover up embarrassing mistakes or irregularities and the withholding justified by such phrases in Section 3 of the Administrative Procedure Act as requiring secrecy in the public interest, or required for good cause to be held confidential. The Senate report goes on to state that it is the purpose of this amendment to establish a general policy of full agency disclosure to be tempered by exemptions stated in clearly delineated statutory FDA'S OBLIGATIONS UNDER THE PUBLIC INFORMATION ACT PAGE 563

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