In re Cheney
United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit
406 F.3d 723 (2005)
Vice President Cheney (defendant) chaired the National Energy Policy Development Group (NEPDG), an executive-branch group of cabinet officials tasked with developing energy policy; although Cheney had authority to create subcommittees, he never exercised it, and non-federal employees nonetheless attended NEPDG meetings and participated in informal subgroups. Judicial Watch and the Sierra Club (plaintiffs) sued, including a mandamus action against Cheney, seeking NEPDG's records under the Federal Advisory Committee Act (FACA) on the theory that non-federal participation made it a covered advisory committee.
Whether the FACA exemption for committees composed wholly of federal employees applies where non-federal employees participated in the committee's meetings but held no authority to vote on or veto its decisions.