Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division
As part of the efforts described in the Second Open Government National Action Plan (NAP) to modernize FOIA, the Administration has committed to developing common FOIA regulations and practices for agencies. OIP is pleased to announce that this month we will host the kickoff meeting for the interagency process of developing a common set of FOIA regulations.
Agencies promulgate FOIA regulations to procedurally assist in the implementation of certain provisions of the law, such as where and how to make a request. While currently these regulations can vary between the ninety-nine agencies subject to the FOIA, the NAP recognized that “[c]ertain steps in the FOIA process are generally shared across Federal agencies . . . [and that] [s]tandardizing these common aspects through a core FOIA regulation and common set of practices would make it easier for requesters to understand and navigate the FOIA process and easier for the Government to keep regulations up to date.”
During this meeting, which is open to all agency FOIA personnel and interested agency regulatory specialists, we will begin discussing and collaborating on the content of potential common FOIA regulations and the next steps moving forward in this process. As noted in the NAP, our goal for this initiative is to develop a common core FOIA regulation “that is both applicable to all agencies and retains flexibility for agency-specific requirements.” The details for the meeting are:
Kickoff Meeting
Department of Justice – Office of Information Policy
1425 New York Avenue, NW – Suite 11050
May 29, 2014, 1:00 pm – 3:00 pm
Registration is required to attend this meeting and you will need a picture ID to enter the building.
Prior to this meeting, OIP will also meet with members of the FOIA requester community and civil society for initial input on the development of common FOIA regulations. As we work on this important initiative, we look forward to regularly engaging all stakeholders throughout the process.
If you are interested in attending this kickoff meeting, you can register by e-mailing your name and phone number to OIP’s Training Officer at DOJ.OIP.FOIA@usdoj.gov with the subject line “Common FOIA Regulations Kickoff Meeting.” If you have any questions regarding this meeting, please contact OIP’s Training Officer at (202) 514-3642.