WHAT ARE WE DISCUSSING? FOIA Basics Observations on FOIA Countering Agency Denials Strategies & Tactics Records You Can Ask For How to make a Freedom of Information request Find the FOIA officer?s email address 9 Describe what you want in plain English GOOGLE A 1 A A A A maots urns CI voco Dan: 0 on." . I380 '00. 39?? YO INC 00? MIKIAV DOUIYMN CA NI.) PLEASE ALLOW 30 DAYS FOR SEARCH RESULTS FOIA BASICS !  Mention the Freedom of Information Act !  Your contact information !  The agency’s FOIA Office location !  What records (not info) you want !  Your fee category !  Willingness to pay fees up to $25 !  What format – usually electronic FOIA BASICS !  If they say no, you can appeal !  If they don’t respond soon, you can appeal !  They are required to give you an estimated completion date upon request !  You can discuss the request with them !  What format – usually electronic FOIA BASICS !  Letters sent certified mail, return receipt requested may be taken more seriously than portal or email requests !  The receipt can prevent the agency from claiming they never received it !  Check in periodically with the agency to find out the status of your request FOIA IS LIKE A PUZZLE Don’t start by thinking about the questions you want answered Better to imagine or research documents that should or would exist that answer the questions you have EOIA OFFERS A WIDE VARIETY OF TOOLS FOR ANY IMPORTANT ACTIVITY I I I9, ?canon I THE GOOD NEWS FOIA: an existing statutory process, involving trained career agency staff, is hard to change overnight PUBLIC RECORDS ARE YOURS Agency records are public except if subject to specific exemptions Taxpayer funded You have bought it already; it is your property WHAT’S UP, DOC? !  FOIA Backlogs !  Insufficient training !  Poorly framed requests !  Agency reluctance to process/release !  Difficult to locate records internally !  Feigning Ignorance STRUCTURAL PROBLEMS !  Agencies use FOIA as a default method for the public to access info !  No internal constituency for making records public PUBLIC DATA CHALLENGES No records menu Indirect queries only Can’t ask questions Unhelpful response mechanisms Not much outreach from agency staff FROM WHAT AGENCIES DO YOU REQUEST RECORDS? A difficult problem Become familiar with relevant agencies Do news article searches Ask people Ask agencies Think strategically who may be involved Get to know the various agencies A HURDLE to the use of FOIA has been the stubborn notion that you must somehow know what’s there, and get the records in ONE request Vorging approaches in FOIA requests is productive. Ta rgeted Req uests 1 Laboratorg Trials ?Ii! Requests Often work well in strategic: vellegs BETTER REQUESTS Keep it simple and straightforward Make it records-oriented Would you understand it? SUBMITTING A REQUEST Agencies are making it increasingly harder to find their FOIA Contact Information •  Mail •  Fax •  Email •  Website •  Portal B: An official websrte of the United States government UNITED STATES Welcome to the first iteration of the new We?ll continue to improve upon this FOIA. site in the future and look forward to your input. Submit feedback to National.FOIAPortal@usdoj.gov. Learn about FOIA Before you request Create a request Agency FOIA data Agency login The basic function of the Freedom of Information Act is to ensure informed citizens, vital to the functioning of a democratic society. This site can help you determine if filing a FOIA request is the best option for you and help you create your request when you?re ready. Tips for makinga request or Start your request Murmur ALL AGENCIES LIY uf J-J'Ju'll' LIY Uf l'cdll?? Human bum Josu?lv u! l'm'ylul'd brabnly 'Jt bun J-?th?ll' ll?il?lL?! Dcuu'lmc'll uf U: Ju'szl?ll' of State J-Juu'll' Dcuu'lmc'll of Ur 'rcduJIy Ad'l?n'lul?dll'vu u? the Stale-J 5 Uultlu "u'1L?flJf?l'JflI?; um had: (Ar Arr'lus Apum 3:;1 BdeLuaI mg Uuurd of guru: Enfcw dl'd Hum-J UUd'd Jb Ll'l ?ght; Ll'l In"; Al's.- 'I?Il'uxtx fut purdwu: fr Ar L-sln'l'ur dl pvtudw ?Jb L-sl'uu'w' ?ur Nat u'm (.cuv. u? (sum-ml .Jl'd .mJ Off-:rIJL-r 5 L. pugr x: I a '1 Adm Jefut'zc \ur. cur ldul Safely Beau: Jr'm Ln: ru'n'uc'llal AguI'Ly LULJI Lu't'rn :3 ur' Luau. sf uh! dl?d LiJugLrt (.If?lau of "Jat JIJ ?till-Ly z, Cf?lau of hum: LI [datum Lulpu'mu. Lingpga i [rauurL-g Mdc'al 1.11 Lor'lm :5 L'lL'fg'v Lgl' r'unlur. Mdc'ul imam. ul I?Iatllutlum Lumml ?xix-pl Pcdc?dl Lunar Rt: Authority Munll?l?u Lol'ul utter] Wu: 4m! 'lL?dII'l Ins-Jun: Upcn N?drku'. 354;?; u" tux-o'ru' L'l Rug: L'l by ?rm Hutllumunl ?1 Uudrd ng'y 5 Scl'ulura'nu Foundatlut Ldl? h?xrnurm lawn z; ?z-u'wdt gr Legal bur'vILcs L-ulpuluilun Vur'l'l'dl Lur?lr'w'y, U?l N'cr S'vatu?lu U'l Bum": L-JIanhilur. u?m L: u'm AILPI we) d'lu Next? ?th U'le L4) Zul arm 'Ig "Jut u'm ?Jl' mm ?Jut u'm fu? Art:- ?Jut u?m fu' "Jut u'm [Id an (m'l?n?g Lum'l'ls ?Jut U'm -dL'Ll' 34-: buxJ "Jut U'ld "v'L?d all-3r Buu'd ?th Ll'hl ?Lvu'luut "Jut u'm bdfut'v b?uuru 'qud Lgtpu' 5 Rugu dtuw Lunrrwalvn Ll'm sf ?Jax- 14-; .?rnJ 'Iz-p LI-L 0?1ch of "v'urmgumunl of (gumsl (3?1ch of thv: 'L-Ltu' of Ll'm mull Next>> Search Browse FAQ are" 34 Access tb tug W0 In I Read More 917i" Search Search for government information by keyword or see what other people and news organizations are requesting. Browse by Government Agency FOIA logs, record systems, and contact information for making a Freedom of Information request FAQ What is FOIA and what role does FOIA Mapper play? About News Projects Requests no Recently completed requests Emails Tat/Irv Lmnrol (on? fhic rat-Inner to r?ivu nf Search File Request Sign UP File, track, and share public records requests. Li File a Request Enters..?.lsd..r9999st? or lsarn.h9w..im9rk?- 49,514 11,001 ?led requests agencies 10files Ypsilanti Mayor Amanda Edmonds 2018 Vigilant Data Sharing Information (Los Alamitos Police Department) News Projects Requests on Agencies Search Jurisdiction Showing 1 to 25 of 11001 First Page Name IOlst Airborne Division, US. Army 1015t Airborne Division, US. Army 14,699 2,074,791 fulfilled requests released pages mes can) (-11:21 FOIA - OEMC - Abolish ICE 2018 Vigilant Data Sharing Adersent this requestto the O?fice of Information (Manhattan Beach Police Emergency Management and Communications Department) Search File Request Sign UP Page 1 of 441 25 9 items per page Previous Page Next Page Last Page Jurisdiction United States of America United States of America 10th Judicial District Attorney Louisiana 10th Judicial District Drug and Violent Crime Task Force Tennessee 13th Judicial District Court's Clerk Of?ce Alabama 15th District Court Ann Arbor, MI 162nd Wing, Arizona Air National Guard 24th Judicial District Drug Task Force 94th Airlift Wing FOIA Office Abbevile Police Department Abbeville Memorial Library Abbeville Police Department United States of America Tennessee United States of America Abbeville, AL Abbeville, AL Abbeville, LA Log In Email 53 County Government Attic: - offers examples of records released - demonstrates that an agency has previously released a type of record WELCOME To\ GOVERNMENTATTIC ORG HOME FOIA LOGS Rummajfnj in Megawmmenf?s af?c DOCUMENTS 53?? LINKS ACKNOWLEDGMENTS wartment of Defense Documents Department of Justice Documents Federal Bureau of Inve?igmw Documents Executive Branch Departments A-M Executive Branch Departments N-Z White House Of?ces ROW Independent Federal Aqencies A-M Independent Federal Aqencies N-Z Government Corpo_ratio_ns State Records/ Miscellaneous Records Interaqencv Records “We are withholding the records in full” Is the withholding mandatory or discretionary? Did the agency review to see if there are segregable releasable portions? Is there a time limit for the withholding? Is the withholding justified and explained? Would there be foreseeable harm? (the foreseeable harm test) Was the presumption of openness applied? The cost estimate is too high Did they miscalculate the fees? Did they put you in the wrong fee category? Did they wrongly charge review fees? (Review fees are only for commercial requesters) Did they commingle search and review fees? Did they provide the first two hours of search free? Per-page copy fees for electronic documents? Cannot confirm or deny (GLOMAR) Is the fact or record already described or confirmed publicly? Is there something already on the agency website? Unacceptable delay in getting a response Talk to the FOIA Office, and find out what’s going on. Ask for the estimated completion date Send an administrative appeal mentioning the lack of a response Submit a FOIA request asking for a copy of the administrative processing notes (after a year) Have other people ask for the same records We located no records responsive to your request Find out how and where they searched Did they make a significant error in their search? Did they interpret the request hyper-technically and exclude relevant records? File a new request with broadened search pattern This agency is not subject to FOIA What law or regulation or policy does govern public access to records at your agency? Please process my request under that law or regulation or policy. The records we found are under the responsibility of a different agency Please forward (refer) the records to the agency which has authority over the records for a release determination Please let me know which agency or agencies you are referring the records to If the response file format is unusable Please give me the file in its original file format Please give me the response files without the encryption or password protection I’d like a CD without an off-center label ! Your request was not “perfected” Why is the request incomplete? What other information is required to search for the records? How can I specify the records better? Note: often this is used when an agency prefers not to process a request NEGOTIATION Cooperation Win-win outcomes Convert an adversarial situation Help get the request off their desk Make it easier To fulfill 0 request Them To deng il NEGOTIATION POINT Exchange your willingness to narrow the scope for insight into the records structure “Tell me what’s there and I’ll let you know what sections I don’t need” NEGOTIATION POINT In discussions with agency staff: Focus on: “What do you have?” Rather than: “What do I want?” NEGOTIATION POINT Remember that you can always - limit the request -  see what you get, and then -  go back later and ask for more NEGOTIATION POINT If they object, you can mention: •  you are not as familiar with their records structure as them, •  the law does not require them to create records •  you wish to better specify your request to reduce the burden based on what records they have THE FOIA PUBLIC LIAISON Each agency has one Someone to talk to about the request Can help fix a problem Get on the phone NEGOTIATION Discuss the request with the FOIA Officer/Public Liaison at any stage Policy denials versus administrative denials* *not official terminology INFORMED RESCOPING o  Ask the FOIA Officer for their thoughts on stuff to omit o  Exclude unhelpful or repetitive parts o  Get a sample o  Narrow the date range o  Specify relevant offices o  Exclude attachments MORE RESCOPING TOOLS Index Table of Contents Listing Bibliography First ten pages of each document Carefully chosen keywords You can ask for more but don’t wait NEGOTIATION RESOURCE Office of Government Information Services (OGIS) “The FOIA Ombudsman” https://www.archives.gov/ogis Invaluable in narrowing /rescaping requests Bugs Bunny Chief Financial Of?cer Director of Marketing Director of Sales Porky Pig Sylvester Marvin the Martian Accounting Marketing Inbound Phone Reps Tweety Daffy Duck Yosemite Sam Bookeeping Outbound Phone Reps Wile E. Coyote Elmer Fudd Payroll The Road Runner Director of HR Foghorn Leghorn Supervisor Gossamer Trainer Speedy Gonzales EEDERAL AND STATE YELLOW BOOKS The most valuable information Federal YELLOW BOOK YELLOW BOOK who?s who in federal departments and agencies 1 I A LEADERSHIP The Leodonhlp? Content Loadeump Duoclones pvovades qualuty. accuvate and up-lo-da'e nnformanon on the key leads" nn government. busmess, egal, "nod-a. and nonp'om organueuons no the Unutod Slam. Every Item 01 uniovmanon on more than 750000 990919 and 150,000 0'93 has been vent-ed at the wurce, OVERCOMING EXCUSES Reauesiers rnag be given unwarranted reasons for not being provided records No Excuses Excuse Excuse Excuse Excuse r? Excuse POPULAR EXCUSES “unperfected” “overbroad” “vague” “voluminous” “burdensome” “we have it . . . but it’s not an agency record” ADDITIONAL COMMON EXCUSES “it was sent to the National Archives” “lost in a computer changeover” “stored in proprietary software” “it’s a contractor database” “we can’t output an electronic file from our system” STILL MORE COMMON EXCUSES “the wait time for our complex track is several years” “we don’t understand exactly what you want here” “it would require an unreasonable search” “if we did have it, we couldn’t release it” PUSHING BACK ON “NO RECORDS” RESPONSES Scour the internet to find any references to the requested documents Also use agency site-specific searches site:MSHA.gov “key phrase” Find references in other places Has similar material been released? PUSHING BACK ON “NO RECORDS” RESPONSES “we located no records responsive to your request” That phrasing can be ambiguous and misleading Did the agency find documents they deemed technically non-responsive? Ask for clarification by phone “POINTING FINGERS” RESPONSES Agency A: It’s agency B’s record. Agency B: It’s agency A’s record. •  Request from both agencies •  Talk to FOIA Public Liaisons •  Explain Referral/Consultation Policy •  Contact OGIS •  File Administrative Appeal •  Politely escalate requests ADMINISTRATIVE APPEALS Denial Can’t find Misunderstood Provide a clear, concise, polite explanation of why the decision was wrong, in plain English ADMINISTRATIVE APPEALS Depends on the specific situation Beyond the scope of this workshop Try to get someone experienced with FOIA to help in strategizing, crafting an appeal ONE EXAMPLE Agencies frequently make errors in denying requests Common Example: Deliberative Process Privilege of Exemption b(5) •  Segregable releasable portions •  Factual vs. opinion portions •  Foreseeable harm test •  Discretionary release •  Is the record really pre-decisional? DOJ GUIDE TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION THE DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE GUIDE TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (2009 EDITION) The United States Department of Justice Guide to the Freedom of Information Act (2009 edition) is a comprehensive legal treatise of the FOIA's procedural requirements, exemptions, and litigation considerations. It contains a detailed analysis of the key judicial opinions issued on the FOIA. The Guide is prepared and updated by the staff of OIP. Any inquiry about the points addressed in the Guide should be made to OIP through its FOIA Counselor Service, at (202) 514-FOIA (3642). TABLE OF CONTENTS CANCEL AND REFILE Withdraw a “complicated” or problematic request, and file new requests designed to preempt the concern Like folding a hand in poker PROCESSING NOTES You can ask for the contents of the administrative processing/tracking/ handling file/folder for any particular FOIA request or appeal Often called “processing notes” Be sure to also ask for all emails in the FOIA Office associated with the request INDIRECT REQUEST CHANNELS Request records from other federal agencies or components Ask state agencies for communications with federal agencies Examine past records from the National Archives or Pres. Libraries LITIGATION Litigation VERY often produces records when the FOIA process fails Huge upsurge in FOIA litigation under the current Administration Can use to raise visibility of an issue Timeframe, Cost Award of legal fees is difficult “DENIED RECORDS” STORIES Write a story when an agency refuses to release something important The public wants to know No longer considered unseemly or “inside baseball” among editors May result in release of the records DISPUTES FEE DISPUTES Fee category v. fee waiver Focus on the fee category… Fee waiver often becomes a distraction •  Commercial •  Educational/Scientific Institution •  News media •  All Other Requesters (individuals) FEE DISPUTES Stretch fees Bad assumptions Conflating search and review Per page costs for digital material Complaints about Review time Most fee problems can be overcome for noncommercial requests Most requests shouldn’t have fees Recent changes to FOIA help SECURITY CLASSIFICATION National Security Information TS/S/C Restricted Data (Atomic) CUI FOUO (gone, but it actually isn’t) MANDATORY DECLASSIFICATION REVIEW Can use MDR or FOIA, not both at once MDR – MDR Appeal – ISCAP appeal Interagency Security Classification Appeals Panel DATA FILES yuucvu - 632:19405 Code Breaking Nehonol Cash Register Co. DATA FILES FOIA Offices: often have an antiquated view of data send native file data to paper claim that digital searches are burdensome DATA FILES FOIA Offices frequently: provide data files that require proprietary software to use don’t allow requesters to speak with IT staff are not candid re agency IT capabilities DATA FILES Requesters can: ask for output to “flat files” (.csv or .xls spreadsheet) object to printed PDFs inquire about the data fields DATA FILES “Further, I request that these files be sent to me in any digital formats in which they exist (pdf, Word, etc.) Under the terms of the E-FOIA Amendments of 1996, if a document exists in electronic format, it must be released in that format upon request.” DATA FILES Get a conference call with IT Discuss excluding problem fields Argue for native formats Non-burdensome digital searching DATA FILES Be careful in requests that require a Boolean Search Many agency staff do not understand Boolean Searching Could end up with bad results Ask for the search terms and how the search was performed HANDLE WITH CARE i . Reliable, Clean, Vetteal, Authoritative, Accurate, Consistent (AGENCY INTERNET SITES What’s posted? What’s missing? Mentions of records not posted e.g., in Inspector General reports MISSING ITEMS ON WEBSITES No longer updated items Dead Links – removed records Missing or omitted items (e.g. missing report numbers) Things disappear all the time IS IT GONE? Google Cache The Wayback Machine (Archive.org) ChangeDetection.com When did it disappear? RESOURCES Government Attic Muckrock.com That1Archive The Black Vault The Memory Hole 2 / AltGov2 FOIA Mapper Intranets Extrenets Wikis SherePoint Password Protected ASKING FOR INTRANET CONTENT Intranet home page Site index One level down (1 click) Two levels down (2 clicks) INTRANET CONTENT URL Sub-domains (path fragments) IP number Google searches for substrings Intranet content is often cited on the public internet EMAIL Enterprise search Email repository CAPSTONE keyword Timeframe Recipients/senders Interaction between entities EMAIL Example: “Results of an electronic search for emails containing the word XXX” NOT “emails concerning” EMAIL Example: All emails between Ms. Jones and the Short Line Railroad during July 2017. USUALLY NOT Emails between Ms. Jones and SLRR regarding labor concerns EMAIL Ask separately for emails from all the likely locations or agencies You can compare results and identify omissions This also helps find use of personal and non-work email addresses DATASETS ARE EVERYWHERE An organization responsible for a function documents it in a dataset List Spreadsheet DBMS ONLINE QUERIES ARE INFERIOR TO GETTING A DATASET Search and download limitations Can’t access all data fields Can’t study data relationships No access to native format No access to metadata Can’t use the data in unforeseen ways to make discoveries GET THE FILE Online lockup access is not equivalent HOW DO YOU KNOW WHAT RECORDS TO ASK META-RECORDS Think about and pay close attention to records that describe other records, or describe the structure of agency records ENTERPRISE DATA INVENTORIES EDIs Posted in JSON format – convert to csv or xls EDI’s are the Golden Fleece, a roadmap to useful agency data If something is done regularly, it’s documented in a dataset USASPENDING.gov Government Contracts Awarded 2008 – 2019 Contains the contract actions for most but not all agencies Powerful tool but not intuitive to use USA Spending – One Suggestion Select an agency; download all contracts for years of interest Save it as Excel file rather than csv Sort by product/service code, then recipient, then date awarded Use wrap text on column BS: Award Description AGENCY RECORDS SCHEDULES Published by NARA Describe agency records structure Internet search: NARA agency records control schedules https://www.archives.gov/recordsmgmt/rcs RESEARCH OUR RECORDS SERVICE RECORDS EDUCATOR RESOURCES Records Managers Home National Archives Records Management Information Page Records Control Schedules (RCS) ?i??i?iie?i?mgmm Records Control Schedules (RCS) Email Management Records Management FAQS The Records Control Schedule (RCS) repository provides access to scanned versions of records schedules, ggmorandums t0 Agency Records Authority, that have been developed by Federal agencies and approved by the Archivist of the United Statt Federal Records Centers (FRC) Rec?rd5 Management Handbook More about Records Control Schedules Records Management Policy and Guidance Records Schedules Frequently Asked Questions 0 Browse Records Control Schedules by Agency, Department or Organization Guidance and Policy for . Accessioning All Record Groups f?gchgonic Records Management Recently Approved Schedules Toolkit for Managing Electronic [g SF 115 Numbering Key Records Crosswalk Comparing SF 115 and Records Schedule Agency Certi?cation 0 0 8 Records Management Initiatives Contact and Feedback: (RMI) Records Ma nagement Self Assessment (RMSA) INSPECTORS GENERAL Almost every federal agency has an Inspector General watchdog IGNET.gov includes an IG directory You can request records directly from the Inspector General (usually) INSPECTOR GENERAL RECORDS Audits Usually Public Evaluations Usually Public Inspections Sometimes Public Reviews Sometimes Public Management Alerts Investigations Semi-Annual Reports Seldom Public Rarely Public Public for Some IGs IG INVESTIGATIONS OIGs use various names for their work products Report of Investigation (RoI) Final Report, Closing Report Closing Memo, Referral Memo Closing Letter, Referral Letter, etc. Substantiated or Unsubstantiated Oversight Garden Oversighigov compiled bg CIGIE members verg incomplete IG REQUEST CONCEPTS “copies of reports from each investigation closed during 2018” “a listing of all investigations closed during 2018” “a copy of the final reporting documents from the following investigations…” LOGS Complaint Visitor Congressional Contacts Cong. Correspondence Media Inquiries FOIA Requests The heartbeat of what’s occurring CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENCE Be wary of subject matter limits Don’t give agency staff the need to make decisions on relevance Hill correspondence is an undercurrent of interbranch government activity “VIEWS” LETTERS Statements of Agency or Administration position, thoughts and comments on specific issues or legislation being considered by Congress REPORTS Technical Financial Program Status Administrative Lessons Learned Unpublished Accident Incident Critical Event Near-Miss After-Action Internal Periodic Monthly Weekly Quarterly REQUIRED STATE REPORTS TO THE FEDERAL GOVERMENT The states are required to send many reports to the federal government. You can ask the states individually for the reports, or ask the federal agency for all of them at one time AGENCY REPORTS TO CONGRESS Which reports is the agency required to send to Congress and/ or the President? Are they published online? Often not. “A copy of each report sent to Congress in FY 2018 but not posted on the agency web site.” PERIODIC AGENCY REPORTS What regular/periodic reports does the agency create? Annual Biennial Semiannual Quarterly Monthly You can search the agency’s site for the phrase “annual report”, “report to Congress”, etc. CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET JUSTIFICATIONS CBJ’s Explains to Congress each year why the funds are needed Where are the key challenges More candid than annual reports Read very closely I I Home Policy Regulations Policy Federal Advisory Committee Management FEDERAL ADVISORY COMMITTEE MANAGEMENT Overview Advice and Guidance Legislation and Regulations Performance Measurement FACA Shared Management System Finding Information on FACA Committees FACA Shared Management System The Federal Advisory Committee Act (FACA) database is used by federal agencies to continuously manage an average of 1,000 advisory committees governmentwide. This data base is also used by the Congress to perform oversight of related executive branch programs and by the public, the media, and others, to stay abreast of important developments resulting from advisory committee activities. (- 0' mxwfacadatabase.gov FACA Database Federal Advisory Committee Act ~o~1e Lgeac es Sean'- l-Cn F. e: Dataset: StcreSC'C help The Federal :Jusor. Cor-rmttee 4:43.: database .rsed b. Fedora? agerm-s to :antlraauzl. manaqe an a.erage of 1 C23 ad. sar. :an-m ttees Thu: database vs a so used b, the Corvess to perform of re ated E-ecut .e aranch cragra'r: and b. the put?: the rre: a ard others, to cm. abreast c? 'rpcvunt rem ting from adunr. committee .rtle: ?ltt?ougi? :entreli. susoovted b. the IZ-erera Sen-{es Adm matretuov Committee P'Maqemer?t Sezvetar at the database represents a true 'share-J s-stem' ntere each part pat-r; agen:. ard incl. dual (-zvmn?unee manager has respcn', t. for pranjung ?curate an: n'vel, that be .15?5 to assure that the smtem 1e arra. cf users has to data required war..- s. r. FEDERAL ADVISORY COMMITTEES •  More than 1050 Committees •  Advising dozens of agencies •  With more than 67,000 members •  40+ committees advising POTUS •  More than 7000 meetings held •  Some 700 reports issued •  Spending $340 million each year FEDERAL ADVISORY COMMITTEES/ ADVISORY BOARDS Charter document *Meeting minutes* Meeting agendas Transcripts Handouts / presentations Briefing books Videos Member resumes MANAGEMENT CONSULTING REPORTS Federal agencies buy hundreds of management consulting reports FBO.gov and USASpending.gov Contract Statement of Work (SOW) Presentations Status/Interim/Final Reports LEGAL MATERIALS General Counsel memos/opinions Case Law digests Legislative Histories Administrative decisions Legal brief banks HISTORIES Agency histories Program histories Internal histories Accomplishments reports Unit/command histories (DoD) Agency historians ORAL HISTORIES :iIm/Video Digiml content UrchiVeS Audio recordings . D. I I. OTHER RESOURCES Government Accountability Office GAO.gov website Congressional Research Service CRS Reports Agency Internal Libraries Memoranda of Understanding/ Agreement MOUs and MOA’s MORE RESOURCES Presidential Libraries National Archives and Records Admin. Federal Records Centers Stash points for agency records Legislative Archives of NARA THEIR OWN VERSION OF FOIA Government Accountability Office Government Publishing Office Smithsonian Institution Library of Congress State and local agencies STATE AND LOCAL AGENCIES Reporters Committee (RCFP) Open Government Guide https://www.rcfp.org/opengovernment-guide Each state has different access rules Just say: “…pursuant to Iowa’s public records access law…” TAKEAWAYS This Administration produces huge quantities of records - paid for by taxpayers If something is done by an agency, it’s probably in a database that you can request A wealth of records is available upon request Think about FOIA strategically, tactically, and expansively TAKEAWAYS For agencies relevant to your interests: •  Get and study the Enterprise Data Inventory •  Get periodic reporting •  Review the Records Retention Schedule •  Read the Congressional Budget Justifications •  Obtain Inspector General records •  Study the agency organizational charts TAKEAWAYS Build a pipeline of useful records requests Fee category is more important than waivers Engage more productively with FOIA staff Be aware: withholdings are often incorrect ALWAYS question, verify and re-verify the validity of data and records you get ANY