Freedom of Information Day is a day set aside to promote the public’s right to know and access information, particularly from government sources. This day is set aside to remember the importance of transparency and openness in government. It is also observed on the birthday of former founding father and champion of open government, and President James Madison.  

From Leigh v Salazar, Feb 14, 2012,  Ninth Circuit Judge Milan Smith wrote: “Open government has been a hallmark of our democracy since our nation’s founding. As James Madison wrote in 1822, ‘a popular Government, without popular information, or the means of acquiring it, is but a Prologue to a Farce or a Tragedy; or, perhaps both.’ ” (On February 14, 2012, after our Founder spent years in court, wild horse advocates were finally recognized as having a right to view and access information associated with wild horse and burro roundups. This case has been used as the “gold standard” in court rulings to protect numerous interests since that day and was key in the court fight to stop BLM spaying experiments on mares)

The Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), enacted in March of 1966, grants the public the right to request access to records held by federal agencies, with some exceptions like National Security, ensuring transparency and accountability in government. FOIA is often explained as a means for citizens to know “what the Government is up to.”

One of the most well-known Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) investigations in the world of wild horses, was done by Dave Philipps for ProPublica while working with our Founder. The investigation uncovered over 1700 wild horses being sold to one kill-buyer that shipped them to slaughter. This investigation has been included in multiple White Papers and even in a Government Accounting Office (GAO) report.  (More HERE)

Our team uses FOIA in deep dive investigative work. FOIA has helped us determine the real death rates from capture (average 12% and rise as high as 22%) as the number 1 cause of death for wild horses and burros in the U.S. Those that survive capture and the fragile months post-capture, are then subject to the Sale and Adoption programs that continue to place them in danger of slaughter.

Record keeping by BLM, the agency that claims to base everything on “data,” is abysmal. From on-range basic monitoring to simply logging captured animals into the system timely, BLM actions are shoddy, at best. Inconsistency is often the only consistent measure of the Wild HOrse and Burro Program.

You can find a number of our FOIA investigations in a fast search of our website HERE. 

WHE continues our battle to gain information on the program and access to our wild ones during and after capture. In the last 15 years, every holding facility that has been approved by BLM is “off-limits to public view.” We have filed a brief with the Ninth Circuit outlining welfare concerns and how being out of sight of public eyes compounds problems. Our recent court win at Blue Wing, will help gain access to capture and captivity of wild burros. WHE has launched a new lawsuit to force disclosure of the Comprehensive Animal Welfare Program (CAWP) where we are litigating issues surrounding how the public was shut out of the creation of a critical welfare policy.

Our team is continuing the battle to find out how things like AML, forage allocations and acreage (the 3 broken pillars of the BLM program) were set. WHE filed FOIAs back in 2013 and were told there were no responsive documents and documents were never archived or digitized and it would “take time.” Now we are litigating to gain access to that information through Herd Management Area Planning (HMAP) and fair and balanced data-based management practices (and that fight is continuing in the courtroom).

On this day, remember information brings the ability to, not only expose a wrong, but to turn it right. 

We must continue to work hard to gain information and then turn that information into actions that create long overdue reform.

Today, both access to information and participation in public process is threatened. There are moved to gut the NEPA (analysis and public process) underway. One such action is available for public comment through March 27.

Our team is in the field and working diligently on litigation … right now.

Onward.

We need your support to keep our critical work alive. We must keep active litigation running to conclusion and launch new cases as needed to keep a strong line of defense. 

All of our work is only possible with your support. We thank you for keeping the critical work we do at WHE running for our wild ones.