Federal agencies received a record 818,271 requests under the Freedom of Information Act in fiscal 2017, the Justice Department has reported, but agencies still managed to reduce the backlog to just over 111,300 by processing 823,222.
The total number of requests has risen steadily from just under 600,000 in fiscal 2010, and DHS continues to account for by far the largest share, 45 percent. Justice, Defense and the National Archives and Records Administration accounted for 10, 7 and 7 percent.
Of the requests, about 22 percent were fully granted, 37 percent partially granted, 22 percent had no pertinent records found, 5 percent were fully denied based on exceptions under law, and the rest were withdrawn, duplicative or had other various outcomes.
As in prior years, the most cited FOIA exemptions were two for the protection of personal privacy, followed by one involving law enforcement techniques, procedures, and guidelines.
