The backlog grew from about 131,000 to about 207,000 over fiscal 2018-2022 Image: Tada Images/Shutterstock.com
By: FEDweek StaffA backlog of Freedom of Information Act requests pending at federal agencies “continues to persist, indicating that agencies are not keeping pace with the number of requests received” despite increasing use of exemptions that allow agencies to simply deny requests, the Congressional Research Service has said.
The backlog grew from about 131,000 to about 207,000 over fiscal 2018-2022, it said, despite 2014 recommendations from a special advisory committee of the National Archives and Records Administration to address backlog issues such as including FOIA performance standards in employee appraisals, centralizing FOIA request processing, and adding support staff.
“Assessing the adequacy of agency resources may prove challenging, because many staff and agency components can be involved in the processing of a request, making it difficult to pinpoint where agency resources should be leveraged,” it said. Further, while the law requires agencies to designate a chief FOIA officer at the assistant secretary or equivalent level, “it is common for the person serving in the role to split his or her duties with another assistant secretary role” such as general counsel or head of public affairs.
The report also noted that the GAO found that in recent years, agencies have doubled their use of an exemption from granting requests for “data specifically exempted from disclosure by certain statutes.” The other most commonly invoked exemptions are records related to personnel and medical files, and certain records compiled for law enforcement purposes.
The FOIA law was updated most recently in 2016 and Congress now “might consider options for improving the administration of FOIA in light of the use of FOIA’s exemptions, reducing a persistent backlog of requests from previous years, and decreasing the number and variety of offices managing FOIA requests.”
“Some Members of Congress have called attention to a backlog in processing FOIA requests across the government and a “continued culture of reflexive secrecy” in agencies resulting in the withholding of responsive information. Congress may wish to conduct oversight of the proper application of all exemptions, including content-specific exemptions written into statute,” it said.
Other potential areas for congressional action could include “policies that would target FOIA backlogs at particular agencies or take a broader multiagency approach” and whether “leadership structures are contributing” to backlogs.
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