New White Paper On FOIA Reference Model From Chief FOIA Officer Council Technology Committee’s Working Group

Dep’t of Justice, Office of Info. Pol’y (May 3, 2023)

A white paper issued by the Chief FOIA Officer (CFO) Council Technology Committee’s FOIA Reference Model Working Group has been posted to FOIA.gov.  The white paper highlights work done to create a Reference Model of the FOIA process and describes possible uses for the model.  The FOIA Reference Model, created by the MITRE Corporation (MITRE), provides a detailed summary and mapping of common FOIA functions across agencies.  The Technology Committee’s FOIA Reference Model Working Group reviewed the model for consistency with the FOIA statute, agency regulations, Office of Information Policy guidance, Office of Government Information Services findings, and recommendations from the FOIA Advisory Committee.  The FOIA Reference Model itself is publicly available on MITRE’s website.

The FOIA Reference Model Working Group white paper outlines the possible uses for the FOIA Reference Model, which include:

1. Helping agencies to articulate their needs and helping vendors understand agencies’ needs when developing FOIA technologies;

2. Serving as a resource to facilitate assessment of FOIA programs to identify gaps or opportunities for improved efficiency, review standard operating procedures, and define staff roles within stages of the FOIA process; and,

3. Increasing stakeholder knowledge of the intricacies of the FOIA process.

Agency FOIA professionals, agency FOIA leadership, FOIA technology developers, and members of the public are encouraged to review this white paper and the FOIA Reference Model and to use these tools to improve FOIA processes and technologies that may increase efficiency for FOIA programs.

For additional information about the CFO Council’s work, visit the Council’s page on FOIA.gov.

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