Giuliani archives still kept from public by NYC mayor

NEW YORK -- Shortly after Mayor Michael Bloomberg took office in January, he pledged to make accessible thousands of pages of historically important documents that were removed from City Hall by the Giuliani administration.

But the Bloomberg administration has released little in response to a months-long effort by The Associated Press to gain access to the Giuliani archives, raising questions about whether the records are truly available to the public.

The AP requested copies of all records related to Giuliani's establishment of the Twin Towers Fund, a multimillion-dollar charity for families of Sept. 11 victims, and all documents detailing the administration's response to the anthrax threat that terrified the city.

The requests, first made six months ago under the state's Freedom of Information Law, have led to the release of just 13 pages related to the Twin Towers Fund, and a single news release regarding the city's handling of the anthrax scare.

By contrast, the state Attorney General's office released more than 300 pages of Twin Towers documents generated by the city and filed with the state agency. Those documents were made available within a single business day following the AP's request.