Max Galka

About Max Galka

I am an NYC-based entrepreneur and an adjunct lecturer at UPenn. I'm fascinated by data visualization and the ways that data is transforming our understanding of the world. I spend a lot of time with my face buried in Excel, and when I find something interesting I write about it at Metrocosm / Huffpo / Guardian Cities. More about my background

Who uses FOIA? — When the Freedom of Information Act was enacted in 1966, it was envisioned as a tool for journalists to facilitate […]

Who Uses FOIA? – An Analysis of 229,000 Requests to 85 Government Agencies

13 Mar, 2017 in FOIA Analysis by Max Galka

foia case outcomes — Last week, the U.S. Government Accountability Office released the results of an investigation into the costs of FOIA litigation, finding […]

FOIA Litigation: Considering whether the costs are worth considering

16 Sep, 2016 in FOIA Analysis by Max Galka

firearms airports — Originally posted on Metrocosm Last year, the TSA (Transportation Security Administration) confiscated a total of 22,044 “dangerous items” in airport […]

Mapping the 22,000 weapons confiscated at U.S. airports in 2015

1 Aug, 2016 in FOIA Requests by Max Galka

al capone fbi file — From the FBI file of Al Capone About one out of every three Americans has a file with the FBI. And […]

How to request your FBI file

13 Jul, 2016 in FOIA Basics by Max Galka

solar map foil request — Thanks to BetaNYC and Civic Hall for organizing yesterday’s Beta Talk on Freedom of Information In our café: @galka_max presenting on @foiamapper […]

FOILing Excessive Processing Fees

14 Apr, 2016 in Database Requests by Max Galka

foia requests processed by agency — Which government agencies receive the most Freedom of Information requests? How many of those requests yield responsive documents? And of those […]

Transparent Censorship: An In-Depth Look at FOIA in 2015

11 Apr, 2016 in FOIA Analysis by Max Galka

agency record systems foia — Before making a FOIA request, it’s helpful to know how the information is stored and who maintains it There […]

What is a Government Record System?

29 Mar, 2016 in FOIA Basics by Max Galka

what is a foia log — FOIA logs let you see who’s filed FOIA requests, what information was requested, and when the request was sent As I’ve […]

What is a FOIA Log?

29 Mar, 2016 in FOIA Basics by Max Galka

how to make a foia request — As long as you’ve identified the information you want, asking for it via a FOIA request is usually very easy The Freedom […]

How to Make a FOIA Request. Could it Really Be This Easy?

28 Mar, 2016 in FOIA Basics by Max Galka