FACACLASSIC

Note: An Annual Comprehensive Review, as required by §7 of the Federal Advisory Committee Act, is conducted each year on committee data entered for the previous fiscal year (referred to as the reporting year). The data for the reporting year is not considered verified until this review is complete and the data is moved to history for an agency/department. See the Data From Previous Years section at the bottom of this page for the committee’s historical, verified data.

Details on agency responses to committee recommendations can be found under the Performance Measures section for each committee in the fields “Agency Feedback” and “Agency Feedback Comment.”

NARA - 2493 - Freedom of Information Act Advisory Committee - Agency Authority

GENERAL INFORMATION

Committee Name	Freedom of Information Act Advisory Committee	Agency Name	National Archives and Records Administration
Fiscal Year	2025	Committee Number	2493
Original Establishment Date	5/20/2014	Committee Status	Chartered
Actual Termination Date		Committee URL	https://www.archives.gov/ogis/foia-advisory-com...
Actual Merged Date		Presidential Appointments*	No
New Committee This FY	No	Max Number of Members*	20
Terminated This FY	No	Designated Fed Officer Position Title*	Compliance Team Lead
Merged This FY		Designated Federal Officer Prefix	Ms.
Current Charter Date	4/26/2024	Designated Federal Officer First Name*	Kirsten
Date Of Renewal Charter	4/26/2026	Designated Federal Officer Middle Name	B.
Projected Termination Date		Designated Federal Officer Last Name*	Mitchell
Exempt From Renewal*	No	Designated Federal Officer Suffix
Specific Termination Authority		Designated Federal Officer Phone*	202-741-5775
Establishment Authority*	Agency Authority	Designated Federal Officer Fax*
Specific Establishment Authority*	Second Open Government National Action Plan	Designated Federal Officer Email*	kirsten.mitchell@nara.gov
Effective Date Of Authority*	12/5/2013
Exempt From EO 13875 Discretionary Cmte	Not Applicable
Committee Type*	Continuing
Presidential*	No
Committee Function*	National Policy Issue Advisory Board

RECOMMENDATION/JUSTIFICATIONS

Agency Recommendation*	Continue
Legislation to Terminate Required	No
Legislation Status	Not Applicable
How does cmte accomplish its purpose?*	The Advisory Committee serves as deliberative body to advise on improvements to FOIA administration by studying the current FOIA landscape across the Executive Branch and may recommend legislative action, policy changes or executive action, among other matters.
How is membership balanced?*	The Committee consists of 20 voting members considered to be FOIA experts from both inside and outside government. Government members of the Committee will include, at a minimum, three FOIA professionals from Cabinet-level Departments; three FOIA professionals from non-Cabinet agencies; one representative from the Department of Justice, Office of Information Policy; and one representative from the National Archives and Records Administration, Office of Government Information Services. Non-governmental members of the Advisory Committee will include, at a minimum, two individuals representing the interests of non-governmental organizations that advocate on FOIA matters; two individuals representing the interests of FOIA requesters who qualify for the “all other” FOIA requester fee category; one individual representing the interests of requesters who qualify for the “news media” FOIA requester fee category; one individual representing the interests of requesters who qualify for the “commercial” FOIA requester fee category; one individual representing the interests of historians and history-related organizations; and one individual representing the interests of academia.
How frequent & relevant are cmte mtgs?*	The Committee meets quarterly to hear from experts on FOIA issues as well as hear updates from subcommittees and discuss new and emerging issues. Additional meetings occur at the beginning and end of each two-year term. In FY24, the Committee met seven times.
Why advice can't be obtained elsewhere?*	The Committee brings together two vital communities in the FOIA ecosystem -- requesters and FOIA professionals -- and tasks them with working collaboratively to discuss FOIA's toughest challenges.The Committee was established in accordance with the National Action Plan (NAP) and its work ties directly to the directive in the Freedom of Information Act, 5 U.S.C. § 552(h)(2)(C),that the Office of Government Information Services (OGIS) "identify procedures and methods for improving [FOIA] compliance."
Why close or partially close meetings?	Not Applicable
Recommendation Remarks	As part of the Open Government Partnership, the United States issued its second Open Government National Action Plan (NAP) on December 5, 2013, that sets forth several specific initiatives the Administration would undertake in the coming two years. One flagship initiative includes efforts to modernize the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), including creating a FOIA Federal Advisory Committee to be “comprised of government and non-governmental members of the FOIA community, to foster dialog between the Administration and the requester community, solicit public comments, and develop consensus recommendations for improving FOIA administration and proactive disclosures.” Since 2016, the Committee has made a total of 67 recommendations for improving FOIA administration across the government.

PERFORMANCE MEASURES

Outcome Improvement To Health Or Safety*	No	Action Reorganize Priorities*	No
Outcome Trust In Government	Yes	Action Reallocate Resources	No
Outcome Major Policy Changes	Yes	Action Issued New Regulations	No
Outcome Advance In Scientific Research	No	Action Proposed Legislation	Yes
Outcome Effective Grant Making	No	Action Approved Grants Or Other Payments	No
Outcome Improved Service Delivery	Yes	Action Other	No
Outcome Increased Customer Satisfaction	Yes	Action Comment	Not Applicable
Outcome Implement Laws/Reg Requirements	Yes	Grants Review*	No
Outcome Other	No	Number Of Grants Reviewed	0
Outcome Comment	Not Applicable	Number Of Grants Recommended	0
Cost Savings*	Unable to Determine	Dollar Value Of Grants Recommended	$0.00
Cost Savings Comment	Unable to Determine	Grants Review Comment	Not Applicable
Number Of Recommendations*	67	Access Contact Designated Fed. Officer*	Yes
Number Of Recommendations Comment	During its first two terms (2014-16) and (2016-18), the Committee made a total of 8 recommendations—one in the first term and seven in the second. All 8 have been implemented. Details are available here: https://www.archives.gov/ogis/foia-advisory-committee/dashboard During its third term (2018-2020), the Committee made 22 recommendations: 73% of which have been implemented and 23% that have been partially implemented. Details are available here: https://www.archives.gov/ogis/foia-advisory-committee/dashboard During its fourth term (2020-2022), the Committee made 21 recommendations: 29% of which have been implemented, 33% have been partially implemented, and 14% are pending implementation. One of the recommendations pending implementation states, “the Archivist of the United States should commission a feasibility study, incorporating input from requesters and agencies, to more deeply explore the costs and benefits of recommendations 2022-15 through 2022-18, and refine the proposals to aid Congress in drafting legislation,” and those four recommendations (19%) have been paused pending the completion of a resourcing study. One recommendation (5%), that recommends that the “Archivist of the United States (AOTUS) should restore OGIS as a direct report to AOTUS,” was rejected. In the fifth term (2022-2024) The Committee made 16 recommendations. 2023-01) The Office of Information Policy should issue guidance stating that when agencies use Exemption 5 to withhold information they should identify the corresponding privilege(s) invoked. (Partially Implemented) 2024-01) The Department of Justice Office of Information Policy (OIP) should publish the Committee’s draft model determination letter as a best practices reference for agencies. (Partially Implemented) 2024-02) The Department of Justice Office of Information Policy (OIP) should issue guidance encouraging agencies to proactively offer requesters the opportunity to discuss their request with an agency representative. (Partially Implemented) 2024-03) The Department of Justice Office of Information Policy (OIP) should issue guidance encouraging agencies to provide requesters an interim response consisting of a small sample of documents found as the result of searches conducted and subsequently reviewed for partial or full withholding. (Partially Implemented) 2024-04) The Department of Justice Office of Information Policy (OIP) should issue guidance to all Chief FOIA Officers outlining the minimum requirements for training to agency staff, including non-FOIA professionals. (Fully Implemented) 2024-05) The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) should add the 0306 Government Information Specialist (GIS) Job Series to the direct hiring authority list (Pending) 2024-06) The Chief FOIA Officers Council, through its Committee on Cross-Agency Collaboration and Innovation (COCACI), should organize agencies to participate in a “talent pool” posting through OPM. (Pending) 2024-07) The Chief FOIA Officers Council, through its Committee on Cross-Agency Collaboration and Innovation (COCACI), should create and maintain a database on its website of position descriptions in the Government Information Specialist (GIS) job series at various grades. (Pending) 2024-08) The General Services Administration (GSA) should create a labor category on the GSA schedule specifically for FOIA contractors to facilitate efficient procurement if an agency determines it needs contractor support. (Pending) 2024-09) Federal agencies should expand public engagement activities focused on improving all aspects of their FOIA process. (Pending) 2024-10) The Archivist of the United States should propose that the Office of Management and Budget, the Office of Information Policy, and other agency participants in future U.S. National Action Plans for Open Government include new and continuing commitments to improving FOIA administration. (Pending) 2024-11) The Chief FOIA Officers Council should form a working group to analyze the interest in and need for 1) a shared FOIA case management system and 2) a centralized records repository for use by federal agencies and the public. (Pending) 2024-12) The Chief FOIA Officers Council Technology Committee and interested agencies publish requests for information (RFIs) on the subject of artificial intelligence (AI) tools and techniques as an aid to FOIA processing. (Pending) 2024-13) The Office of Government Information Services (OGIS) and the Department of Justice Office of Information Policy (OIP) should follow up with selected agencies and other government entities in an effort to increase compliance with past recommendations of the FOIA Advisory Committee. (Partially Implemented) 2024-14) The Department of Justice Office of Information Policy (OIP) should include one or more specific questions in annual Chief FOIA Officer reports requesting agencies to report on activities that they have implemented consistent with selected FOIA Advisory Committee recommendations. (Fully Implemented) 2024-15) The FOIA Advisory Committee should create a working group to study the implementation of past recommendations. (Fully Implemented) Details are available here: https://www.archives.gov/ogis/foia-advisory-committee/dashboard	Access Agency Website	Yes
% of Recs Fully Implemented*	49.25%	Access Committee Website	Yes
% of Recs Fully Implemented Comment	One-hundred percent of the 8 recommendations made by the first two terms of the Committee (2014-2016) and (2016-2018) have been implemented. Seventy-three percent of the 22 recommendations made in the third term (2018-2020) have been implemented, while 23 percent been partially implemented. Twenty-nine percent of the recommendations of the 21 recommendations made in the fourth term have been implemented, 33% have been partially implemented, and 14% are pending implementation. The Archivist accepted the 16 recommendations from the fifth term (2022-2024) in July 2024. Although not a stand-alone recommendation per se, OGIS has, in its Annual Report to Congress and the President, and in its blog, highlighted best practices identified by the committee.No recommendations from the 2022-2024 term were directed at Congress, and OGIS has submitted to Congress all recommendations made before 2022.	Access GSA FACA Website	Yes
% of Recs Partially Implemented*	26.87%	Access Publications	Yes
% of Recs Partially Implemented Comment	For an up-to-date look at where implementation stands on all recommendations, see https://www.archives.gov/ogis/foia-advisory-committee/dashboard.	Access Other
Agency Feedback*	Yes	Access Comment	Information about the committee is available on the Committee's webpage at https://www.archives.gov/ogis/foia-advisory-committee and on the Office of Government Information Services blog at http://foia.blogs.archives.gov/ and the social media platform X (formerly known as Twitter) account @FOIA_ombuds. A recommendations dashboard, https://www.archives.gov/ogis/foia-advisory-committee/dashboard, describes all 67 recommendations made since 2016, actions taken to fulfill each, and links to reports, correspondence and other related material.
Agency Feedback Comment*	The Archivist of the United States in July 2024 reviewed and accepted 16 recommendations made during the 2022-2024 term: one in 2023 and 15 in 2024. Details: https://www.archives.gov/ogis/foia-advisory-committee/dashboard	Narrative Description*	As part of the Open Government Partnership, the United States issued its second Open Government National Action Plan (NAP) on December 5, 2013, that set forth several specific initiatives the Administration would undertake. One flagship initiative included various efforts to modernize the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA). This initiative included creating a FOIA Federal Advisory Committee, which is “comprised of government and non-governmental members of the FOIA community. This committee fosters dialog between the Administration and the requester community, solicits public comments, and develops consensus recommendations for improving FOIA administration and proactive disclosures.”The Committee was established in accordance with the NAP and operates in accordance with the directive in the Freedom of Information Act, 5 U.S.C. § 552(h)(1)(C), which states that the National Archives and Records Administration's Office of Government Information Services (OGIS) “identify procedures and methods for improving [FOIA] compliance."This advisory committee serves as a deliberative body to advise on improvements to FOIA administration. The Committee studies the current FOIA landscape across the Executive Branch and may recommend legislative action, policy changes or executive action, among other matters.

COSTS

1. Payments to Non-Federal Members*		1. Est Paymnts to Non-Fed Membrs Nxt FY*
2. Payments to Federal Members*		2. Est. Payments to Fed Members Next FY*
3. Payments to Federal Staff*		3. Estimated Payments to Federal Staff*
4. Payments to Consultants*		4. Est. Payments to Consultants Next FY*
5. Travel Reimb. For Non-Federal Membrs*		5. Est Travel Reimb Non-Fed Membr nxtFY*
6. Travel Reimb. For Federal Members*		6. Est Travel Reimb For Fed Members*
7. Travel Reimb. For Federal Staff*		7. Est. Travel Reimb to Fed Staf Nxt FY*
8. Travel Reimb. For Consultants*		8. Est Travel Reimb to Consltnts Nxt FY*
10. Other Costs		10. Est. Other Costs Next FY*
11. Total Costs	$0.00	11. Est. Total Next FY*	$0.00
Date Cost Last Modified	3/5/2025 10:19 AM	Est. Fed Staff Support Next FY*
Federal Staff Support (FTE)*		Est Cost Remarks
Cost Remarks

Interest Areas

Category Area Federal Employment Public Services Government Federal Government Legislation Regulations

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