The amendments also significantly change what information can be exempted under FOIA. As previously mentioned, exemptions will now be classified as either mandatory or permissive. Mandatory exemptions are limited to social security numbers, FERPA and legally recognized privileges. All other communications are treated as permissive.
Public bodies applying an exemption would be required to state both why an exemption applies and why the public interest in nondisclosure outweighs the public interest in disclosure for each exemption. This is a change from the current practice, where most exemptions are applied categorically without consideration of the public interest. Requiring a detailed explanation gives requestors more information that will assist them in determining whether an exemption was properly applied. It also makes the exemption process less attractive to public bodies by increasing the burden of taking an exemption.
Amendments to specific exemptions solve common issues with FOIA. Specific examples include: