IV.3: e-FOIA
Increasing use of technology to enhance our ability to receive and track requests, produce and post FOIA reports to the Web,
and manage documents responsive to FOIA requests
Other Information:
Commerce employs a decentralized approach to implement the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA). The Departmental FOIA Officer,
located within the Office of the CFO/ASA, exercises oversight for the program, coordinates the implementation of government-wide
policies and initiatives, facilitates regular meetings held for training and collaboration, and processes FOIA inquiries that
involve multiple operating units. Each operating unit has at least one FOIA Officer to coordinate implementation of the Act
within their organization; larger operating units may have several FOIA Officers. Incoming FOIA inquiries are directed to
a lead operating unit that is most likely to have the requested records. The lead operating unit coordinates with others as
needed to locate all responsive records, determine the extent to which any redactions are necessary, and respond to the request.
The Departmental FOIA Officer is responsible for processing requests that relate to Commerce as a whole. In the event that
a requestor wishes to file an appeal, the Department’s Assistant General Counsel for Administration serves as the Departmental
appeals official with the exception of USPTO, which – under the Patent and Trademark Office Efficiency Act – retains responsibility
for processing its own appeals. Commerce receives and processes an average of 2,100 FOIA requests each year. Recently, it
has experienced an increase in both the number and scope of FOIA inquiries received. The Department has maintained a backlog
of inquiries, which during the last two fiscal years has involved an average of 151 requests. The operating units are taking
various steps to help reduce this level, which include additional training, steamlining procedures, augmenting staff, and
automating processes. The Department is also exploring options for procuring FOIA management software. While each operating
unit uses information technology (IT) software and systems to a varying degree, a single approach has not been adopted across
the Department. As an example, USPTO currently utilizes FOIAXpress (http://www.foiaxpress.com/) to manage all aspects of FOIA
processing. At the Census Bureau, certain portions of its process are automated, e.g., redaction, while others are not. By
increasing its use of technology Commerce expects to enhance its ability to receive and track requests, produce and post FOIA
reports to the Web, and manage documents responsive to FOIA requests. The Department is considering the purchase of a site
license for software that could be used by the Departmental FOIA Officer and each operating unit’s FOIA Officer. Also being
considered by the interagency Chief FOIA Officers Working - 16 - Group, is the use of a government-wide IT solution. One possible
option is Privasoft’s “AccessPro Suite” (http://www.prweb.com/releases/2010/02/prweb3578074.htm), which has recently been
purchased by the Department of Justice for its FOIA processing needs. The Department is also working to provide quicker access
to documents that are of public interest. It intends to create a searchable archive of FOIA responses. This will not only
make it easier for the public to find out more about how the Department has responded to requests, but also reduce the staff
time associated with answering duplicative requests. Additionally, in the past, records were typically posted to the e-FOIA
Reading Room after a minimum of three requests had been received. Commerce is now posting records that relate to topics that
may be of broad interest following the receipt and processing of one request.
Indicator(s):
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