EDITORIAL: BLM blockade

The U.S. Bureau of Land Management finally released some records related to last year’s Bundy ranch confrontation in Bunkerville. Considering the limited number and scope of documents provided to Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility in response to a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit, one of two scenarios is true: Either the BLM is so incompetent that it put no thought into the overdone cattle roundup and never analyzed the guns-drawn showdown that resulted, or it’s so arrogant and unaccountable that its leaders believe they can ignore the law.

As reported by the Review-Journal’s Keith Rogers, the agency provided PEER with a few dozen heavily redacted records that provided no new information about the dispute that mobilized militias and national media and made Southern Nevada the epicenter of federal land use disputes. “We don’t know why it took a year to find 44 pages,” PEER Executive Director Jeff Ruch said Wednesday.

The Review-Journal has filed several FOIA requests with the BLM as well, to find out how much money was wasted on the roundup — rooted in BLM grazing restrictions and the Bundy family’s refusal to pay grazing fees — and whether the BLM was adequately prepared to face armed resistance, among other questions that demand answers. To date, the BLM has not responded to the requests.

When the agency isn’t stalling, it’s giving the press and the public the middle-finger salute. The BLM, like so many other federal agencies, has no interest in complying with the letter or spirit of FOIA. And that approach only increases hostility toward its agents and the government. Inaccessibility and unresponsiveness feed distrust and suspicion. Communication and transparency, on the other hand, encourage debate and understanding.

Last year, Congress failed to pass FOIA reforms despite bipartisan support. A new bill has been introduced by Sens. Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., and John Cornyn, R-Texas, codifying a “presumption of openness,” simplifying the FOIA request process and strengthening the Office of Government Information Services — the FOIA ombudsman — to ensure FOIA compliance. It would be a good start toward improving transparency — something the BLM desperately needs.