A federal appeals court judge dismissed a lawsuit May 10, which sought to uncover secret documents from Vice President Cheney's energy task force. The judge ruled the task force was not subject to the disclosure requirements of the Federal Advisory Committee Act (FACA). The plaintiffs, Sierra Club and Judicial Watch, alleged that energy industry executives participated in the task force that led to the development of the administration's energy policies. Under FACA, any advisory body consisting of individuals outside the government must follow specific guidelines: the committee must issue a charter for approval, include diverse and representative members, and hold open meetings that the public is notified about in advance. The Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit unanimously found that the plaintiffs did not provide sufficient evidence that industry executives were members of the task force. The judge ruled that FACA does not apply to a committee of governmental officials even if nongovernmental individuals participate in the meetings, so long as these outside parties are not allowed to vote. Therefore, the court argued that any documents about the task force were not required to be publicly disclosed. In other words, so long as the industry executives did not vote on the committee, they can participate without being required to inform the public. The administration has long argued that industry had no formal role in the task force, and that releasing any documents about it would hamper the executive branch's ability to acquire information and advice. The court did not allow plaintiffs to verify through discovery whether people outside the executive branch had voting authority. Instead the court relied solely on statements from the administration. Many open-government advocates believe the court's actions -- defining participation for FACA as voting on issues and disallowing discovery to verify participation by nongovernmental individuals -- will tip the scale in favor of greater executive branch power. Since taking office, President Bush has pushed for centralizing power in the White House and enhancing executive branch powers. This ruling could end the long legal battle through many courts to disclose the energy task force records. In June 2004, the Supreme Court declined to hear the case and remanded it to the lower court.