[Congressional Record: September 24, 2010 (Senate)] [Page S7440] FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT AMENDMENTS Mr. LEAHY. Mr. President, I commend the House of Representatives for promptly enacting the Freedom of Information Act amendments to the Securities and Exchange Act, Investment Company Act, and Investment Advisers Act of 2010, S. 3717. This bipartisan bill will ensure that the Freedom of Information Act, FOIA, remains an effective tool to provide public access to information about the stability of our financial markets. This bill will also ensure that the important goals of the historic Wall Street reform law--enhancing transparency, accountability, and confidence in our financial system--will become a reality for all Americans. The bill eliminates several broad FOIA exemptions for Security and Exchange Commission, SEC, records that were recently enacted as part of Public Law 111-203. The bill also helps to ensure that the SEC has access to the information that the Commission needs to carry out its new enforcement activities under the new reforms. I thank Representative Edolphus Towns, the distinguished chairman of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, and Representative Barney Frank, the distinguished chairman of the House Committee on Financial Services, for their support of this bill and for working with me to quickly enact this legislation. I also thank Senators Grassley, Cornyn, and Kaufman for cosponsoring this important open government bill. In addition, I commend the many open government organizations, including OpenTheGovernment.org, the Project on Government Oversight, the American Library Association, and the Sunlight Foundation for their support of this bill. The Freedom of Information Act has long recognized the need to balance the government's legitimate interest in protecting confidential business records, trade secrets, and other sensitive information from public disclosure, and preserving the public's right to know. To accomplish this, care must always be taken to ensure that exemptions to FOIA's disclosure requirements are narrowly and properly applied. The bill accomplishes this important goal. I commend the Congress for working in a bipartisan and expeditious manner to eliminate these overly broad FOIA exemptions. I urge the President to promptly sign this good government bill into law. ____________________