FOIA trends up and down

The number of Freedom of Information Act requests satisfied with a release of all documents went down in fiscal 2009 to 215,214--a 17 percent decrease against fiscal 2008 numbers, finds a Justice Department evaluation of federal agency FOIA efforts.

However, the number of FOIA requests partially satisfied went up to 166,993, a nearly 43 percent increase, the DOJ review finds. A combination of full and partial releases shows only a modest overall uptick in transparency as measured in document release numbers, however: A mere 1.18 percent increase in FOIA disposition when compared to fiscal 2008.

The review is based on a new requirement that agencies submit to the DOJ chief FOIA officer reports taken to improve FOIA operations. The requirement comes from a March 29, 2009 memo from Attorney General Eric Holder that also instructed agencies to have "a presumption of openness" when responding to FOIA requests.

In fact, the DOJ analysis of agency actions suggests that the number of full releases may have dropped due to federal agencies voluntarily disclosing documents that earlier would have required a FOIA request. "Still, agencies should strive to increase the number of requests where records are released," the analysis adds.

Achieving greater internal FOIA efficiency will require agencies to leverage electronic record keeping systems, the analysis adds. Locating requested records--particularly for complex requests--can be a time consuming task requiring searching through disparate records and email systems spread throughout an agency. Good electronic record keeping capacity allows agencies to respond to requests quicker, the analysis notes.

For more:
- read the DOJ analysis of agency FOIA practices
- download any of the individual federal agency fiscal 2009 FOIA reports
- download the March 19, 2009 Eric Holder FOIA memo (.pdf)

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