The House and Senate adopted a new Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) exemption without the overly broad language originally proposed by the Senate, which would have provided a blanket prohibition on disseminating any commercial satellite imagery or derived products. The exemption was part of the 2005 Defense Authorization Act passed Oct. 9. Clarifications were made in the language during the House-Senate conference on the bill after public interest and access organizations pointed out concerns with the new exemption. The original Senate language properly stated that commercial data is prohibited from sale under the Land Remote Sensing Policy Act of 1992. However, it would have prohibited the release of "any imagery and other product that is derived from such data." That broad statement could have cover information usually provided to the public regarding disasters, international incidents, wars, and other news items. Not only would the information have been exempt from disclosure, it would have been prohibited from release even if government officials believed it should be released. The new adopted language clarifies that only information that is protected "for reasons of national security" and is under license pursuant to the Land Remote Sensing Policy Act qualifies for exemption. This properly limits the exemption to data and products that are currently protected under law. The new language also clarifies that any of the exempted information cannot be withheld from Congress. Related OMB Watch article: "Senate Approves FOIA Exemption for Satellite Images"