Category Archives: About FOIA

FOIA Improvement: Proactive Disclosure

Posted on July 12, 2017 by

On June 30th we passed the one-year anniversary of the enactment of the FOIA Improvement Act of 2016. Over the past year we have published blog posts suggesting ways agencies can implement some of the amendments, including the requirement to … Continue reading →

Posted in About FOIA, Open Government, Review | 2 Comments

Dispute Resolution: It’s a Team Sport

Posted on June 14, 2017 by

As we have discussed before, OGIS is not the only entity that requesters can go to for help with the FOIA process. In fact, agencies were directed to create FOIA Requester Service Centers and appoint FOIA Public Liaisons in December … Continue reading →

Posted in About FOIA, About OGIS, FOIA Public Liaisons, Team approach | Leave a comment

DHS Provides New Insight into FOIA Processing

Posted on May 31, 2017 by

As you might have heard, the Federal government received a record-breaking number of FOIA requests in Fiscal Year (FY) 2016 – 788,769 requests. Did you know, though, that one of the more than 100 Federal agencies and departments that process … Continue reading →

Posted in About FOIA, Best practices, Uncategorized | Leave a comment

Let’s Talk about Fees…

Posted on February 1, 2017 by

Sometimes even highly-experienced FOIA requesters approach us with questions about FOIA’s admittedly complicated fee structure. We thought it might be useful to break down the current fee structure a little and provide an update on fee provisions included in the … Continue reading →

Posted in About FOIA, Fees | Leave a comment

Teaching the Next Generation about the Power of FOIA

Posted on November 2, 2016 by

Earlier this year, the National Archives committed in both the Third U.S. Open Government National Action Plan and its Fourth Agency Open Government Plan to develop tools to help teach the next generation about the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA). … Continue reading →

Posted in About FOIA, Open Government | 1 Comment

FOIA Improvement: Updating FOIA Regulations

Posted on September 14, 2016 by

Note: This entry is another in our series of occasional blog posts updating our efforts to implement new provisions of the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) signed into law by President Obama on June 30, 2016. The FOIA Improvement Act … Continue reading →

Posted in About FOIA, About OGIS, Regulations | Leave a comment

Introducing FOIA to a New Generation of Requesters

Posted on July 20, 2016 by

In October 2015, the White House released the Third U.S. Government National Action Plan. While NAP 3.0 includes a number of useful commitments from the National Archives, we are particularly excited about OGIS’s commitment to develop curriculum tools to introduce … Continue reading →

Posted in About FOIA, Open Government | 2 Comments

FOIA Improvement: Making It Easier to Help FOIA Requesters

Posted on July 13, 2016 by

Note: This entry is another in our series of occasional blog posts providing updates on our efforts to implement new provisions of the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) signed into law by President Obama on June 30, 2016. As we … Continue reading →

Posted in About FOIA, About OGIS, Best practices

FOIA Improvement: Informing Requesters of OGIS Services

Posted on July 6, 2016 by

Note: Last week President Obama signed into law the FOIA Improvement Act of 2016, locking many of the Administration’s openness policies and initiatives into the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), including advancing open government and highlighting the importance of OGIS … Continue reading →

Posted in About FOIA, About OGIS, Alternative dispute resolution, Best practices | 3 Comments

More Chances to Wish FOIA A Happy Birthday!

Posted on June 8, 2016 by

If you missed seeing the original Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) signed by President Lyndon Johnson that was on display during our Sunshine Week Event, the National Archives is giving you another opportunity to wish the law a happy 50th … Continue reading →

Posted in About FOIA