FOIA News: Postal Regulatory Commission to amend FOIA regulations

The Postal Regulatory Commission has proposed to amend several sections of its FOIA regulations to address certain material submitted by third parties, according to a Federal Register notice scheduled to be published on March 13, 2023. Comments must be received by April 6, 2023.

FOIA News: DOJ releases updated toolkit for agency assessments

UPDATED FOIA SELF-ASSESSMENT TOOLKIT NOW AVAILABLE

By DOJ/OIP, FOIA Post, Mar. 9, 2023

Today, the Office of Information Policy (OIP) posted a comprehensive update to its Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) Self-Assessment Toolkit.  This update fulfills one of the Department’s commitments from the Fifth U.S. Open Government National Action Plan to strengthen access to government information through the FOIA.  The Toolkit, originally issued in 2017, is a resource for agencies to use when assessing their administration of the FOIA.  OIP has encouraged agencies to conduct self-assessments and many agencies have reported doing so in their Chief FOIA Officer Reports in recent years. 

Read more here.

FOIA News: CDC AGREES TO SETTLEMENT IN AMERICAN OVERSIGHT LAWSUIT CHALLENGING AGENCY’S FOIA PRACTICES

PUBLIC RECORDS VICTORY: CDC AGREES TO SETTLEMENT IN AMERICAN OVERSIGHT LAWSUIT CHALLENGING AGENCY’S FOIA PRACTICES

American Oversight, Mar. 10, 2023

American Oversight has reached an important settlement agreement in a lawsuit filed against the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) over the agency’s illegal practice of rejecting valid Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests.

The settlement includes a requirement that the CDC send an instructional email to all FOIA staff regarding the improper rejection of requests as “overly broad” — a claim the agency used to deny several of American Oversight’s requests related to the pandemic in 2020.

Read more here.

FOIA News: Census Bureau jumps the gun on Sunshine Week

Sunshine Week & Freedom of Information Day: March 12-18 & 16, 2023

Press Release, Mar. 12, 2023

According to Sunshineweek.org, “Sunshine Week was launched in 2005 by the American Society of News Editors — now News Leaders Association — and has grown into an enduring initiative to promote open government. Join News Leaders Association in the annual nationwide celebration of access to public information and what it means for you and your community. It’s your right to know.”

Read more here.

FOIA News: ICYMI, the gripping story of the "Glomar" mission

Earlier this year, Columbia University Press published Neither Confirm Nor Deny: How the Glomar Mission Shielded the CIA from Transparency, a book authored by East Carolina University professor M. Todd Bennett. “Like a Jules Verne novel with an Ian Fleming twist, the saga of the Glomar Explorer features underwater espionage, impossible gadgetry, and high-stakes international drama. It also marks a key moment in the history of transparency—and not just for what became known as the Glomar response: “We can neither confirm nor deny. . . .”

See here for table of contents, preview, and purchasing options.

FOIA News: 928k requests generate large backlogs

FOIA backlogs on the rise after record number of requests

By Justin Doubleday, Fed. News Network, Mar. 3, 2023 4:34 pm   

Freedom of Information Act backlogs soared at some key agencies after the public filed a record number of FOIA requests in fiscal 2022.

Agencies received 928,353 requests last year and processed 878,420 requests, both record highs, according to the Justice Department’s Office of Information Policy. Agencies were required to upload their fiscal 2022 annual FOIA reports by March 1.

Read more here.

FOIA News: OGIS announces Sunshine Week event

Mark Your Calendar For Sunshine Week 2023

NARA/OGIS, FOIA Ombudsman, Mar. 2, 2023

Make plans to join us as we kick off Sunshine Week, an annual nationwide celebration of access to public information, with a panel discussion on “Making Access Happen: FOIA at the National Archives” on Monday, March 13, at 1 p.m. ET.  The event will be live-streamed on the National Archives YouTube Channel.   

Read more here.

FOIA News: DOJ releases annual "Litigation and Compliance report"

By DOJ/OIP, FOIA Post, Mar. 2, 2023

This week, the Office of Information Policy (OIP) posted the Department’s 2022 FOIA Litigation and Compliance Report.  In accordance with the FOIA, each year the Department of Justice submits to Congress and the President a report detailing our efforts to encourage agency compliance with the FOIA.  The report also contains a listing of all FOIA litigation cases received and decided in the prior calendar year.  The report highlights the many ways that OIP works to provide guidance, trainings, and counseling to agencies to assist them in their FOIA administration and to promote agency accountability.     

Read more here.

FOIA News: Record-breaking number for FY 2022

Federal agencies received a total of 928,316 FOIA requests in FY 2022, according to data now available on FOIA.gov, shattering the previous high of 863,729 requests in FY 2018. Although agencies processed a record-breaking number of requests, as well (878,363), the request backlog grew from 153,227 to 206,719—a 34 percent increase.

Some additional data of note:

• Appeal backlog stood at 4,709, a slight decrease from 4.734 in FY 2021

• Total processing costs were $543.7 million, up from $522.8 million in FY 2021

• Total litigation costs were $40.9 million, up from $38.5 million in FY 2021

• Total processing fees collected from requesters were $2.19 milion, up from $2.09 million in FY 2021.

• DHS received the most requests (539,807), followed by DOJ (93,370), and DOD (54,004). 

FOIA News: DHS releases FY 2022 annual report; backlog doubles

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security, which receives more FOIA requests than any other federal agency, released its FY 2022 annual FOIA report on March 2nd, a day after the reporting deadline Here are the highlights:

• Received 541,057 requests, a 22.2 percent increase from FY 2021, when it received 442,650 requests.

• Processed 506,032 requests, a 8.2 percent increase from FY 2021, when it processed 467,347 requests.

• Received 7,394 appeals, a 6.7 percent increase from FY 2021, when it received 6,908 appeals

• Processed 7,374 appeals, a 12 percent increase from FY 2021, when it processed 6,579 appeals.

• Backlogged requests were 52,266 at end of FY 2022, compared to 25,102 backlogged requests at the end of FY 2021, a percent increase.

• Backlogged appeals were 413 at end of FY 2022, compared to 436 backlogged appeals at the end of FY 2021, a 5.2 percent decrease.

• For processed perfected requests, the overall department response time was an average of 11 days for “simple” requests and 83 days for “complex” requests.

• Processing costs were $ 75.2 million and litigation costs were $2.5 million, whereas in FY 2021 the department incurred $70.8 million in processing costs and $2 million in litigation costs.

• Fees collected for processing requests totalled $14,913.