Open government

American taxpayers can expect giant lumps of coal in their stockings this holiday season as congressional Democrats and the White House haggle over how much to increase the nation’s trillion-dollar budget at the expense of those who pay the bills.

But both sides can help cushion the blow to taxpayers if they get together on a measure designed to strengthen open government.

On Tuesday, the House approved an expansion of the Freedom of Information Act, which includes penalties for federal agencies that don’t comply. The bill had been delayed over concerns involving national security and how agencies would pay for court fights stemming from the law. (That’s easy: Just comply with the law rather than call the lawyers.)

The bill ensures that the default setting is openness — documents must be made available unless there is a compelling case that disclosure could do harm. Previously, many agencies took the opposite approach.

It also establishes a timeline for agencies to follow when responding to FOIA requests.

“After years of growing government secrecy, today’s vote reaffirms the public’s fundamental right to know,” Rick Blum of the Sunshine in Government Initiative, which represents 10 media organizations, told The Associated Press. “This bill makes common-sense changes to help the public know what government is up to.”

The bill now goes to the president, who has been noncommittal — although a spokesman said the version that passed Tuesday was an “improvement” over previous versions.

We’re certain Mr. Bush understands that secrecy is anathema to the functioning of a healthy republic. The bill already contains plenty of exceptions — probably too many — for documents that truly need to be classified. He shouldn’t waste any time putting his John Hancock on this important reform.