The Department of Justice Office of Information Policy (OIP) recently issued updated guidance for agency FOIA webpages. The guidance provides helpful recommendations for agencies to ensure that requesters can find useful resources and information. OIP’s guidance suggests that agencies ensure that members of the public can easily locate agency FOIA webpages by including a clear … Continue reading DOJ Releases FOIA Website Guidance 2.0
Fiscal Year (FY) 2018 is shaping up to be another busy year at OGIS! This week we are happy to announce the release of our FY 2018 Activities Calendar. The calendar shows our tentative schedule for upcoming agency compliance and issue assessments and our popular Dispute Resolution Skills for FOIA Professionals training sessions. The calendar … Continue reading OGIS Publishes Fiscal Year 2018 Activities Calendar
In the spirit of Thanksgiving, we want to take some time to give thanks for the many individuals who have worked with us over the past year to help improve the FOIA process. In particular, we want to recognize the members of the Chief FOIA Officers Council and the FOIA Advisory Committee. Earlier this year … Continue reading OGIS Joins in Thanksgiving 2017
Over the last few years we have made a concerted effort to highlight the relatively simple step that agencies can take to make it easier for OGIS to fulfill its statutory responsibilities to both resolve FOIA disputes between requesters and agencies as well as conduct agency assessment compliance reviews. This simple step involves publishing a … Continue reading Making it Easier for OGIS to Assist You with Resolving Your FOIA Disputes
We often receive requests for assistance to obtain access to veterans’ medical and service records of those men and women who have served our country in the armed forces. These requests come from the veterans themselves, from their family members, and from interested researchers, historians, scholars and journalists. The National Personnel Records Center (NPRC) in … Continue reading Useful Resources for Veterans Records
Last week there was a surge of excitement surrounding the National Archives’ release of new government records concerning the assassination of President John F. Kennedy (JFK). We thought this might be a good opportunity to join our colleagues in celebrating the release of this new historical material, and explain how the release of these records … Continue reading National Archives Releases New JFK Records
On October 19, 2017 the FOIA Advisory Committee worked its way through a jam-packed agenda, including discussion of draft recommendations from each of the three subcommittees – Searches; Efficiency and Resources; and Proactive Disclosure. As the Archivist of the United States noted in his welcoming remarks, a uniting theme for all three subcommittees is the … Continue reading Catch Up with the 2016-2018 FOIA Advisory Committee!
Registration is now open for our November 16 Dispute Resolution Skills for FOIA Professionals training session. Space is limited and seats fill up fast, so make sure you act now to reserve your spot for this free training! This training is intended to teach FOIA professionals practical communication skills to help them understand and resolve … Continue reading Grab Your Seat for Our November 16 Dispute Resolution Skills Training Session!
The FOIA Advisory Committee has studied and considered the profound effects that technology is having on the way that government operates, and the public’s expectations for transparent government for a little more than a year. During its October 19 meeting, we expect for the discussion to focus on the draft recommendations developed by each of … Continue reading FOIA and the Digital Future on Agenda for October 19 FOIA Advisory Committee Meeting
One of the frustrations with the FOIA process that we hear about most frequently is the delay in an agency’s response to a request. Frequently, requesters contact us to ask why an agency has not responded within the 20 working days response time that is prescribed in the law. We understand that delays are extremely … Continue reading Understanding FOIA Delay
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