FOI Request for Database

[matt at dasher.csd.sc.edu]

Hello,
I hope my first comment to the list generates some discussion. Please 
excuse the length, but I think some background will help the discussion.  
I am the current Director of MidNet, the community information network 
serving Columbia and the Midlands of South Carolina.  We started with 
money from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting's Community-Wide 
Education and Information Service Program.  Our founding sponsors were 
(and continue to be) the University of South Carolina, the Richland 
County Public Library, and South Carolina Educational Television.  Our 
grant ran out on June 30, 1996, and we started charging an $18/year fee 
for a registered account.  We are strictly non-profit, educational, and 
introductory in our focus.  We receive some administrative and financial 
support from the University.  In fact we are operated out of the 
College of Library and Information Science here at USC where I am also a 
very part-time student working on my Masters.  We provide, dial-in access, 
free WWW services to non-profit agencies in the Midlands, inexpensive 
E-mail access, and free educational support through classes given at the 
library and university.  I think we provide some good and necessary services 
to the community. 

On July 23 we received a Freedom of Information Act Request 
for "the complete database of information on users compiled under 
MidNet's operations." It was submitted by a local, commercial Internet 
service provider. (I quoted the request itself.) In other words, they want 
our mailing list so they can advertise with direct marketing.  University 
legal council studied the situation and directed us to make available   
the information.  Though I have been directed to not discuss the 
situation, I feel it is my duty to warn other folks in similar situations 
that it could happen to you too, and, if you are as opposed to the idea 
as I am, you need to study your organization and the law and prepare 
yourselves for what may come.  I am sorry that it hit us out of the 
blue.  I think it is a blatant misuse of the Act and bad business to 
boot! The Act was designed and implemented by Congress to make the 
government accountable to the people for possible abuses of power -- not 
to steal a membership database from a non-profit agency trying to make a 
difference through education and support.  I view the surrender of our 
users' personal information as fundamentally wrong in every way.

Has this happened to anyone else?  I know most of you folks work for libraries 
and are protected somewhat, but I got a real problem because I consider myself a 
public librarian, and I don't want to give up this list.  ( I am supposed 
to this Friday.)  I also need discussion on how we can prevent this 
in the future, other than eliminating support from the university 
which, at this point, is vital.  Please commiserate or tell me why I am 
wrong!

Matthew Penn
Director, MidNet
matt at dasher.csd.sc.edu
http://www.midnet.sc.edu