United States Government Accountability Office

For Release on Delivery

Expected at 2:00 p.m. EDT on 

Wednesday, May 11, 2005 

GAO Testimony before the Subcommittee on 

Government Management, Finance and 

Accountability, Committee on Government 

Reform, House of Representatives 

GAO-05-648T 

INFORMATION 

MANAGEMENT 

Implementation of the 

Freedom of 

Information Act 

Statement of Linda D. Koontz 

Director, Information Management Issues 
What GAO Found

United States Government Accountability Office

Why GAO Did This Study

Highlights

Accountability Integrity Reliability

www.gao.gov/cgi-bin/getrpt?GAO-05-648T.

To view the full product, including the scope 

and methodology, click on the link above. 

For more information, contact Linda Koontz at 

202-512-6240, or koontzl@gao.gov. 

Highlights of GAO-05-648T, a testimony 

before the Subcommittee on Government 

Management, Finance, and Accountability, 

Committee on Government Reform, 

House of Representatives 

May 11, 2005

INFORMATION MANAGEMENT 

Implementation of the Freedom of 

Information Act 

Although the specific details of processes for handling FOIA requests vary 

among agencies, the major steps in handling a request are similar across the 

government. Agencies receive requests, usually in writing (although they 

may accept requests by telephone or electronically), which can be submitted 

by any organization or member of the public. Once requests are received, the 

agency responds through a process that includes several phases: initial 

processing, searching for and retrieving responsive records, preparing 

responsive records for release, approving the release of the records, and 

releasing the records to the requester. Figure 1 is an overview of the FOIA 

process, from the receipt of a request to the release of records. 

According to data reported by agencies in their annual FOIA reports, citizens 

have been requesting and receiving an ever-increasing amount of 

information from the federal government through FOIA. The number of 

requests that agencies received increased by 71 percent from 2002 to 2004. 

Further, agencies reported they have been processing more requests—68 

percent more from 2002 to 2004. For 92 percent of requests processed in 

2004, agencies reported that responsive records were provided in full to 

requesters. However, the number of pending requests carried over from year 

to year—known as the backlog—has also been increasing, rising 14 percent 

since 2002. 

Figure 1: Overview of Generic FOIA Process 

The Freedom of Information Act 

(FOIA) establishes that federal 

agencies must provide the public 

with access to government 

information, thus enabling them to 

learn about government operations 

and decisions. To help ensure 

appropriate implementation, the 

act requires that agencies report 

annually to the Attorney General, 

providing specific information 

about their FOIA operations. GAO 

has reported previously on the 

contents of these annual reports 

for 25 major agencies. 

GAO was asked to describe the 

FOIA process and discuss the 

reported implementation of FOIA. 
Page 1 GAO-05-648T 

Mr. Chairman and Members of the Subcommittee: 

I appreciate the opportunity to participate in the Subcommittee’s 

hearing on the implementation of the Freedom of Information Act 

(FOIA).1 Generally speaking, FOIA establishes that federal agencies 

must provide the public with access to government information, 

thus enabling them to learn about government operations and 

decisions. Specific requests by the public for information through 

the act have led to disclosure of waste, fraud, abuse, and 

wrongdoing in the government, as well as the identification of 

unsafe consumer products, harmful drugs, and serious health 

hazards. To help ensure appropriate implementation, the act 

requires that agencies report annually to the Attorney General, 

providing specific information about their FOIA operations. 

As requested, in my remarks today, I will describe the FOIA process 

at federal agencies and discuss the implementation of FOIA. To 

develop a description of the FOIA process at federal agencies, we 

compiled and analyzed information from Department of Justice 

documentation and from our previous reports.2

 To assess 

implementation of FOIA, we examined, consolidated, and analyzed 

annual report data for fiscal years 2002 through 2004 from 25 major 

agencies3 (herein we refer to this scope as governmentwide). We did 

 1

 See 5 U.S.C. § 552. 

2

 GAO, Information Management: Progress in Implementing the 1996 Electronic 

Freedom of Information Act Amendments, GAO-01-378 (Washington, D.C.: Mar. 16, 2001); 

Information Management: Update on Implementation of the 1996 Electronic Freedom of 

Information Act Amendments, GAO-02-493 (Washington, D.C.: Aug. 30, 2002); and 

Information Management: Update on Freedom of Information Act Implementation 

Status, GAO-04-257 (Washington, D.C.: Feb. 18, 2004). 

3

 The agencies included the 24 agencies covered by the Chief Financial Officers Act and the 

Central Intelligence Agency. These 24 departments and agencies are the Departments of 

Agriculture, Commerce, Defense, Education, Energy, Health and Human Services, 

Homeland Security, Housing and Urban Development, the Interior, Justice, Labor, State, 

Transportation, the Treasury, and Veterans Affairs; Environmental Protection Agency; 

General Services Administration; National Aeronautics and Space Administration; National 

Science Foundation; Nuclear Regulatory Commission; Office of Personnel Management; 

Small Business Administration; Social Security Administration; and U.S. Agency for 

International Development. For fiscal year 2002, we included the Federal Emergency 

Management Agency. For fiscal years 2003 and 2004, we included the Department of 

Homeland Security, which then incorporated the Federal Emergency Management Agency. 
Page 2 GAO-05-648T 

not independently verify the accuracy of the data provided in agency 

annual reports. We discussed the content of this statement with an 

official of the Department of Justice’s Office of Information and 

Privacy to confirm the accuracy of our information. We performed 

our work from April 2005 to May 2005, in accordance with generally 

accepted government auditing standards. 

Results in Brief 

Although the specific details of processes for handling FOIA 

requests vary among agencies, the major steps in processing a 

request are similar across the government. Agencies receive 

requests, usually in writing (although they may accept requests by 

telephone or electronically), which can be submitted by any 

organization or member of the public. Once received, the request 

goes through several phases, which include initial processing, 

searching for and retrieving responsive records, preparing 

responsive records for release, approving the release of the records, 

and releasing the records to the requester. 

Citizens have been requesting and receiving an ever-increasing 

amount of information from the federal government through FOIA. 

Based on data reported by agencies in their annual FOIA reports, 

the number of requests received by agencies increased by 71 

percent from 2002 to 2004. As more and more requests come in, 

agencies also report that they have been processing more of them—

68 percent more from 2002 to 2004. For 92 percent of requests 

processed in 2004, agencies reported that responsive records were 

provided in full to requesters. However, the number of pending 

requests carried over from year to year—known as the backlog—

has also been increasing, rising 14 percent since 2002. 

Background 

FOIA, which was originally enacted in 1966 and subsequently 

amended several times, establishes a legal right of access to 

government records and information, on the basis of the principles 
Page 3 GAO-05-648T 

of openness and accountability in government. Before the act, an 

individual seeking access to federal records had faced the burden of 

establishing a right to examine them. FOIA established a “right to 

know” standard for access, instead of a “need to know,” and shifted 

the burden of proof from the individual to the government agency 

seeking to deny access. The act has been amended several times, 

including in 1974, 1976, 1986, 1996, and 2002. 

FOIA provides the public with access to government information 

either through “affirmative agency disclosure”—publishing 

information in the Federal Register or making it available in reading 

rooms—or in response to public requests for disclosure. Public 

requests for disclosure of records are the best known type of FOIA 

disclosure. Any member of the public may request access to 

information held by federal agencies, without showing a need or 

reason for seeking the information. 

The act prescribes nine specific categories of information that is 

exempt from disclosure; agencies may cite these exemptions in 

denying access to material (see table 1). The act also includes 

provisions for excluding specific sensitive records held by law 

enforcement agencies. The act requires agencies to notify requesters 

of the reasons for any adverse determination and grants requesters 

the right to appeal agency decisions to deny access. 
Page 4 GAO-05-648T 

Table 1: Freedom of Information Act Exemptions 

Exemption number Matters that are exempt from FOIA 

(1) (A) Specifically authorized under criteria established by an Executive Order to be kept secret in the interest of 

national defense or foreign policy and (B) are in fact properly classified pursuant to such Executive Order. 

(2) Related solely to the internal personnel rules and practices of an agency. 

(3) Specifically exempted from disclosure by statute (other than section 552b of this title), provided that such 

statute (A) requires that matters be withheld from the public in such a manner as to leave no discretion on the 

issue, or (B) establishes particular criteria for withholding or refers to particular types of matters to be withheld.

(4) Trade secrets and commercial or financial information obtained from a person and privileged or confidential. 

(5) Inter-agency or intra-agency memorandums or letters which would not be available by law to a party other 

than an agency in litigation with the agency.

(6) Personnel and medical files and similar files the disclosure of which would constitute a clearly unwarranted 

invasion of personal privacy. 

(7) Records or information compiled for law enforcement purposes, but only to the extent that the production of 

such law enforcement records or information 

(A) could reasonably be expected to interfere with enforcement proceedings; 

(B) would deprive a person of a right to a fair trial or impartial adjudication; 

(C) could reasonably be expected to constitute an unwarranted invasion of personal privacy; 

(D) could reasonably be expected to disclose the identity of a confidential source, including a State, local, or 

foreign agency or authority or any private institution which furnished information on a confidential basis, 

and, in the case of a record or information compiled by a criminal law enforcement authority in the course of 

a criminal investigation or by an agency conducting a lawful national security intelligence investigation, 

information furnished by confidential source; 

(E) would disclose techniques and procedures for law enforcement investigations or prosecutions, or would 

disclose guidelines for law enforcement investigations or prosecutions if such disclosure could reasonably 

be expected to risk circumvention of the law; or 

(F) could reasonably be expected to endanger the life or physical safety of an individual. 

(8) Contained in or related to examination, operating, or condition reports prepared by, on behalf of, or for the use 

of an agency responsible for the regulation of supervision of financial institutions. 

(9) Geological and geophysical information and data, including maps, concerning wells. 

Source: 5 U.S.C. § 552(b)(1) through (b)(9). 

In addition, agencies are required to meet certain time frames for 

making key determinations: whether to comply with requests (20 

business days from receipt of the request), responses to appeals of 

adverse determinations (20 business days from filing of the appeal), 

and whether to provide expedited processing of requests (10 

business days from receipt of the request). Congress did not 

establish a statutory deadline for making releasable records 

available, but instead required agencies to make them available 

promptly. 
Page 5 GAO-05-648T 

We have reported several times in the past on the contents of the 

annual reports of 25 major agencies, covering fiscal years 1998 

through 2002. We first reported information in 20014 on the 

implementation of the 1996 amendments to FOIA. At that time we 

recommended that Justice (1) encourage agencies to make material 

electronically available and (2) review agency annual reports to 

address specific data quality issues. Since our report was issued, 

Justice has taken steps to implement both of these 

recommendations. In 2002, we reported5 that the number of requests 

received and processed appeared for most agencies—except the 

Department of Veterans Affairs—to peak in fiscal year 2000 and 

decline slightly in fiscal year 2001. In our 2004 report,6 we reported 

that between 2000 and 2002, the number of requests received and 

processed declined when the Department of Veterans Affairs is 

excluded. We also reported that agencies’ backlogs of pending 

requests were declining, and that the number of FOIA requests 

denied governmentwide had dropped dramatically between 2000 

and 2001 and remained low in 2002. 

Roles of Justice and OMB in FOIA Implementation 

The Department of Justice and the Office of Management and 

Budget (OMB) both have roles in the implementation of FOIA. The 

Department of Justice oversees agencies’ compliance with FOIA and 

is the primary source of policy guidance for agencies. OMB is 

responsible for issuing guidelines on the uniform schedule of fees. 

Specifically, Justice’s requirements under the act are to 

● make agencies’ annual FOIA reports available through a single 

electronic access point and notify Congress as to their availability; 

 4

 GAO, Information Management: Progress in Implementing the 1996 Electronic 

Freedom of Information Act Amendments, GAO-01-378 (Washington, D.C.: Mar. 16, 2001). 

5

 GAO, Information Management: Update on Implementation of the 1996 Electronic 

Freedom of Information Act Amendments, GAO-02-493 (Washington, D.C.: Aug. 30, 2002). 

6

 GAO, Information Management: Update on Freedom of Information Act 

Implementation Status, GAO-04-257 (Washington, D.C.: Feb. 18, 2004). 
Page 6 GAO-05-648T 

● in consultation with OMB, develop guidelines for the required 

annual agency reports, so that all reports use common terminology 

and follow a similar format; and 

● submit an annual report on FOIA statistics and the efforts 

undertaken by Justice to encourage agency compliance. 

Within the Department of Justice, the Office of Information and 

Privacy (OIP) has lead responsibility for providing guidance and 

support to federal agencies on FOIA issues. OIP first issued 

guidelines for agency preparation and submission of annual reports 

in the spring of 1997 and periodically issued additional guidance. 

OIP also periodically issues guidance on compliance, provides 

training, and maintains a counselors service to provide expert, oneon-one assistance to agency FOIA staff. Further, it also makes a 

variety of FOIA and Privacy Act resources available to agencies and 

the public via the Justice Web site and on-line bulletins. 

In addition, the act requires OMB to issue guidelines to “provide for 

a uniform schedule of fees for all agencies.”7

 In charging fees for 

responding to requests, agencies are required to conform to the 

OMB guidelines. Further, in 1987, the Department of Justice issued 

guidelines on waiving fees when requests are determined to be in 

the public interest. Under the guidelines, requests for waivers or 

reduction of fees are to be considered on a case-by-case basis, 

taking into account both the public interest and the requester’s 

commercial interests. 

The 1996 FOIA amendments, referred to as e-FOIA, require that 

agencies submit a report to the Attorney General on or before 

February 1 of each year that covers the preceding fiscal year and 

includes information about agencies’ FOIA operations. 8 The 

following are examples of information that is to be included in these 

reports: 

 7

 This provision was added by the Freedom of Information Reform Act of 1986 (Pub. L. 99-

570). See OMB, Uniform Freedom of Information Act Fee Schedule and Guidelines, 52 FR 

10011 (Mar. 27, 1987), effective April 27, 1987. 

8

 5 U.S.C.§ 552(e). 
Page 7 GAO-05-648T 

● number of requests received, processed, and pending; 

● median number of days taken by the agency to process different 

types of requests; 

● determinations made by the agency not to disclose information and 

the reasons for not disclosing the information; 

● disposition of administrative appeals by requesters; 

● information on the costs associated with handling of FOIA requests; 

and 

● full-time-equivalent staffing information. 

In addition to providing their annual reports to the Attorney 

General, agencies are to make them available to the public in 

electronic form. The Attorney General is required to make all agency 

reports available on line at a single electronic access point and 

report to Congress no later than April 1 of each year that these 

reports are available in electronic form. 

Disposition of Agency Requests 

As agencies process FOIA requests, they generally place them in one 

of four possible disposition categories: grants, partial grants, 

denials, and “not disclosed for other reasons.” These categories are 

defined as follows: 

● Grants: agency decisions to disclose all requested records in full. 

● Partial grants: decisions to withhold some records in whole or in 

part, because such information was determined to fall within one or 

more exemptions. 

● Denials: agency decisions not to release any part of the requested 

records because all information in the records is determined to be 

exempt under one or more statutory exemptions. 

● Not disclosed for other reasons: agency decisions not to release 

requested information for any of a variety of reasons other than 

statutory exemptions from disclosing records. The categories and 

definitions of these “other” reasons for nondisclosure are shown in 

table 2. 
Page 8 GAO-05-648T 

Table 2: “Other” Reasons for Nondisclosure 

Category Definition 

No records The agency searched and found no record responsive to the request. 

Referrals The agency referred records responsive to the request to another agency. 

Request withdrawn The requester withdrew the request. 

Fee-related reasons The requester refused to commit to pay fees (or other reasons related to fees). 

Records not reasonably 

described 

The requester did not describe the records sought with sufficient specificity to allow them to be located 

with a reasonable amount of effort. 

Not a proper FOIA request The request was not a FOIA request for one of several procedural reasons. 

Not an agency record The requested record was not within the agency’s control. 

Duplicate request The request was submitted more than once by the same requester. 

Source: Department of Justice. 

When a FOIA request is denied in full or in part, or the requested 

records are not disclosed for other reasons, the requester is entitled 

to be told the reason for the denial, to appeal the denial, and to 

challenge it in court. 

Fee Structure and Fee Waivers 

FOIA also authorizes agencies to recoup certain direct costs 

associated with processing requests, and agencies also have the 

discretion to reduce or waive fees under various circumstances. 

Agency determinations about fees and fee waivers are complex 

decisions that include determining (1) a requester’s fee category, 

(2) whether a fee waiver is to be granted, and (3) the actual fees to 

be charged. 

FOIA stipulates three types of fee categories for requesters: 

(1) commercial; (2) educational or noncommercial scientific 

institutions and representatives of the news media; and (3) other. 

Further, fees can be charged for three types of FOIA-related 

activities—search, duplication, and review—depending on the 

requester’s fee category. In addition, fees may not be charged to a 

requester in certain situations, such as when a fee waiver is granted 

or when the applicable fees are below a certain threshold. 

Commercial users can be charged for the broadest range of FOIArelated activities, including document search, review, and 

duplication. Commercial use is defined in the OMB fee schedule 

guidelines as “a use or purpose that furthers the commercial, trade 
Page 9 GAO-05-648T 

or profit interests of the requester or the person on whose behalf the 

request is being made.” The second category exempts search and 

review fees for documents sought for noncommercial use by 

educational or noncommercial scientific institutions, and for 

documents sought by representatives of the news media. The third 

category of fees, which applies to all requesters who do not fall 

within either of the other two categories, allows for “reasonable” 

charges for document search and duplication. Table 3 shows the 

FOIA-related activities for which agencies can charge by fee 

category, as stipulated in the act. 

Table 3: FOIA Charges by Category 

 Activities for which agencies can charge 

Category of requester Search Review Duplication 

Category 1: Commercial requester Yes Yes Yes 

Category 2: Educational or 

noncommercial scientific institutions and 

representatives of the news media 

No No Yes 

(100 pages free) 

Category 3: Other Yes 

(2 hours free) 

No Yes 

(100 pages free) 

Source: GAO analysis of 5 U.S.C. § 552 (a)(4)(A)(iv). 

Although the act generally requires that requesters pay fees to cover 

the costs of processing their requests, in certain circumstances, fees 

are not to be charged. For example, as stipulated in the act, fees 

may not be charged when the government’s cost of collecting and 

processing the fee is likely to equal or exceed the amount of the fee 

itself. 

Further, under certain circumstances, the act requires an agency to 

furnish documents without charge, or at reduced charges. This is 

commonly referred to as the FOIA fee-waiver provision. Based on 

this provision, an agency must provide a fee waiver if two 

conditions are met: 

● disclosure of the requested information is in the public interest 

because it is likely to contribute significantly to public 

understanding of the operations or activities of the government, and 

● disclosure of the information is not primarily in the commercial 

interest of the requester. 
Page 10 GAO-05-648T 

Under the act and guidance, when these requirements are both 

satisfied, based upon information supplied by a requester or 

otherwise made known to the agency, the fee waiver or reduction is 

to be granted by the FOIA officer. When one or both of these 

requirements are not satisfied, a fee waiver is not warranted. As 

these criteria suggest, fee waivers are to be granted on a case-bycase basis. Individuals who receive fee waivers in some cases may 

not necessarily receive them in other cases. 

Relationship of FOIA and the Privacy Act 

In addition to FOIA, the Privacy Act of 19749 includes provisions 

granting individuals the right to gain access to and correct 

information about themselves held by federal agencies. Thus the 

Privacy Act serves as a second major legal basis, in addition to 

FOIA, for the public to use in obtaining government information. 

The Privacy Act also places limitations on agencies’ collection, 

disclosure, and use of personal information. 

Although the two laws differ in scope, procedures in both FOIA and 

the Privacy Act permit individuals to seek access to records about 

themselves—known as “first-party” access. Depending on the 

individual circumstances, one law may allow broader access or 

more extensive procedural rights than the other, or access may be 

denied under one act and allowed under the other. Subsequently, 

the Department of Justice’s Office of Information and Privacy (OIP) 

issued guidance that it is “good policy for agencies to treat all firstparty access requests as FOIA requests (as well as possibly Privacy 

Act requests), regardless of whether the FOIA is cited in a 

requester’s letter.” This guidance was intended to help ensure that 

requesters receive the fullest possible response to their inquiries, 

regardless of which law they cite. For more information about FOIA 

and the Privacy Act, see appendix I. 

 9

 See 5 U.S.C. § 552a. 
Page 11 GAO-05-648T 

The FOIA Process at Federal Agencies 

Although the specific details of processes for handling FOIA 

requests vary among agencies, the major steps in handling a request 

are similar across the government. Agencies receive requests, 

usually in writing (although they may accept requests by telephone 

or electronically), which can come from any organization or 

member of the public. Once received, the request goes through 

several phases, which include initial processing, searching for and 

retrieving responsive records, preparing responsive records for 

release, approving the release of the records, and releasing the 

records to the requester. Figure 1 is an overview of the process, 

from the receipt of a request to the release of records. 

Figure 1: Overview of Generic FOIA Process 

During the initial processing phase, a request is logged into the 

agency’s FOIA system, and a case file is started. The request is then 

reviewed to determine its scope, estimate fees, and provide an initial 

response to the requester. After this point, the FOIA staff begins its 

search to retrieve responsive records. This step may include 

searching for records from multiple locations and program offices. 

After potentially responsive records are located, the documents are 

reviewed to ensure that they are within the scope of the request. 
Page 12 GAO-05-648T 

During the next two phases, the agency ensures that appropriate 

information is to be released under the provisions of the act. First, 

the agency reviews the responsive records to make any redactions 

based on the statutory exemptions. Once the exemption review is 

complete, the final set of responsive records is turned over to the 

FOIA office, which calculates appropriate fees, if applicable. Before 

release, the redacted responsive records are then given a final 

review, possibly by the agency’s general counsel, and then a 

response letter is generated, summarizing the agency’s actions 

regarding the request. Finally, the responsive records are released to 

the requester. 

Some requests are relatively simple to process, such as requests for 

specific pieces of information that the requester sends directly to 

the appropriate office. Other requests may require more extensive 

processing, depending on their complexity, the volume of 

information involved, the need for the agency FOIA office to work 

with offices that have relevant subject-matter expertise to find and 

obtain information, the need for a FOIA officer to review and redact 

information in the responsive material, the need to communicate 

with the requester about the scope of the request, and the need to 

communicate with the requester about the fees that will be charged 

for fulfilling the request (or whether fees will be waived). 

Specific details of agency processes for handling requests vary, 

depending on the agency’s organizational structure and the 

complexity of the requests received. While some agencies centralize 

processing in one main office, other agencies have separate FOIA 

offices for each agency component and field office. Agencies also 

vary in how they allow requests to be made. Depending on the 

agency, requesters can submit requests by telephone, fax, letter, or 

e-mail or through the Web. In addition, agencies may process 

requests in two ways, known as “multitrack” and “single track.” 

Multitrack processing involves dividing requests into two groups: 

(1) simple requests requiring relatively minimal review, which are 

placed in one processing track, and (2) more voluminous and 

complex requests, which are placed in another track. In contrast, 

single-track processing does not distinguish between simple and 

complex requests. With single-track processing, agencies process all 

requests on a first-in/first-out basis. Agencies can also process FOIA 
Page 13 GAO-05-648T 

requests on an expedited basis when a requester has shown a 

compelling need or urgency for the information. 

FOIA Implementation 

Citizens have been requesting and receiving an ever-increasing 

amount of information from the federal government, as reflected in 

the increasing number of FOIA requests that have been received and 

processed in recent years. In fiscal year 2004, the 25 agencies we 

reviewed reported receiving and processing about 4 million 

requests, an increase of 25 percent compared to 2003. From 2002 to 

2004, the number of requests received increased by 71 percent, and 

the number of requests processed increased by 68 percent. 

The 25 agencies we reviewed handle over 97 percent of FOIA 

requests governmentwide. They include the 24 major agencies 

covered by the Chief Financial Officers Act, as well as the Central 

Intelligence Agency and, beginning in 2003, the Department of 

Homeland Security (DHS) in place of the Federal Emergency 

Management Agency (FEMA). While the creation of DHS in fiscal 

year 2003 led to a shift in some FOIA requests from agencies 

affected by the creation of the new department, the same major 

component entities are reflected in all 3 years that we reviewed. For 

example, in 2002, before DHS was formed, FEMA independently 

reported on its FOIA requests, and its annual report is reflected in 

our analysis. However, beginning in 2003, FEMA became part of 

DHS, and thus its FOIA requests are reflected in DHS figures for 

2003 and 2004. 

In recent years, Veterans Affairs (VA) has accounted for a large 

portion—about half—of governmentwide FOIA requests received 

and processed. This is because the agency includes in its totals the 

many first-party medical records requests that it processes. 

However, VA’s numbers have not driven the large increases in FOIA 

requests. In fact, in 2004, the agency had a decline in the number of 

requests received, processed, and pending compared to 2003. Thus, 
Page 14 GAO-05-648T 

when VA is excluded from governmentwide10 FOIA request totals, 

the increase between 2003 and 2004 changes from 25 percent to 61 

percent. Figure 2 shows total requests reported governmentwide for 

fiscal years 2002 through 2004, with VA’s share shown separately. 

Figure 2: Total FOIA Requests with VA Shown Separately, Fiscal Years 2002–2004 

Note: For 2004, data were unavailable for the Agency for International Development and the 

Environmental Protection Agency.

 10 For 2004, data were unavailable for the Agency for International Development and the 

Environmental Protection Agency. 
Page 15 GAO-05-648T 

In 2004, most dispositions of FOIA requests (92 percent) were 

reported to have been granted in full, as shown in table 4. Only 

relatively small numbers were partially granted (3 percent), denied 

(1 percent), or not disclosed for other reasons (5 percent). When VA 

is excluded from the totals, the percentages remain roughly 

comparable. 

Table 4: Disposition of Processed Requests for Fiscal Year 2004 

Disposition 

Number of 

requests (all)

Percentage of 

requests (all) 

Number of 

requests 

(without VA)

Percentage of 

requests 

(without VA)

Grants 3.6 million 92 1.9 million 87

Partial grants 113,000 3 105,000 5

Denial 22,000 1 15,000 1

Not disclosed for 

other reasons 

196,000 5 158,000 7

Source: FOIA annual reports for 2004 (self-reported data). 

Note: Totals are rounded. Because of rounding, the total percentage of requests processed exceeds 

100 percent. 

Agencies other than VA that reported receiving large numbers of 

requests in fiscal year 2004 included the Social Security 

Administration (SSA), the Department of Health and Human 

Services (HHS), and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), 

as shown in figure 3. Agencies other than VA, SSA, HHS, and DHS 

accounted for only 9 percent of all requests. 
Page 16 GAO-05-648T 

Figure 3: Number of Requests Received by Agency for 2004 

Note: Because of rounding, the total percentage received exceeds 100 percent. 

Remaining agencies include the Central Intelligence Agency, Commerce, Energy, Interior, Labor, 

Transportation, Education, the General Services Administration, Housing and Urban Development, 

the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, the 

National Science Foundation, the Office of Personnel Management, the Small Business 

Administration, and State. Information was not available for the Agency for International Development 

or the Environmental Protection Agency at the time of our review. 

Three of the four agencies that handled the largest numbers of 

requests—VA, SSA, and HHS—also granted the largest percentages 

of requests in full. However, as shown in figure 4, the numbers of 

fully granted requests varied widely among agencies in fiscal year 

2004. For example, three agencies—State, the Central Intelligence 

Agency, and the National Science Foundation —made full grants of 

requested records in less than 20 percent of the cases they 
Page 17 GAO-05-648T 

processed. Eight of the 25 agencies we reviewed made full grants of 

requested records in over 60 percent of their cases.11 This variance 

among agencies in the disposition of requests has been evident in 

prior years as well.12

 11 Information for the Agency for International Development and the Environmental 

Protection Agency was not available for fiscal year 2004. 

12 See GAO, Information Management: Progress in Implementing the 1996 Electronic 

Freedom of Information Act Amendments, GAO-01-378 (Washington, D.C.: Mar. 16, 2001); 

and Information Management: Update on Freedom of Information Act Implementation 

Status, GAO-04-257 (Washington, D.C.: Feb. 18, 2004). 
Page 18 GAO-05-648T 

Figure 4: Disposition of Processed Requests, by Agency (Fiscal Year 2004) 

Note: Abbreviations are as follows: CIA: Central Intelligence Agency; DHS: Department of Homeland 

Security; DOC: Department of Commerce; DOD: Department of Defense; DOE: Department of 

Energy; DOI: Department of Interior; DOJ: Department of Justice; DOL: Department of Labor; DOT: 

Department of Transportation; ED: Department of Education; GSA: General Services Administration; 

HHS: Health and Human Services; HUD: Housing and Urban Development; NASA: National 

Aeronautics and Space Administration; NRC: Nuclear Regulatory Commission; NSF: National 

Science Foundation; OPM: Office of Personnel Management; SBA: Small Business Administration; 

SSA: Social Security Administration; State: Department of State; Treas: Department of the Treasury; 

USDA: Department of Agriculture; VA: Veterans Affairs. Reports were not available for the Agency for 

International Development (AID) or the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). 

Agency Backlogs Have Increased 

In addition to processing greater numbers of requests, many 

agencies (13 of 25) also reported that their backlogs of pending 

requests—requests carried over from one year to the next—have 

increased since 2002. In 2002, pending requests governmentwide 
Page 19 GAO-05-648T 

were reported to number about 140,000; whereas in 2004, about 

160,000—14 percent more—were reported. 

Mixed results were reported in reducing backlogs at the agency 

level—some backlogs decreased while others increased, as reported 

from 2002 through 2004. The number of requests that an agency 

processes relative to the number it receives is an indicator of 

whether an agency’s backlog is increasing or decreasing. Six of the 

25 agencies we reviewed reported processing fewer requests than 

they received each year for fiscal years 2002, 2003, and 2004—

therefore increasing their backlogs (see fig. 4). Nine additional 

agencies also processed less than they received in two of these three 

years. In contrast, five agencies (CIA, Energy, Labor, SBA, and 

State) had processing rates above 100 percent in all three years, 

meaning that each made continued progress in reducing their 

backlogs of pending cases. Thirteen agencies were able to make at 

least a small reduction in their backlogs in 1 or more years between 

fiscal years 2002 and 2004. 
Page 20 GAO-05-648T 

Figure 1: Agency Processing Rate for 25 Agencies 

Note: Abbreviations are as in figure 3. 

The agency processing rate is defined as the number of requests processed in a given year 

compared with the requests received, expressed as a percentage. 

In 2002, FEMA data were used, and for 2003 and 2004 DHS data were used. 

For 2004, data were unavailable for the Agency for International Development and the Environmental 

Protection Agency. 

FOIA does not require agencies to make records available within a 

specific amount of time. As I mentioned earlier, Congress did not 

establish a statutory deadline for making releasable records 

available, but instead required agencies to make them available 

promptly. Agencies, however, are required to inform requesters 

within 20 days of receipt of a request as to whether the agency will 

comply with the request. 

For 2004, the reported time required to process requests by track 

varied considerably among agencies (see table 5). Eleven agency 
Page 21 GAO-05-648T 

components reported processing simple requests in less than 10 

days, as evidenced by the lower value of the reported ranges. These 

components are part of the Departments of Energy, Education, 

Homeland Security, Health and Human Services, the Interior, 

Justice, Labor, Transportation, the Treasury, and Agriculture. On the 

other hand, some organizations are taking much more time to 

process simple requests, such as components of Energy, Interior, 

and Justice. This can be seen in upper end values of the median 

ranges greater than 100 days. Components of four agencies (Interior, 

Education, Treasury, and VA) reported processing complex requests 

quickly—in less than 10 days. In contrast, several other agencies 

(DHS, Energy, Justice, Transportation, Education, HHS, HUD, State, 

Treasury, and Agriculture) reported components taking longer to 

process complex requests, with median days greater than 100. Four 

agencies (HHS, NSF, OPM, and SBA) reported using single-track 

processing. The processing times for single track varied from 5 days 

(at SBA) to 182 days (at an HHS component). 

Table 5: Median Days to Process Requests for 2004, by Track 

 Type of request processing track 

Agency Simple Complex Single Expedited

AID — — — — 

CIA 7 63 — 10

DHS 8–84 5–111 — 3–45 

DOC 13 41 — 5 

DOD 17 59 — 1 

DOE 1–158 18–916 — 5–7 

DOI 3–834 0–99 — 2–64 

DOJ 0–137 6–636 — 1–195 

DOL 2–30 18–60 — 2–25 

DOT 1–68 23–135 — 5–57 

ED 0–30 2–134 — 3–21 

EPA — — — — 

GSA — 14 — — 

HHS 9–25 60–325 5–182 2–66 

HUD 21–95 30–161 — 9–42 

NASA 18 33 — 26 

NRC 11 47 — 60 

NSF — — 20 — 

OPM — — 9 — 

SBA — — 5 — 
Page 22 GAO-05-648T 

 Type of request processing track 

Agency Simple Complex Single Expedited

SSA 19 37 — — 

State 6 209 — 184 

Treas 2–10 4–172 — 5–10

USDA 1–77 12–800 — 1–53 

VA — 4–49 — 1–18 

Source: FOIA annual reports for fiscal years 2004 (self-reported data). 

Note: For agencies that reported processing times by component, the table indicates the range of 

reported component median times. A dash indicates that the agency did not report any median time 

for a given track in a given year. For 2004, EPA and AID annual reports were not available. 

Based on the data in agency annual reports, it was not feasible to 

determine trends at the agency level in the amount of time taken to 

process requests (reported annually as the median number of days 

to process requests). This is largely because many agencies have 

reported median processing times at a component level, making it 

difficult to derive overall agency median processing times. Nearly 

half (12 of 25) of the agencies reported median times at a 

component level. Although this practice does not provide agencylevel indicators, it provides visibility into differences in processing 

times among the various components of agencies, which can 

sometimes be substantial. 

In summary, FOIA continues to be a valuable tool for citizens to 

obtain information about the operation and decisions of the federal 

government. Agencies have received steadily increasing numbers of 

requests and have also continued to increase the number of requests 

that they process. Despite this increase in processing requests, the 

backlog of pending cases continues to grow. Given this steadily 

increasing workload, it will remain critically important that strong 

oversight of FOIA implementation continue in order to ensure that 

agencies remain responsive to the needs of citizens. 

Mr. Chairman, this completes my prepared statement. I would be 

happy to respond to any questions you or other Members of the 

Subcommittee may have at this time. 
Page 23 GAO-05-648T 

Contact and Acknowledgements 

If you should have questions about this testimony, please contact 

me at (202) 512-6240 or via e-mail at koontzl@gao.gov. Other major 

contributors included Barbara Collier, John de Ferrari, and 

Elizabeth Zhao. 
Page 24 GAO-05-648T 

Appendix I: Relationship of FOIA and the 

Privacy Act of 1974 

In addition to rights under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), 

individuals also have rights of access to government information 

under the Privacy Act of 1974. The Privacy Act restricts the federal 

government’s use of personal information. More precisely, it 

governs use of information about an individual that is maintained in 

a “system of records,” which is any group of records containing 

information about an individual from which information is retrieved 

by individual identifier. With regard to access, the Privacy Act gives 

individuals the right to have access to information about themselves 

that is maintained in a system of records so that they can review, 

challenge, and correct the accuracy of personal information held by 

the government. 

While both laws generally give individuals the right of access to 

information (subject to exemptions), there are several important 

differences: 

● While FOIA generally gives a right of access to all federal 

government records, the Privacy Act applies only to records 

pertaining to an individual that are retrieved by individual identifier. 

● While FOIA generally gives “any person” a right of access to records, 

the Privacy Act gives access to only the subject of a particular 

record and only if that person is a U.S. citizen or a lawfully admitted 

permanent resident alien. 

● While FOIA exempts categories of records from public release, 

including where disclosure would constitute an unwarranted 

invasion of personal privacy,13 the Privacy Act’s exemptions pertain 

to a variety of the act’s requirements, not just access (e.g., that 

agencies account for all disclosures of personal information, that 

they maintain only relevant and necessary personal information, and 

that they notify the public of their sources for obtaining records of 

personal information). 

 13 5 U.S.C. § 552(b)(6) and (b)(7). 
Page 25 GAO-05-648T 

Under current Department of Justice guidance, agencies are to treat 

an individual’s requests for his or her own records as a request 

under FOIA as well as the Privacy Act. This is intended to ensure 

that individuals are fully afforded their rights under both laws. As a 

practical matter, it appears that agencies generally consider requests 

for access to one’s own records as FOIA requests, without any 

separate accounting as Privacy Act requests. These requests are 

referred to as “first-party requests” and their addition to agency 

FOIA statistics can been seen, for example, in the large numbers of 

FOIA requests reported by agencies such as VA and SSA. 

Apart from questions about the role of the Privacy Act in FOIA 

decisions, privacy questions are often dealt with independently 

under FOIA. The act’s two privacy exemptions [(b)(6) & (7)] protect 

from public release information about individuals in “personnel and 

medical files and similar files” and “information compiled for law 

enforcement purposes,” the disclosure of which would constitute an 

“unwarranted invasion of personal privacy.” These statutory 

provisions have resulted in an analysis that involves a “balancing of 

the public’s right to disclosure against the individual’s right to 

privacy.”14 This approach led, for example, the Supreme Court to 

decide that there is a significant private interest in the “practical 

obscurity” of criminal history records even though they are officially 

public records.15 The development and refinement of such privacy 

principles continues as agencies and the courts make new 

“balancing” decisions in FOIA cases. Accordingly, it is difficult to 

definitively describe the extent of privacy protection under FOIA, or 

to characterize federal privacy protection as limited to the terms of 

the Privacy Act. 

 14 Dept. of the Air Force v. Rose, 425 U.S. 352, 372; U.S. Department of Justice v. Reporters 

Committee for Freedom of the Press, 489 U.S. 749 (1989). 

15 Reporters Committee, at 780. 

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