<P> The Freedom of Information Act 2000 (2000 c. 36) is the implementation of freedom of information legislation in the United Kingdom on a national level, with the exception of Scottish bodies, which are covered by the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002 (2002 asp. 13). Environmental information is covered by further legislation Environmental Information Regulations 2004 . Tony Blair, the UK Prime Minister who introduced the Freedom of Information Act, later expressed regret over the Act, claiming that the Act impeded the ability of officials to deliberate "with a reasonable level of confidentiality". </P> <P> In the United States the Freedom of Information Act was signed into law by President Lyndon B. Johnson on July 4, 1966 and went into effect the following year . Ralph Nader has been credited with the impetus for creating this act, among others . The Electronic Freedom of Information Act Amendments were signed by President Bill Clinton on October 2, 1996 . </P> <P> The Act applies only to federal agencies . However, all of the states, as well as the District of Columbia and some territories, have enacted similar statutes to require disclosures by agencies of the state and of local governments, though some are significantly broader than others . Some state and local government agencies attempt to get around state open records laws by claiming copyright for their works and then demanding high fees to license the public information . Some states expand government transparency through open meeting laws, which require government meetings to be announced in advance and held publicly . </P> <P> The Act was enacted in 2008 under President Vazquez's Administration and is mainly implemented by the Judiciary . </P>

Under the freedom of information act any citizen may demand information about