Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington v. FEC (04-1672)

On October 27, 2005, the US District Court for the District of Columbia granted the parties’ joint motion to dismiss this case, which challenged the Commission’s refusal to provide documents relating to an ongoing enforcement matter.

Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW) had filed a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request with the FEC in 2004 seeking access to documents concerning the agency’s ongoing investigation of Westar Energy, Inc.. The Commission denied the request, citing the confidentiality provisions of 2 U.S.C. 437g(a)(12(A). CREW challenged that decision in court, but in May 2005 the district court upheld the agency’s response. (See the July 2005 Record, page 3.) CREW immediately asked the court to reconsider.

On August 18, 2005, the FEC closed its enforcement case against Westar and publicly released the documents CREW had sought, thereby rendering the request for reconsideration moot.

US District Court for the District of Columbia, 04-1672 (RMU).