Freedom of Information Act: Processing Trends Show Importance of Improvement PlansThe Freedom of Info. Act (FOIA) establishes that fed. agencies must provide access to their info., enabling the public to learn about gov¿t. operations & decisions. The act requires that agencies report annually to the Attorney Gen., giving specific info. about their FOIA operations, such as numbers of requests received & processed & median processing times. Also, a recent Exec. Order (EO) directs agencies to develop plans to improve FOIA operations, incl. decreasing backlog. For this study, the author examined the status & trends of FOIA processing at 25 major agencies as reflected in annual reports, as well as the extent to which improvement plans contain the elements emphasized by the EO. Includes recommendations. Charts. |
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Common terms and phrases
2005 Simple Complex 25 agencies agency FOIA agency's Annual FOIA report Appendix X Median arithmetic mean awareness of FOIA backlog reduction Central Intelligence Agency change change change from 2004 change in reporting Comments communication with requesters Days Agency Days Component 2004 days to process decrease Department of Justice Executive Order Farm Service Agency fiscal year 2005 FOIA annual reports FOIA improvement plans FOIA operations FOIA program Freedom of Information GAO analysis goals and timetables Government Accountability Office governmentwide increasing public awareness Information Act median days Median Processing milestones n/a n/a Office National Science Foundation non-FOIA staff Nuclear Regulatory Commission number of pending number of requests pending requests percent process requests Processing Times Reported Processing Trends Show Public Liaisons Reported Department requests processed requests received Simple Complex Expedited simple requests handled Social Security Administration SSA's statistics Treasury Trends Show Importance USDA Veterans Affairs Washington
Popular passages
Page 62 - ... (4) trade secrets and commercial or financial information obtained from a person and privileged or confidential; (5) inter-agency or intra-agency memorandums or letters which would not be available by law to a party other than an agency in litigation with the agency; (6) personnel and medical files and similar files the disclosure of which would constitute a clearly unwarranted invasion of personal privacy...
Page 62 - ... could reasonably be expected to constitute an unwarranted invasion of personal privacy, d. could reasonably be expected to disclose the identity of a confidential source, including a state, local, or foreign agency or authority or any private institution which furnished information on a confidential basis...
Page 62 - ... (A) specifically authorized under criteria established by an Executive order to be kept secret in the interest of national defense or foreign policy and (B) in fact properly classified pursuant to such Executive order...
Page 62 - Investigatory files compiled for law enforcement purposes except to the extent available by law to a private party. (8) Contained in or related to examination, operating, or condition reports prepared by, on behalf of, or for the use of any agency responsible for the regulation or supervision of financial institutions. (9) Geological and geophysical information and data (including maps) concerning wells.
Page 62 - Would deprive a person of a right to a fair trial or an impartial adjudication; (C) Could reasonably be expected to constitute an unwarranted invasion of personal privacy...
Page 14 - ... records pending before the agency as of September 30 of the preceding year, and the median number of days that such requests had been pending before the agency as of that date...
Page 62 - ... records or information compiled for law enforcement purposes, but only to the extent that the production of such law enforcement records or information...
Page 10 - Documents shall be furnished without any charge or at a charge reduced below the fees established under clause (ii) if disclosure of the information is in the public interest because it is likely to contribute significantly to public understanding of the operations or activities of the government and is not primarily in the commercial interest of the requester.
Page 45 - Agency Comments and Our Evaluation We provided a draft of this report to the Secretary of Defense for review and comment.
Page 8 - FOIA establishes a legal right of access to government records and information, on the basis of the principles of openness and accountability in government. Before the act (originally enacted in 1966), an individual seeking access to federal records had faced the burden of establishing a right to examine them. FOIA established a "right to know" standard for access, instead of a "need to know," and shifted the burden of proof from the individual to the government agency seeking to deny access. FOIA...