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
This Friday, September 29th, registration will open for the next meeting of the FOIA Advisory Committee in the McGowan Theater at the National Archives. The event is open to the public and can also be watched via livestream on the National Archives YouTube Channel. As our regular blog readers know, the 2016-2018 FOIA Advisory Committee … Continue reading FOIA Advisory Committee to Meet on October 19th
The United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) FOIA program in Lee’s Summit, Missouri invited several members of the OGIS staff to visit their facility this week to provide their FOIA staff with training and to facilitate an agency FOIA compliance assessment. OGIS’s training sessions are intended to teach FOIA professionals practical communication skills to … Continue reading OGIS Visits U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS)
Almost five and a half years ago we at OGIS recommended to Congress that the development of a governmentwide FOIA web portal could improve public access to government information. Now, thanks to ongoing collaboration between the Office of Management and Budget (OMB and the Office of Information Policy at the Department of Justice (DOJ) and … Continue reading Cheers for a National FOIA Portal
As you might be aware if you regularly read our blog (or if you check our mediation program quarterly performance statistics), the FOIA Improvement Act of 2016 created a surge in requests for our assistance. We have also received many submissions intended for other federal agencies – including misdirected appeals, certifications of identity, and other … Continue reading Return to Sender
As the end of Fiscal Year (FY) 2017 approaches, we understand that agencies face increased pressure to close old requests and reduce their backlogs. This is also a good time to remind agencies about how to ensure their efforts comply with U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) guidance and best practices. As we have talked about … Continue reading A Reminder on the Use of Still Interested Letters
As pictures of adorable kids returning from summer vacation and starting their first day of school begin to flood our social media feeds, we thought this might be a good moment to remind you all about the National Archives’ fantastic educational resource, DocsTeach, and to note that teachers can use this tool to help students of … Continue reading Teach the Children Well
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