While Sunshine Week provides many opportunities to celebrate open government achievements, it also provides the perfect context to reflect upon changes that could improve FOIA. Think of it as a little spring cleaning. Since opening in September 2009, we’ve worked with agencies and requesters on more than 1,500 FOIA matters, giving us a unique perspective … Continue reading Tidying Up
Since opening in late 2009, we’ve received requests for assistance from requesters and agencies at every stage in the FOIA process. We’ve heard from requesters planning to sue within days of contacting us and we have heard from agencies asking for help communicating with just such a FOIA requester. While we do our best to … Continue reading Striving for Perfect Pitch: OGIS and Agencies’ Administrative Processes
My name is Jean Whyte, and I serve as Director of the National Archives and Records Administration’s Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) program. I’ve been invited to write this guest post about the intersection of FOIA and ADR and why I believe these two are made for each other. First, a little about our couple: Freedom … Continue reading FOIA and ADR: Will You Be My Valentine?
In August 2011, OGIS hosted a meeting of FOIA IT professionals from the Departments of Defense, Homeland Security, and State, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation to discuss how technology can streamline the FOIA process. This single meeting spawned a group of FOIA and IT professionals who are sharing ideas, making plans and dreaming big … Continue reading OK Computer: Announcing the FOIA Information Technology (IT) Working Group
In the course of our work as the FOIA Ombudsman, we regularly hear from agencies and requesters about FOIA practices that work well. We also hear about practices that don’t work as well. Too often, such problems result in legal action by requesters. We have observed that the following agency practices can be “litigation invitations”: … Continue reading How to Invite a FOIA Lawsuit
Throughout 2011, OGIS observed a recurring concept: Federal agencies are succeeding through internal collaboration. This “team approach” to government operations promotes efficiency, reduces redundancy, and helps an agency successfully meet its statutory mandate. One area where teamwork is particularly important is records management; we’ve observed that many agencies are getting wise to this fact. President … Continue reading A New Game Plan: Teamwork Really Works!
As regular readers of this blog know, OGIS moved from College Park, MD, to Washington, D.C., one month ago. Our mailing address, email addresses and toll-free number remain the same, but our local telephone and fax numbers have changed. (For anyone concerned that our mail stills goes to College Park, MD, rest assured that there … Continue reading Updated OGIS Language for Agencies
This week, after a year in the works, OGIS launched our new website and case management system, the OGIS Access System (OAS). Our excitement over the completion of this process isn’t just sky high — we’re literally in the cloud. The new OAS will manage more effectively and efficiently the requests for assistance that FOIA … Continue reading OGIS on ‘Cloud Nine’
When a requester wants access to records that are classified, he or she can choose to ask an agency to undergo Mandatory Declassification Review (MDR) of those documents rather than filing a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request. MDR requests allow the agency to give records a fresh look to see whether they might be … Continue reading Demystifying Declassification
The National Archives and Records Administration is home to some 10 billion records. Wrapping your mind around 1 followed by 10 zeroes can be a challenge, and so can figuring out whether and how the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) applies to those records. OGIS is here to help. While it’s difficult to apply a … Continue reading Making Heads or Tails of Archives’ Records
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