FOIA: Reporters Committee Releases Analysis on Use of "Glomar"

We FOIA’d every federal agency for their ‘Glomar’ responses. Here’s what we learned.

By Shawn Musgrave and Adam A. Marshall, Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press, Mar. 15, 2024

In the summer of 2022, the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press started an ambitious project to remedy the informational deficit surrounding Glomar, using (of course) FOIA requests. Specifically, the Reporters Committee wrote FOIA requests asking for response letters from agencies to requesters that included a number of phrases associated with the Glomar response and sent between fiscal years 2017 and 2021. The requests also gave agencies the option to simply report the number of Glomar responses issued each fiscal year, along with the exemption they were tied to. The Reporters Committee submitted the request to every federal department, agency, and subcomponent thereof across the government, totalling hundreds of submissions.

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As of Jan. 12, nearly 300 federal agencies or components thereof responded to the Reporters Committee’s FOIA requests by providing data about their use of Glomar denials over the five fiscal years from 2017 through 2021. Combined, these agencies issued a total of more than 5,000 Glomar responses during this period.

Just over a third of agencies that responded identified at least one Glomar denial during this period. The remaining agencies replied they had no responsive documents and/or had not issued a Glomar denial during this period.

Read more here.

FOIA News: Chief FOIA Officers Council meeting

The Chief Freedom Officers Council will meet for this first time in 2024 on April 17th, according to a notice published in the Federal Register. The virtual meeting is open to the public. Additional details about the meeting, including the agenda, will be available on the Chief FOIA Officers Council website.

FOIA News: Recap of NARA's Sunshine Week event

Sunshine Week Panel Addresses Impact of AI on Open Government

By Cara Moore Lebonick, National Archives News, Mar. 15, 2024

WASHINGTON, March 15, 2024 – Sunshine Week is an annual nonpartisan celebration of the importance of publicly available records and the practice of open government to drive civic engagement. In recognition of the week, on March 14, the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) hosted a panel discussion titled, “Artificial Intelligence: The Intersection of Public Access and Open Government.”

In recognition of the Sunshine Week, on March 14, the National Archives hosted a panel discussion titled, “Artificial Intelligence: The Intersection of Public Access and Open Government.” National Archives photo by Susana Rabb.

Director of the Office of Government Information Services Alina Semo kicked off the event and introduced Deputy Archivist of the United States William Bosanko.

Read more here.

FOIA News: 2024 Chief FOIA Officer Reports

The Office of Information Policy has updated its online collection of 2024 Chief FOIA Officers Reports submitted by federal agencies. This marks the fourteenth year in which agencies have produced these reports, which outline the steps taken to improve agency FOIA programs. 

FOIA News: More coverage of GAO's report on FOIA backlogs

During Sunshine Week, GAO finds agencies need better plans to address surging FOIA backlogs

FOIA backlogs have been on the rise across government for the past decade, but many agencies lack detailed goals and milestones to reduce the backlogs.

By Justin Doubleday, Fed. News Network, Mar. 14, 2024

The Justice Department is developing new Freedom of Information Act guidance to ensure agencies have adequate plans to address mounting FOIA backlogs across government.

Even though FOIA backlogs have been on the rise since 2012, many agencies lack detailed goals and milestones for addressing the logjam of requests, according to a Government Accountability Office report released this week. Agencies are generally required to process FOIA requests within 20 days, and a request is considered backlog when it takes longer than the required time.

Out of 14 agencies directed to develop plans in 2023, only two includes goals and none included any timelines for carrying out their actions, GAO’s report found. The auditors noted the backlogs have led to extended wait times for public records requests. The governmentwide FOIA backlog sits at more than 200,000 cases.

Read more here.

FOIA News: Recap of DOJ's Sunshine Week event

The Department of Justice Celebrates Sunshine Week

DOJ/OIP, FOIA Post, Mar. 14, 2024

The Office of Information Policy (OIP) celebrated its annual kick-off to Sunshine Week at the Department of Justice and via livestream on March 11, 2024.  The event featured remarks from Acting Associate Attorney General Benjamin C. Mizer and OIP Director Bobak Talebian, as well as the presentation of the 2024 Sunshine Week FOIA Awards. 

Read more here.

FOIA News: More Sunshine Week commentary

Modernize FOIA to increase its Sunshine effect

COMMENTARY | A modern-day FOIA needs to adopt changes that are uniform and consistent across all the covered agencies, writes a former FOIA officer.

By Dena Kozanas, Gov’t Exec., Mar. 13, 2024

Visit the newly minted FOIA.gov website, and you’ll see various statistics on FOIA requests and processing times. For 2023, the average processing time for simple requests for all agencies ranged from the low of one day to the high of 636 days. 

That this information is readily available is a good thing and is thanks to the 2016 FOIA Improvement Act and the new online consolidated portal for FOIA requests it created. The fact that we know that it took almost 30 times the statutory requirement to complete a FOIA request means it’s obvious that more improvements must be made. With the annual observance of Sunshine Week, which brings awareness to the public’s right to access government records, now is the time to discuss modernizing FOIA.

Read more here.

FOIA News: GAO releases report on FOIA backlogs

On March 13, 2024, the U.S. Government Accountability Office released an 80-page report entitled Freedom of Information Act: Additional Guidance and Reliable Data Can Help Address Agency Backlogs.

Key findings include:

• The government-wide backlog of requests continues to grow, and more than doubled between 2013 and 2022.

• Agencies reported that several interrelated challenges contribute to backlogs, including the increasing complexity of requests, staffing issues, coordination challenges, and the demands of FOIA lawsuits.

• Agencies have used various methods to address their backlogs, analyzing data to identify problem areas, negotiating with requesters to narrow requests, and creating teams focused on reducing backlogs.

• Improving agency backlog reduction plans and the accuracy of data on the time it takes to process requests could help ensure agencies are better positioned to make progress on their backlogs.

Focus groups comprised of government officials and nongovernmental FOIA practitioners participated in the study (including the author of this post), but there was little consensus on specific recommendations to resolve backlogs.

GAO also released a one-pager of the report’s highlights.

FOIA News: OIP Blog Post on 2023 Litigation & Compliance Report

As FOIA Advisor previously reported, the Department of Justice Office of Information Policy (OIP) has released its 2023 Litigation and Compliance Report. Yesterday, OIP published a blog post addressing the publication of the report.

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2023 FOIA Litigation and Compliance Report Now Available

Dep’t of Justice Office of Info. Pol’y, FOIA Post Blog (Mar. 12, 2024)

Earlier this month, the Office of Information Policy (OIP) posted the Department’s 2023 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 OIP’s efforts to encourage agency compliance with the FOIA.  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.  The report also contains a list of all FOIA litigation cases received and decided in the prior calendar year. 

This year's report highlights new policy guidance issued by OIP such as guidance on applying a presumption of openness and the foreseeable harm standard, guidance on standard operating procedures for FOIA offices, and guidance on appropriate content for the Chief FOIA Officer reports.  As detailed in the 2023 Report, OIP fielded 800 direct one-on-one counseling calls via OIP’s FOIA Counselor Line, which is an increase of more than 100 counseling calls compared to last year.  OIP also hosted and facilitated numerous training programs and briefings on the FOIA and offered training to over 7,000 registered attendees.  The Report also summarizes the recently updated chapters to the DOJ Guide to the FOIA, searchable summaries of court decisions, and information about FOIA news and events published in the FOIA Post blog.

The 2023 Report also details OIP’s work in continuing to maintain and enhance the National FOIA Portal on FOIA.gov that allows the public to submit a request to any Federal agency from a single site.  In 2023, OIP launched a new FOIA Search Tool on FOIA.gov that utilizes machine learning to help members of the public quickly and accurately locate commonly requested records.  This is the beginning of what will be a multi-phase project.  As use of the search tool increases, OIP will refine the tool to best serve the public.   

Along with the narrative portion of the report, every year OIP compiles charts listing the FOIA litigation cases received and decided during the reporting year.  As in previous years, OIP again provides these charts in both PDF and open (CSV) formats.

OIP invites both agencies and the public to review its 2023 Litigation and Compliance Report to learn more about all our efforts to encourage agency compliance with the FOIA.  OIP looks forward to building on these efforts as we continue to work with agencies and the public to improve the overall administration of the FOIA in the years ahead.

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Read the original post here.

FOIA News: Sunshine Week & FOI Day

Sunshine Week Highlights FOIA Access

By Shaw Bransford & Roth P.C., FEDManager, Mar. 12, 2024

This week marks Sunshine Week, the annual celebration that “shines a light on the importance of public records and open government.”

It is held the week of President James Madison’s birthday (March 16), in honor of Madison’s commitment to freedom and transparency. March 16 is also known as “National Freedom of Information Day.”

Sunshine Week and National Freedom of Information Day are a nonpartisan collaboration among groups in journalism, civics, education, government, and the private sector. The goal is to educate the public on the importance of having open public records and an open government.

Read more here.