FOIA News: Americans for Prosperity Foundation Hosts Sunshine Week 2022 Symposium

On March 18, 2022 at 1:00 PM ET, Americans for Prosperity Foundation will host a virtual Sunshine Week 2022 Symposium featuring FOIA Advisor contributors Allan Blutstein and Ryan Mulvey. Information on the event, panelists, and registration information below.

The discussion will involve reflection on this year's submissions to the AFPF Sunshine Week 2022 Essay Symposium, as well as broader conversation about the state of FOIA and the prospects for change.

Learn more about the symposium, and read the panelists' essays here:
Panelists:
Ginger Quintero-McCall, Demand Progress
Matt Topic, Loevy & Loevy
Kate Oh, American Civil Liberties Union
Allan Blutstein, America Rising / FOIA Advisor
Kel McClanahan, National Security Counselors
Susan Harley, Public Citizen
Melissa Wasser, Project on Government Oversight
Moderator:
Ryan Mulvey, Americans for Prosperity Foundation

Register for the event here.

FOIA News: FOIA Advisory Committee passes "Don't Say Glomar" proposal

The Department of Justice should advise federal agencies to stop using the word “Glomar” and replace it with “neither confirm nor deny” (NCND), according to one of four Glomar-related recommendations adopted by the federal FOIA Advisory Committee on March 10, 2022. The director of DOJ’s Office of Information Policy expressed skepticism about canceling the four decades-old term of art, but he abstained from the vote. Four committee members voted against the proposal.

FOIA News: ICYMI, tech tool might help FOIA requesters

A new tool allows journalists to quickly sort through FOIA data dumps

By Paroma Soni, Columbia Journalism Rev., Mar. 2, 2022

IN THE 2020 FISCAL YEAR ALONE, federal agencies received nearly 800,000 requests under freedom of information laws. The process is notoriously frustrating, marked by delays, denials, and appeals before documents are turned over (if they ever are). Even success can be exasperating—documents arrive in the form of large dumps, without any meaningful organization. All that work is time- and labor-intensive; for smaller newsrooms with fewer financial resources and less manpower, it may feel prohibitive. A recent foia workshop held by the Chicago Headline Club included a session called “More data, more problems,” aimed at finding new approaches to reporting with massive data dumps.  

“I file a lot of foia requests, and I often get back hundreds and hundreds of emails, documents, and a ton of text files,” Hilke Schellmann, a journalism professor at New York University, says. “I don’t necessarily know what or where the smoking gun will be, but I know I don’t need to read hundreds of emails about someone’s lunch schedule to find it.”

Read more here.

FOIA News: Notes from a prolific FOIA requester

Ken Klippenstein, a reporter at the Intercept and self-described “prolific FOIA requester,” discussed the FOIA during a student journalism conference on March 4, 2022. His 45-minute talk is here.

FOIA News: FOIA Advisory Committee meeting

The FOIA Advisory Committee is meeting virtually on Thursday, March 10, 2022, from 10:00 AM to 1:00 PM. Members of the public may attend if registered by March 8, 2022. Additional information is available here.

FOIA News: FOIA makes appearance in NYT crossword

The March 6th crossword puzzle of the New York Times used “FOIA” as the four-letter answer to the hint “Records request inits.” See 98 across below.

FOIA News: Sunshine Week events

Sunshine Week will be observed this year from March 13, 2022, through March 18, 2022. Three virtual events have been schedule by federal agencies.

On March 14, 2022, from 10 a.m. to 11 a.m., the Department of Justice will host its twelfth annual Sunshine Week event, which will be broadcast via livestream.

On March 14, 2022, from 1:00 p.m. to 2:30 p.m., the National Archives and Records Administration will livestream a conversation moderated by philanthropist David M. Rubenstein between the Archivist of the United States David S. Ferriero and the Librarian of Congress Dr. Carla Hayden.

On March 16, 2022, the Department of Commerce’s Office of Privacy and Open Government is hosting a virtual Annual Sunshine Week Event & Expo. This event features a full day of sessions and a virtual vendor hall.

FOIA News: Chief FOIA Officer Reports for FY 2022 to be posted shortly

The Department of Justice’s Office of Information Policy will soon post Chief FOIA Officer Reports for fiscal year 2022 from all federal agencies, according to a government source who contacted FOIA Advisor. A few reports can now be found on agency websites:

• Social Security Administration

• Commodity Futures Trading Commission

• Dep’t of Health & Human Serv.

• Dep’t of Transportation

• Inter-American Foundation

DOJ/OIP will post Chief FOIA Officer Reports here.

FOIA News: DOJ issues 2021 litigation and compliance report

The Department of Justice’s Office of Information Policy has released its FOIA 2021 litigation and compliance report. Among other information, DOJ reported that 608 FOIA decisions were issued by federal district courts during calendar year 2021.

FOIA News: New virtual training dates announced by OIP

OIP ANNOUNCES NEW FOIA TRAINING DATES FOR SPRING AND SUMMER

DOJ/OIP. FOIA Post, Mar. 3, 2022

Today, the Office of Information Policy (OIP) announces new dates for FOIA training for the months of March through July.  As part of its responsibility to encourage agency compliance with the FOIA, OIP offers several training opportunities throughout the year for agency FOIA professionals and individuals with FOIA responsibilities.  These courses have been designed to offer training opportunities for personnel from all stages of the FOIA workforce, from new hires to the experienced FOIA professionals or FOIA managers.  OIP will continue to offer virtual training sessions that will be taught in real-time by OIP instructors.  As we move into the remainder of Fiscal Year 2022, we are pleased to announce these virtual training courses, which are also available on OIP’s Eventbrite page.

Read more here.