A U.S. district court judge ruled that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac do not have to release their records of political contributions under the Freedom of Information Act. -db
Politico
September 30, 2010
By Josh Gerstein
Records about political contributions made by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac do not have to be made public under the Freedom of Information Act, a federal judge ruled Thursday.
In an 11-page decision, U.S. District Court Judge Paul Friedman ruled that even though the Federal Housing Finance Agency owns the records of the former mortgage finance firms, the political donation files are not subject to FOIA because they have not been used by government officials in their work related to the companies.
Friedman acted on a suit the conservative legal group Judicial Watch brought after its request for Fannie and Freddie donation records was denied.
Friedman’s ruling holds out the possibility that other Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac records could be subject to FOIA, if they relate to issues federal overseers have actually tackled since bailing out the firms.
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