The Pandemic Caused Substantial Delays in FOIA Requests
More than 80 percent of organizations that receive 10,000 or more requests a year have placed a note about FOIA delays on their websites. This is according to a new analysis by the National Archives and Records Administration, part of the Office of Government Information Services. Last May, the Information Policy Office of the Justice Department released guidelines urging agencies to keep requesters informed on status updates. A lengthy to-do list for federal agencies is included in the latest climate executive order by President Biden.
The Executive Regulations in Need of Oversight or REINS Act will require Congress, before they come into force, to pass a joint resolution authorizing major agency rules.
The bill describes a major rule as any regulation that has an effect of at least $100 million, which will lead to a substantial rise in the agency or public costs.
Industry demand for its new cloud office convinced the Defense Information Systems Agency to extend its quest for program support services. As a separate military service, the Space Force moved to distinguish itself, announcing new names for its enlisted labor force.
The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission has overhauled its Freedom of Information Act Requests framework for obtaining and processing.
Starting today, a brand-new software suite for ingesting both FOIA requests and appeals was launched by the commission. The most recent edition, known as System 2021, is a replacement for a system that has been around since 2015. The Commission notes that applicants can continue to use the old system to check the status of earlier requests, but only until March 12.
FOIA requests will also be accepted by the commission via postal mail, email, and fax.
Author: Emely Rivas
Source :White, E. (2021, February 01). Pandemic Pandemic has caused major delays in FOIA requests. Federal News Network. https://federalnewsnetwork.com/federal-newscast/2021/02/pandemic-has-caused-major-delays-in-foia-requests/