The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission said Thursday it plans to start releasing correspondence with issuers and others required to file reports with the regulator that results from reviews of these filings.

Typically, the SEC has only released its comments to filers and filers’ responses in answer to Freedom of Information Act requests. Now in a bid to improve transparency, it will be releasing all of this information on its website without an FOIA request.

The correspondence is created when disclosure filings are selected for review by commission staff. The SEC typically provides filers with comments on filings where they believe the filing could be improved or enhanced.

The letters set forth staff positions on a particular filing only and do not constitute an official expression of the commission’s views. Staff review of a filing may involve several rounds of comments from the staff and a similar number of responses from the filer.

The SEC notes that an increasing number of SEC comment letters and filer responses are being released publicly through the FOIA process, but only to those persons who make FOIA requests for them. “We believe it is appropriate to expand the transparency of the comment process so that this information is available to a broader audience, free of charge,” the commission says.

The SEC says it will begin releasing letters and responses relating to disclosure filings made after Aug. 1. It will announce soon a specific date after which these documents will become available publicly. Correspondence will be released not less than 45 days after the staff has completed a filing review.