Kerry Calls for ‘Expedited Review’ of State Department’s Record Keeping
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State Dept photo(WASHINGTON) — Secretary of State John Kerry this week sent a letter to State Department Inspector General Steve Linick calling for the department to review its records preservation policies.
“It is critical for the State Department to preserve a full and complete record of American foreign policy,” Kerry writes, noting that “it is also important for the American public to have access to that record.” While he praises the strides made by the department in terms of both preservation and transparency, Kerry says that more still must be done.
“We must adapt our systems and policies to keep pace with changes in technology and the way our personnel work,” Kerry writes. He also highlights the “sizable Freedom of Information Act burden” that the department receives each year — as many as 18,000 requests.
Kerry admits that “putting the principles of preservation and transparency into practice is an evolving challenge, often hampered by resource constraints,” but that his department must increase its efforts to do so.
Kerry brings up a number of key questions that he hopes would be central to a potential review, including the ways the department can improve its tools and methods for complying with FOIA requests, the challenges posed by the department’s international presence.
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