U.S. NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION MANAGEMENT DIRECTIVE (MD)

For updates or revisions to policies contained in this MD that were published after the MD was signed, 

please see the Yellow Announcement to Management Directive index (YA-to-MD index).

MD 3.1 FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT DT-21-04

Volume 3:

Part 1:

Information Management

Publications, Mail, and Information Disclosure

Approved By: Christopher T. Hanson, Chairman

Date Approved: February 26, 2021

Cert. Date: N/A, for the latest version of any NRC directive or handbook, see the online 

MD Catalog.

Issuing Office: Office of the Chief Information Officer 

Governance and Enterprise Management Services Division

Contact Name: Stephanie Blaney

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

Management Directive 3.1, “Freedom of Information Act (FOIA),” is revised to—

• Reflect changes to policies and regulations (e.g., Federal Energy Regulation 

Commission’s (FERC) regulations);

• Clarify that the Office of the Inspector General (OIG) processes FOIA requests for its 

records;

• Remove the requirement that bracketing be performed in pencil;

• Encourage electronic bracketing or, alternatively, written descriptions of specific 

information being recommended for redaction (a separate document, “How to Respond 

to an Initial FOIA Request,” discusses the software to use for electronic bracketing); and

• Clarify that the FOIA Officer is the denying official for records received from offices that 

report to the EDO.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

I. POLICY................................................................................................................................2

A. Freedom of Information Act (FOIA)................................................................................2

B. Material Not Covered in this Management Directive......................................................3

II. OBJECTIVE.........................................................................................................................3

III. ORGANIZATIONAL RESPONSIBILITIES AND DELEGATIONS OF AUTHORITY...........3

A. Chairman........................................................................................................................3
MD 3.1 FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT Date Approved: 2/26/2021

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B. Commission....................................................................................................................3

C. Inspector General (IG)....................................................................................................4

D. Assistant Inspector General for Investigations (AIGI), Office of the 

Inspector General (OIG).................................................................................................4

E. General Counsel (GC)....................................................................................................4

F. Secretary of the Commission (SECY)............................................................................5

G. Executive Assistant to the Secretary of the Commission (SECY)..................................5

H. Executive Director for Operations (EDO) .......................................................................6

I. Chief Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) Officer...........................................................6

J. Deputy Chief Information Officer....................................................................................7

K. Director, Office of Nuclear Security and Incident Response (NSIR) ..............................7

L. Office Directors, Regional Administrators, and Chairmen of Boards, 

Panels, or Committees...................................................................................................7

M. Freedom of Information Act Officer (FOIA Officer), OCIO..............................................8

N. Senior Management FOIA Official (SMFO)....................................................................9

IV. APPLICABILITY..................................................................................................................9

V. DIRECTIVE HANDBOOK....................................................................................................9

VI. REFERENCES.....................................................................................................................9

I. POLICY

A. Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) 

1. It is the policy of the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) to implement the 

record request provisions of the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) (United States 

Code (U.S.C.) Title 5, Section 552) by responding to requests for records in 

accordance with the requirements established by Code of Federal Regulations

(CFR) Title 10, Part 9, “Public Records.”

2. Any NRC employee who receives, processes, or responds to a FOIA request for 

records shall adhere to the policies and procedures listed in this management 

directive (MD). 
MD 3.1 FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT Date Approved: 2/26/2021

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B. Material Not Covered in this Management Directive

1. This MD does not cover 5 U.S.C. 552(a)(1) and (2) of the FOIA (except for 

subsection (a)(2)(D)). Subsection (a)(1) requires each agency to publish in the 

Federal Register, for the guidance of the public, a range of basic information 

regarding its structure and operations (e.g., agency organization, functions, rules of 

procedure, substantive rules, and statements of general policy). Subsection (a)(2) 

covers certain types of records (e.g., policy statements, administrative staff manuals 

affecting the public, and final opinions and orders in administrative adjudications) that 

must be proactively disclosed in an agency’s electronic reading room without waiting 

for a FOIA request.

2. This MD does not cover information requested in Commission adjudicatory 

proceedings, which are governed by 10 CFR Part 2, “Agency Rules of Practice and 

Procedure.”

3. This MD does not cover provisions of the Privacy Act of 1974. Those provisions are 

covered in MD 3.2, “Privacy Act.”

4. This MD does not cover declassification provisions, which are addressed in 

32 CFR 2001, “Classified National Security Information,” Subpart D, 

“Declassification.”

II. OBJECTIVE

Define responsibilities and authorities for the review and processing of FOIA requests 

and appeals consistent with the requirements and the time limits of the FOIA and 

10 CFR Part 9, Subpart A, “Freedom of Information Act Regulations.”

III. ORGANIZATIONAL RESPONSIBILITIES AND DELEGATIONS OF AUTHORITY

A. Chairman

Designates the agency’s Chief FOIA Officer.

B. Commission

Consistent with the Internal Commission Procedures (available at 

https://www.nrc.gov/about-nrc/policy-making/internal.html), the Commission has the 

following roles and responsibilities.

1. Advises the Executive Assistant to the Secretary of the Commission (SECY), after 

consulting the Office of the General Counsel (OGC), whether to disclose records 

received from or provided to the Commission subject to a FOIA request.
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2. Each Commissioner advises the Executive Assistant to SECY whether to disclose, in 

whole or in part, records that he or she originated or possesses but that are not 

located in the official files of SECY.

3. Advises SECY—

(a) After consulting OGC, whether to disclose records in whole or in part, for an appeal 

of an initial decision denying those records.

(b) Whether to grant, as a matter of discretion, an appeal of an initial decision of boards, 

panels, advisory committees, or offices reporting directly to the Commission.

4. Approves substantive changes to NRC FOIA implementing regulations in 

10 CFR Part 9, Subpart A.

C. Inspector General (IG)

1. Receives and responds to requests for records originated by the Office of the 

Inspector General (OIG) or for which OIG has primary responsibility.

2. Appoints an office FOIA coordinator and an alternate FOIA coordinator to coordinate 

FOIA matters, and a Senior Management FOIA Official (SMFO) to resolve FOIA 

issues.

3. Makes the final determination on a FOIA appeal of an initial decision of the Assistant 

Inspector General for Investigations (AIGI).

4. Determines whether records from OIG that are responsive to FOIA requests can be 

placed in ADAMS.

D. Assistant Inspector General for Investigations (AIGI), Office of the Inspector 

General (OIG)

1. Determines whether to release or withhold records originated within OIG, or records 

for which OIG has principal responsibility.

2. Makes the final determination on responses to initial FOIA requests. 

E. General Counsel (GC)

1. Makes the initial determination whether to release or withhold records that OGC 

originates or for which OGC has primary responsibility.

2. Provides legal advice and recommendations on FOIA-related matters, including the 

releasability of records.

3. Provides recommendations to SECY and the Commission on the initial determination 

on the releasability of records.
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4. Appoints an office FOIA coordinator and an alternate FOIA coordinator to coordinate 

FOIA matters, and an SMFO to resolve FOIA issues.

5. Reviews for legal sufficiency the applicability of exemptions in response to FOIA 

appeals for records that fall under the purview of SECY and the EDO. 

6. Prepares responses for appeals signed by SECY.

7. Prepares responses for appeals to be co-signed by SECY and the Chief FOIA 

Officer.

8. Determines whether records from OGC that are responsive to FOIA requests can be 

placed in ADAMS.

9. Interprets regulations in 10 CFR Part 9, Subpart A, as authorized by 10 CFR 9.5.

F. Secretary of the Commission (SECY)

1. Disseminates requests to the Chairman and the Commissioners, as appropriate, 

asking them to identify records requested under the FOIA.

2. Directs searches of SECY’s official files to identify records requested under the 

FOIA.

3. After consulting with OGC, obtains the views of the Commission on whether to 

disclose records, in whole or in part, in response to initial requests or appeals for 

Commission records and records of former Commissioners.

4. After Commission consultation, makes the final determination upon appeal whether 

to release or withhold records originated or maintained by offices of the 

Commissioners and SECY. 

5. Makes the final determination on an appeal of an initial decision in which records 

were withheld by the Executive Assistant to the Secretary of the Commission, the 

GC, or any office director reporting to the Commission, and signs the appeal 

response letter.

6. Appoints an office FOIA coordinator and an alternate FOIA coordinator to coordinate 

FOIA matters and an SMFO to resolve FOIA issues.

7. After consulting with the Commission, individual Commissioners, or their staff, 

notifies the FOIA office which responsive requests can be placed in ADAMS.

G. Executive Assistant to the Secretary of the Commission (SECY)

1. Serves as the denying official for withheld records of the Commission, a 

Commissioner, or former Commissioners and their staffs.

2. Serves as the denying official for withheld records originated by SECY.
MD 3.1 FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT Date Approved: 2/26/2021

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3. Per 10 CFR 9.25 (g)(2), serves as the denying official for withheld records originated by 

advisory committees established under 10 CFR Part 7, “Advisory Committees,” including 

the Advisory Committee on Reactor Safeguards (ACRS).

4. Per 10 CFR 9.25 (g)(2), makes the final determination whether to release or withhold 

records originated or maintained by offices of the Commissioners and SECY.

H. Executive Director for Operations (EDO)

1. Makes the initial determination whether to release or withhold records maintained in 

the Office of the Executive Director for Operations (OEDO).

2. Delegates to the Chief FOIA Officer the authority to make final determinations on 

administrative appeals made under the FOIA for records maintained by offices that 

report to the EDO, including the initial denial of access to such records.

3. Implements FOIA and NRC procedures for responding to all requests for records that the 

offices reporting to the EDO originate or for which these offices have primary responsibility.

4. Appoints a FOIA coordinator and an alternate FOIA coordinator to coordinate FOIA 

matters on behalf of OEDO and an SMFO to resolve FOIA issues.

I. Chief Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) Officer

1. Serves as the agency’s Chief FOIA Officer, as designated by the Chairman.

2. Ensures that a program to administer the FOIA is effectively implemented within the 

NRC.

3. Makes the final determination on an administrative appeal made under 10 CFR 9.29(d)

by offices that report to the EDO.

4. Provides oversight and direction for agency information management activities.

5. Designates the agency’s FOIA Public Liaisons. 

6. Offers training to agency staff regarding their FOIA responsibilities.

7. Serves as the primary liaison with the Office of Government Information Services 

(OGIS) and the Department of Justice Office of Information Policy (OIP).

8. Performs required review, not less frequently than annually, of all aspects of the 

agency’s administration of the FOIA to ensure compliance with the FOIA, including—

(a) Compliance with agency regulations,

(b) Disclosure of records under paragraphs 5 U.S.C. 552 (a)(2) [proactive disclosure 

provision] and (a)(8) [foreseeable harm standard],

(c) Assessment of fees and fee waivers,
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(d) Timely processing of requests,

(e) Use of exemptions, and

(f) Use of dispute resolution services with OGIS or the FOIA Public Liaison.

J. Deputy Chief Information Officer 

1. Manages the NRC’s Public Document Room program and the NRC Web site that allows 

the public to inspect and copy records as authorized by subsection (a)(2) of the FOIA.

2. Designates the agency’s FOIA Officer.

K. Director, Office of Nuclear Security and Incident Response (NSIR)

1. Advises and assists authorized Safeguards Information (SGI) designators, 

classifiers, and declassifiers with classifying, downgrading, declassifying, or 

decontrolling NRC-originated SGI, classified, or potentially classifiable information 

requested under the FOIA (see MD 12.2, “NRC Classified Information Security 

Program” and MD 12.7, “NRC Safeguards Information Security Program”).

2. Coordinates, through the agency’s FOIA Officer, with other Federal agencies the 

classification, downgrading, declassification, and decontrol of sensitive or classified 

information obtained from these agencies and included in NRC records requested under 

the FOIA.

3. Coordinates with the U.S. Department of Energy the downgrading and 

declassification of Restricted Data, Formerly Restricted Data, and/or Transclassified 

Foreign Nuclear Information requested under the FOIA.

L. Office Directors, Regional Administrators, and Chairmen of Boards, Panels, or

Committees

1. Make the initial determination whether to release or withhold (1) records originated 

by their office, region, board, panel, or committee or (2) records for which their office, 

region, board, panel, or committee has principal responsibility.

2. Implement FOIA and NRC procedures for responding to all requests for records that 

their office, region, board, panel, or committee originated or for which it has primary 

responsibility.

3. Appoint an office, region, board, panel, or committee FOIA coordinator and an 

alternate FOIA coordinator to coordinate FOIA matters, and an SMFO to resolve 

FOIA issues.
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4. When responding to an appeal of an initial disclosure determination, approve their 

office’s, region’s, board’s, panel’s, or committee’s recommendation to continue to 

withhold records, or portions thereof.

5. May delegate discretionary release determinations under 10 CFR 9.25(f) to a named 

designee or position. (See NRC Form 512, “Delegation of Discretionary Release 

Authority,” available in the NRC Forms Library on SharePoint at 

https://usnrc.sharepoint.com/teams/NRC-Forms-Library).

6. Ensure appropriate FOIA coverage; to ensure the NRC meets statutory time limits, 

all office FOIA coordinators must have alternates or backups when away from the 

office for 3 or more consecutive working days.

M. Freedom of Information Act Officer (FOIA Officer), OCIO

1. Administers the FOIA program for the NRC under the direction of the Chief FOIA 

Officer and the Deputy CIO and exercises the functions delegated by 10 CFR Part 9, 

Subpart A, including coordination of agency responses to initial requests and 

appeals of initial denials, maintenance of official FOIA files, and preparation of 

statutorily required reports to the Department of Justice.

2. Reviews records containing information proposed to be withheld, in whole or in part, 

and in consultation with OGC, to identify questions or issues regarding the 

appropriateness of the exemptions cited as the basis for withholding the information. 

3. Makes the final determination whether to withhold records, in consultation with OGC, 

of all NRC offices, regions, boards, panels, and committees, except the offices of the 

Commissioners, OGC, OIG, and SECY. 

4. Makes the initial determination whether to grant or deny a request for a waiver or 

reduction of fees.

5. Makes the initial determination whether to grant or deny a request for expedited 

processing.

6. After consultation, determines whether records of all NRC offices, regions, boards, 

panels, and committees, except the offices of the Commissioners, OGC, OI, OIG, 

and SECY, which are responsive to FOIA requests, can be placed in ADAMS. 

7. Leads the agency’s FOIA training program and provides guidance on FOIA to NRC 

managers, supervisors, and staff.

8. Ensures appropriate FOIA coverage; to ensure the NRC meets statutory time limits, 

all Government Information Specialists must have alternates or backups when away 

from the office for 3 or more consecutive working days. 
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N. Senior Management FOIA Official (SMFO)

1. Appointed by each office director, regional administrator or board, panel, or 

committee chairman and serves as the respective office’s, region’s, board’s, panel’s, 

or committee’s contact to resolve problems that cannot be resolved between OCIO 

FOIA staff and the Office, Region, Board, Panel, or Committee FOIA Coordinator. 

2. Represents the office director, regional administrator, or board, panel, or committee 

chairman in resolving initial disclosure determination issues or delays by their staff in 

responding to FOIA actions. 

3. Assists the office FOIA coordinator in clarifying the scope of requests and identifying 

appropriate office staff to conduct the search for and review of responsive records. 

4. Possesses substantial knowledge of the work and current technical and policy 

considerations within the office, usually at the experience level of GG-15 or higher.

IV. APPLICABILITY

The policy and guidance in this MD apply to all NRC headquarters and regional employees 

and contractors when processing FOIA requests.

V. DIRECTIVE HANDBOOK

Directive Handbook 3.1 contains the procedures and guidelines to implement the FOIA in 

accordance with NRC regulations specified in 10 CFR Part 9, Subpart A.

VI. REFERENCES

Code of Federal Regulations

10 CFR Part 2, “Agency Rules of Practice and Procedure.”

10 CFR 2.390, “Public Inspections, Exemptions, Requests for Withholding.”

10 CFR Part 7, “Advisory Committees.”

10 CFR Part 9, “Public Records.”

10 CFR 73.21, “Protection of Safeguards Information: Performance Requirements.”

32 CFR 2001, “Classified National Security Information.” 

Executive Orders

Executive Order 12600, “Predisclosure Notification Procedures for Confidential 

Commercial Information,” June 23, 1987.

Executive Order 13392, “Improving Agency Disclosure of Information,”

December 14, 2005.
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Executive Order 13526, “Classified National Security Information,” December 29, 2009. 

NRC Documents and Web Sites

“How to Respond to an Initial FOIA Request”:

https://drupal.nrc.gov/ocio/catalog/25157.

NRC FOIA Request Submittal Form:

https://www.foiaonline.gov/foiaonline/action/public/request.

NRC FOIA Web Site:

http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/foia/foia-privacy.html.

NRC Forms Library on SharePoint:

https://usnrc.sharepoint.com/teams/NRC-Forms-Library.

NRC Internal Commission Procedures, Office of the Secretary of the Commission

https://www.nrc.gov/about-nrc/policy-making/internal.html.

NRC Management Directives—

3.2, “Privacy Act.”

3.4, “Release of Information to the Public.”

3.53, “NRC Records and Document Management Program.”

7.4, “Reporting Suspected Wrongdoing and Processing OIG Referrals.”

8.8, “Management of Allegations.”

8.14, “Agency Action Review Meeting (AARM).”

12.1, “NRC Facility Security Program.”

12.2, “NRC Classified Information Security Program.”

12.7, “NRC Safeguards Information Security Program.” 

NUREG-0910, “NRC Comprehensive Records Disposition Schedule.”

United States Code

5 U.S.C. 552, as amended, “Freedom of Information Act.” 

16 U.S.C. 824o-1(d)(1), “Protection of Critical Electrical Infrastructure Information.”

31 U.S.C. 3717, as amended, “Interest and Penalty on Claims.”

41 U.S.C. 4702, “Prohibition on Release of Contractor Proposals.”
U.S. NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION DIRECTIVE HANDBOOK (DH)

For updates or revisions to policies contained in this MD that were published after the MD was signed, 

please see the Yellow Announcement to Management Directive index (YA-to-MD index).

DH 3.1 FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT DT-21-04

Volume 3, 

Part 1:

Information Management

Publications, Mail, and Information Disclosure

Approved By: Christopher T. Hanson, Chairman

Date Approved: February 26, 2021

Cert. Date: N/A, for the latest version of any NRC directive or handbook, see the online 

MD Catalog.

Issuing Office: Office of the Chief Information Officer

Governance and Enterprise Management Services Division

Contact Name: Stephanie Blaney

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

Management Directive 3.1, “Freedom of Information Act (FOIA),” is revised to—

 Reflect changes to policies and regulations (e.g., Federal Energy Regulation 

Commission’s (FERC) regulations);

 Clarify that the Office of the Inspector General (OIG) processes FOIA requests for its 

records;

 Remove the requirement that bracketing be performed in pencil;

 Encourage electronic bracketing or, alternatively, written descriptions of specific 

information being recommended for redaction (a separate document, “How to 

Respond to an Initial FOIA Request,” discusses the software to use for electronic 

bracketing); and

 Clarify that the FOIA Officer is the denying official for records received from offices that 

report to the EDO.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

I. AGENCY RECORDS SUBJECT TO A REQUEST...............................................................3

A. Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) Lines of Responsibility ...........................................3

B. Principles........................................................................................................................3

C. Records Exempt from Disclosure...................................................................................5

D. Frequently Requested Records......................................................................................5
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II. PROCESSING AN INITIAL FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA) REQUEST.........5

A. Receipt of a FOIA Request ............................................................................................5

B. Assigning a FOIA Request Action to an Office for Processing.......................................9

C. Office Processing ...........................................................................................................9

D. Responding to the Requester.......................................................................................16

E. Special Procedures for Processing Records Containing Classified 

Information ...................................................................................................................18

F. Special Procedures for Processing Records Containing Safeguards 

Information ...................................................................................................................22

G. Special Procedures for Processing Records Containing Proprietary 

Information ...................................................................................................................24

H. Special Procedures for Processing a Record Containing Agency Action 

Review Meeting (AARM) Information...........................................................................25

I. Special Procedures for Processing an Allegation Record............................................25

J. Special Procedures Regarding Treatment of Critical Energy/Electric 

Infrastructure Information (CEII)...................................................................................26

III. PROCESSING A FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA) APPEAL..........................27

A. Receipt of a FOIA Appeal.............................................................................................27

B. Assigning a FOIA Appeal Action to an Office...............................................................27

C. Processing a FOIA Appeal to the Executive Director for Operations ...........................27

D. Processing a FOIA Appeal to the Secretary of the Commission..................................27

E. Processing a FOIA Appeal to the Secretary of the Commission and the 

Executive Director for Operations ................................................................................28

F. Processing a FOIA Appeal to the Inspector General (IG) ............................................28

G. Dispatch .......................................................................................................................28

IV. FEES FOR SEARCH, REVIEW, AND DUPLICATION OF RECORDS CAPTURED 

BY AN INITIAL FOIA REQUEST........................................................................................28

A. General ........................................................................................................................28

B. Charging Fees Under the FOIA....................................................................................29

C. Requests for which Fees Are Not Charged..................................................................29

D. Waiving or Reducing Fees ...........................................................................................30

V. GLOSSARY ........................................................................................................................30

EXHIBIT

EXHIBIT 1 LINES OF RESPONSIBILITY.............................................................................36
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I. AGENCY RECORDS SUBJECT TO A REQUEST

A. Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) Lines of Responsibility

Exhibit 1 shows the lines of responsibility involved in processing Freedom of Information 

Act (FOIA) requests and appeals at the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC).

B. Principles 

1. Duty to Identify and Retain Records 

The FOIA applies to “agency records.” An agency record is any record created or 

obtained by the agency that is under the control of the agency at the time of the 

request. To be under the control of the agency, the record must have come into the 

agency’s possession through the legitimate conduct of its official duties. Agency 

records include paper documents, e-mail, other electronic records, and records 

maintained for the NRC under a Government contract, for records management 

purposes. However, an agency record is distinct from a “personal record” of an 

employee, which is not under the control of the agency and is not subject to the 

FOIA. Once an agency record has been captured by a FOIA request, an employee 

may not destroy or remove the record from the NRC's possession and control before 

the prescribed disposition date. Even if an agency record could have been disposed 

of under its prescribed disposition date, once a FOIA request has been received for 

that record, it may no longer be disposed of.

2. Public Interest Determination for a Record 

(a) Section 9.17 of Title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR), “Agency 

records exempt from public disclosure,” states that the NRC “shall withhold 

information under this subpart only if the NRC reasonably foresees that 

disclosure would harm an interest protected by an exemption described in 

paragraph (a) of this section; or disclosure is prohibited by law.”

(b) 10 CFR Part 9.25(f), “Disclosure Review,” states “the head of the responsible 

office shall review agency records located in a search under 10 CFR 9.23(b) to 

determine whether the agency records are exempt from disclosure.” The head of 

the responsible office has the ability to authorize disclosure of records that are 

exempt from FOIA disclosure requirements, but only if disclosure of the records 

will not be contrary to the public interest and will not affect the rights of any 

person. An office director, regional administrator, or board, panel, or committee

chairman may complete NRC Form 512, “Delegation of Discretionary Release 

Authority,” (available in the NRC Forms Library at

https://usnrc.sharepoint.com/teams/NRC-Forms-Library/SitePages/Home.aspx)

to delegate his or her discretionary release authority to a named designee or 

position.
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3. Segregating Nonexempt and Exempt Portions of a Record 

(a) Agencies are required to provide FOIA requesters with any reasonably 

segregable nonexempt information contained in records responsive to a FOIA 

request. 

(b) NRC staff, when making disclosure recommendations/determinations, must 

reasonably segregate nonexempt information from exempt information. 

10 CFR Part 9.19(b), “Segregation of exempt information and deletion of 

identifying details,” states in responding to a request for information in which it 

has been determined to withhold exempt information, “the NRC shall segregate 

factual information from advice, opinions, and recommendations in predecisional 

records unless the information is inextricably intertwined, or is contained in drafts, 

legal work products, and records covered by the lawyer-client privilege, or is 

otherwise exempt from disclosure.”

4. Retention of Records 

(a) Offices reporting to the Commission or to the Chairman, individual Commissioner 

offices, and the Office of the Inspector General (OIG) may, at their discretion, 

retain copies of records that they deny in whole or in part, rather than send the 

records to the FOIA office.

(b) For the offices reporting to the Executive Director for Operations (EDO), the 

FOIA office will retain electronic copies of all agency records that are responsive 

to a FOIA request, unless the denying official for a record deems it necessary for 

the office to retain the record because of its sensitive nature.

(c) As provided in NUREG-0910, "NRC Comprehensive Records Disposition 

Schedule," and in accordance with the applicable statute of limitations, the offices 

must retain any records withheld in whole or in part and not provided to the FOIA 

office for 6 years from the date of denial (initial determination, administrative 

appeal, or once judicial review has concluded).

5. Removal of Records Released Inadvertently in Response to a FOIA Request

In the event an office determines that information was inadvertently released in 

response to a FOIA request, the EDO, the Inspector General (IG), and the FOIA 

Officer must be advised promptly of the occurrence in writing. Refer to Management 

Directive (MD) 7.4, "Reporting Suspected Wrongdoing and Processing OIG 

Referrals," and MD 3.4, "Release of Information to the Public," for additional 

guidance. The FOIA Officer may contact the recipient to seek the return of such 

information and will coordinate the removal of the inadvertently released information 

from public ADAMS.
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C. Records Exempt from Disclosure 

1. Exemptions 

Information may be withheld from public disclosure under the FOIA if it falls within 

one or more of the nine FOIA statutory exemptions (see “How to Respond to an 

Initial FOIA Request,” available at https://drupal.nrc.gov/ocio/catalog/25157).

2. Foreseeable Harm Statements

FOIA allows agencies to withhold information covered by its nine statutory 

exemptions only when either (1) the agency reasonably foresees that disclosure 

would harm an interest protected by one of the exemptions or (2) disclosure is 

prohibited by law. Where the basis for withholding particular information is 

foreseeable harm rather than a legal prohibition against release, foreseeable harm 

statements are used within the agency to explain and document the foreseeable 

harm determination. Where a foreseeable harm determination is required, the FOIA 

coordinator must submit one with the response package. A single statement may 

cover multiple records or multiple portions of a record, provided that the harm 

foreseen, and the reasons why the harm is foreseen, are the same for each. While 

foreseeable harm statements do not need to be lengthy, they should be reasonably 

specific. A foreseeable harm statement is not required for records withheld under 

Exemptions 1, 3, 4, 5 (attorney work product, attorney-client privilege), 6, or 7(C), 

unless it is not clear on the face of the record why the exemption is being cited.

3. The deliberative process privilege (asserted under Exemption 5) shall not apply to 

records created 25 years or more before the date on which the records were 

requested.

D. Frequently Requested Records

Agencies are required to make available for public inspection in an electronic format

non-exempt records that have been requested 3 or more times.

II. PROCESSING AN INITIAL FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA) REQUEST

A. Receipt of a FOIA Request 

1. In Writing 

(a) A request for access to records under the FOIA must be in writing and clearly 

state that it is a FOIA request. A request may be submitted by e-mail, paper, fax, 

or through the Public Portal. Information on submitting a FOIA request can be 

found on the NRC FOIA Web page (http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/foia/foiaprivacy.html). Records will be made available in any form or format requested 

(e.g., CD-ROM) if the NRC can readily reproduce the record in that form or 

format.
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(b) As prescribed by Federal regulation (32 CFR 2001.33(f)), when a requester 

submits a request both under mandatory declassification review and the FOIA, 

the NRC shall require the requester to select one process or the other. If after 

consultation the requester fails to select one process, the request will be treated 

as a FOIA request unless the requested materials are subject only to mandatory 

declassification review.

2. News Media Request

When the FOIA office receives a FOIA request from a requester that has been 

placed in the representative of the news media fee category, a copy of the request 

will be forwarded to the Office of Public Affairs (OPA) even if it is not the office to 

which the request will be assigned for action.

3. Allegation File Request

If the incoming FOIA request identifies an alleger, a cover sheet, "Warning—

Sensitive Allegation Material," will be attached to the front of the FOIA request if it is 

being transmitted to the responsible FOIA coordinator in paper form, or “Sensitive 

Allegation/Investigation Material Attached” will be indicated in the subject line if it is 

being transmitted by e-mail. NOTE: This information must not be placed into 

ADAMS. 

4. Office of Investigations (OI) Request

If the incoming FOIA request identifies an OI investigation, a cover sheet, 

“Warning—Sensitive Investigation Material,” will be attached to the front of the FOIA 

request if it is being transmitted to the responsible FOIA coordinator in paper form, or 

“Sensitive Allegation/Investigation Material Attached” will be indicated in the subject 

line if it is being transmitted by e-mail. NOTE: This information must not be placed 

into ADAMS. 

5. Receipt of Request by Offices Other than the OCIO FOIA Team

Any NRC employee who receives a written request for access to, or copies of,

records under the FOIA must send it immediately to the FOIA Officer. Generally, a

FOIA request is not deemed received by the NRC until it has been received by the 

FOIA Officer in accordance with the FOIA statute and NRC regulations.

6. Questions

A request citing the FOIA that only seeks answers to questions is outside the scope 

of the FOIA. When the FOIA office receives such a request, it will forward the 

request to the appropriate office for the office to address, as appropriate, through the 

agency’s correspondence process.

7. Delinquent Payment Account

An account is delinquent if the NRC determines, on the basis of a review of FOIA 

billings provided by the Chief Financial Officer (CFO) or another Federal agency, that 

the requester has previously failed to pay a properly charged NRC fee within 30 
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calendar days of receipt of the bill or that the requester has not paid timely another 

Federal agency’s billed fees. The NRC may require the FOIA requester whose 

account is delinquent to provide advance payment before release of records that

have been processed.

8. FOIA Case Number

Upon receipt of a request for records, the FOIA Officer will assign a case tracking 

number for use as the reference in all matters pertaining to that request.

9. Categorization for Fee Purposes

The FOIA Officer will determine the requester’s fee category (commercial-use, 

representative of the news media, educational institution, non-commercial scientific 

institution, or non-excepted (all other requests that do not fall into one of the 

previously mentioned fee categories)).

10. Request for a Fee Waiver

A FOIA requester may request a waiver of the fees associated with processing his or 

her request. The FOIA Officer must determine, under 10 CFR 9.41, “Requests for 

Waiver or Reduction of Fees,” whether the request meets the requirements for a fee 

waiver. The FOIA Officer will notify the requester of the determination reached.

11. Request for Expedited Processing

A FOIA requester may request expedited processing of his or her request. The FOIA 

Officer must, within 10 calendar days, determine whether the request meets the 

requirements of 10 CFR 9.25(e) and notify the requester.

12. Multitrack Processing 

(a) Upon assignment of a request, a Government Information Specialist, in 

consultation with the FOIA Officer, will make an initial estimate of the time 

required to process the request on the basis of a description of the subject 

matter. The estimated processing time will depend on the following factors: 

(i) Whether the responsive records are expected to be easily found in a single 

indexed location or in varied locations that are not indexed, or whether the 

responsive records are filed among a large volume of other records that 

cannot be easily searched.

(ii) The anticipated volume of material that will be located, gathered, and 

reviewed, in response to the request.

(iii) The anticipated need for consultation among components of the NRC and 

other agencies and/or submitters.

(iv) The need for a declassification review of any classified records.
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(v) The need for a designation review of any Safeguards Information (SGI) 

records.

(b) On the basis of the initial estimate of time needed to respond to the request, the 

request will be placed in either the simple or complex track:

(i) The simple track is for requests of simple to moderate complexity that are 

expected to be completed within 20 working days.

(ii) The complex track is for requests involving "unusual circumstances" that are 

expected to take between 21 to 30 working days to complete (e.g., requests 

that may involve records from multiple offices and/or various types of files of 

moderate volume of which some are expected to be exempt).

(iii) The complex track is also designated for requests that, because of their 

unusual volume or other complexity, are expected to take more than 30 

working days to complete. Examples of a complex request include—

• Requests involving several program or regional offices, 

• Requests that require consultation with one or more Government 

agencies, 

• Requests for classified records requiring a declassification review, 

• Requests for SGI records requiring a designation review,

• Requests for records from businesses that are required to be referred to 

the submitter for their proprietary review prior to disclosure, or 

• Requests for large volumes of records that require detailed review 

because of their sensitive nature.

13. Acknowledging Receipt of Requests 

Within 2 working days of the receipt of a request, the requester will be sent an 

acknowledgement letter with the name and telephone number of the assigned 

Government Information Specialist who will be the NRC contact for any matters 

pertaining to the request. The NRC will notify the requester in the acknowledgment 

letter the estimated time in which the NRC anticipates providing the response to the 

request. If subsequent information substantially changes the estimated time needed 

to process the request, the NRC will notify the requester by telephone or in writing 

and inform the requester that he or she may modify the request to allow faster 

processing or to lower the fees assessed. If the NRC issues the agency’s final 

response to a request in less than 10 working days, then an acknowledgement letter 

is not necessary.
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14. Perfected Request

A FOIA request must be perfected before processing begins. A request is perfected 

when the records sought are described in sufficient detail to allow staff who are 

familiar with the subject matter of the request to search for records with a reasonable 

amount of effort, identification verification has been provided, if required, and when 

all applicable fee issues have been resolved with the requester. If necessary, the 

Government Information Specialist will contact the requester to perfect a request 

(i.e., clarify or limit the subject or scope of the request, obtain identification 

verification or release authorization, obtain agreement on payment of applicable 

fees, or resolve any other matters that preclude processing the request).

15. Due Date for Response 

The FOIA requires that an agency respond to a request within 20 working days from 

the date of receipt of the request. A request is not considered received by the NRC 

for the purpose of complying with response times set forth in the FOIA until it has 

been perfected as defined above. In certain unusual circumstances as specified in 

the FOIA, this response time can be extended for an additional 10 working days. 

Therefore, each office receiving a FOIA action from the assigned Government 

Information Specialist will treat it as a priority item and produce responsive records 

within the 10 working-day time limit specified in these procedures.

B. Assigning a FOIA Request Action to an Office for Processing

1. The Government Information Specialist assigned the request will review it to 

determine the subject matter of the information being requested and which NRC

office(s) would reasonably be expected to have records responsive to the request. 

The Government Information Specialist will forward a copy of the request by e-mail 

to the FOIA resource box of each office that is expected to have responsive records. 

An office may request that a copy of the request be forwarded to the FOIA 

coordinator for the program office.

2. A Government Information Specialist will not assign a request to an office until the 

request has been perfected as defined above in Section II.A.13, “Perfected 

Request.”

C. Office Processing 

A step-by-step guide for processing FOIA requests, “How to Respond to an Initial FOIA 

Request,” can be found in the NRC service catalog 

(https://drupal.nrc.gov/ocio/catalog/25157).

1. Scope of a FOIA Request

If an office that is assigned action on a request determines that the request needs 

clarification, or is unreasonably burdensome, the office FOIA coordinator will 

immediately contact the assigned Government Information Specialist. The 

Government Information Specialist and, if practicable, the office FOIA coordinator 
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and other knowledgeable staff will contact the requester to clarify or negotiate the 

scope of the request. The assigned Government Information Specialist must 

participate in any telephone calls with the requester. 

2. FOIA Coverage 

To ensure the NRC meets statutory time limits, all Government Information Specialist

and office FOIA coordinators must have alternates or backups when away from the 

office for 3 or more consecutive working days.

3. Initial Estimates to Determine Fees for Processing a FOIA Request

To determine the fees that may be charged for processing a request, an office FOIA 

coordinator will provide to the assigned Government Information Specialist an 

estimate of the time that will be required to complete the search and review of the 

records responsive to the FOIA request, including the grade level of the individual 

conducting the search and review. If a contractor performs the search, the estimated 

number of contractor hours and the billable rate for the contractor are to be provided 

as a separate item. The office FOIA coordinator also will provide the anticipated 

volume of records (in number of pages or linear measure for larger volumes). These 

estimates must be provided by e-mail within 4 working days of the FOIA assignment.

4. Obtaining a Requester’s Agreement to Pay Estimated Fees 

Once estimates are received from all offices to which the request has been assigned 

for action, the Government Information Specialist will compute the total fee estimate. 

The Government Information Specialist will contact the requester to obtain an 

agreement in writing to pay estimated fees (NRC Form 509, “Statement of Estimated 

Fees for Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) Request,” available in the NRC Forms 

library) or to submit an advance payment if the amount of the estimated fee 

exceeds $250.

5. Suspension of Action

Processing of a FOIA request may be suspended, once, by the Government 

Information Specialist to allow him or her to seek clarification on the scope of the 

request or multiple times to wait for the requester to pay estimated fees. During this 

time, no action will be requested of a program or regional office.

6. Search

(a) When a FOIA request has been determined to be perfected, the Government 

Information Specialist will notify the appropriate office FOIA coordinator to begin 

the search for records. An office FOIA coordinator will follow his or her office’s 

procedures to ensure that the staff assigned to search is knowledgeable of the 

subject of the FOIA request, reasonably expected to be in possession of relevant 

material, and familiar with the files and databases reasonably expected to 

contain responsive records. A FOIA request covers only agency records in 

existence on the date the FOIA Officer receives the request. A request that seeks 
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records not in existence or information that would require the creation of a record 

will not be processed under the FOIA. However, retrieving readily reproducible 

electronically stored information does not constitute creation of a record.

(b) Each office that is assigned to search will conduct a thorough search for, and 

identify, all responsive records that it maintains. This should include electronic 

records and records of that office placed in ADAMS, SharePoint, or other shared 

sites, and records in other media, such as audiotapes, videotapes, or 

photographs. The program or regional office response should contain the search 

criteria, e.g., key words or terms used, and the date the searches were

conducted by completing NRC Form 511A, so that this information can be 

included in the agency’s official FOIA case file in the event there is a challenge to 

the adequacy of the agency’s search for records. FOIA searches by 

Commissioner offices are done in accordance with the Internal Commission 

Procedures. 

(c) If an office identifies a record as being publicly available from ADAMS, the office 

FOIA coordinator must confirm the validity or accuracy of the ADAMS record, as 

well as the public availability of the record, and send the assigned Government 

Information Specialist the ADAMS accession number, Web address, or other 

location designator. The following fields in the ADAMS profile must be reviewed 

to ensure that the values appear as follows:

(i) Sensitivity – Non-Sensitive,

(ii) Availability – Publicly Available,

(iii) Official Record – Yes, or

(iv) Replicated – Yes.

(d) Personal records are not considered agency records subject to a FOIA request. 

If an employee has responsive records that he or she believes may be personal 

records, these records must be reviewed by the employee using the personal 

record consideration checklist (NRC Form 510, “Personal Records Checklist,” 

available in the NRC Forms Library) to determine if the records are personal or 

agency records. If the employee concludes that the records are personal, the 

checklist and number of personal pages should be provided to the FOIA team. 

The personal record must be maintained for the required retention period of 

6 years by either the employee, the office FOIA coordinator, or the FOIA office.

7. Duty to Advise If Other Offices or Employees May Have Responsive Records 

If an employee in an office assigned to search for records is aware that employees or

other program offices may have responsive records as a result of current or past 

involvement in the subject matter, that employee must inform the office FOIA 

coordinator or the assigned Government Information Specialist about the other 

sources of responsive records.
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8. Review 

Staff assigned by the searching office will review all records located in the office, or

maintained by that office, and make an initial recommendation as to what information 

should be released, what information should be withheld, and whether information 

that is exempt may nevertheless be released in an exercise of discretion. 

Discretionary releases must be authorized either by the office director, regional 

administrator, or by an official who has been delegated this authority. (See NRC 

Form 512.) Discretionary releases may be appropriate with respect to some 

exemptions, most commonly Exemptions 2, 5, 7(A), 7(D), and 7(E).

9. Identifying/Designating Exempt Information 

(a) The FOIA and NRC regulations require that any reasonably segregable portion of 

a record must be provided to any person requesting the record after deletion of 

the exempt portion. In response to a FOIA request, the responding office can 

either provide records bracketed manually or electronically with applicable 

exemptions indicated or provide unredacted records with a written description of 

the specific information that the subject matter experts (SME) recommend should 

be redacted, including the basis for withholding the information.

(b) When responsive records have been identified and reviewed by staff of the 

program or regional offices, and recommendations have been proposed for 

release or withholding of information, the Senior Management FOIA Officials 

(SMFOs) (or their delegates) in the responsible offices will review the records 

and staff recommendations, and either approve or amend the recommendations 

before signing off on the records for submission by the office FOIA coordinator to 

the assigned Government Information Specialist.

10. Identifying/Designating Information as a Non-Responsive Record

(a) The nature of a FOIA “record” is defined by both the contents of a document and 

the subject of the request. A “record” can potentially constitute an entire 

document, a single page of a multipage document, or even an individual 

paragraph of a document that consists of discrete items or groupings of 

information on different topics. On the other hand, a sentence within a paragraph

(or words within a sentence) will almost never constitute a distinct FOIA “record.”

(b) If a multi-subject document consists of both information pertaining to the subject 

of a request and unrelated information, the record could potentially be divisible 

into multiple distinct “records” for purposes of responding to a FOIA request. 

The record(s) containing information responsive to the subject of the FOIA 

request must be disclosed unless the information, in whole or in part, is subject to 

one or more FOIA exemptions. Any records that do not contain information that is 

responsive to the subject of the request would be “non-responsive records” that 

need not be provided to the requester.
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(c) If an entire document is identified as non-responsive to the FOIA request, the

document need not be provided to the assigned Government Information 

Specialist.

11. Non-Public Adams to Public ADAMS 

(a) If a record is in ADAMS, declared as an official agency record, as nonpublic and 

will be released in its entirety, publicly, in response to the FOIA request, the FOIA 

coordinator must send the assigned Government Information Specialist the 

ADAMS accession number. The Government Information Specialist will arrange 

for changing the appropriate field(s) to make the record publicly available.

(b) If a record is in ADAMS, not declared as an official agency record, as nonpublic 

and will be released in its entirety, publicly, in response to the FOIA request, the 

FOIA coordinator must complete the ADAMS processing, and have the record 

declared as an official agency record and publicly available. In addition, the FOIA 

coordinator must send the assigned Government Information Specialist the 

ADAMS accession number.

12. Proprietary Records

If responsive proprietary records must be reviewed by a licensee, or some other 

submitter, the program or regional office FOIA coordinator must provide the assigned 

Government Information Specialist the contact information for the submitter (name, 

mailing address, e-mail address, and/or telephone number) along with the records to 

be reviewed.

13. Records for Internal Referral

(a) If an office locates responsive records, or information in responsive records, 

obtained from, or that originated in, another NRC office, if the office conducting 

the search (“first office”) wants to defer to the other office, then these records 

should be marked by the first office for referral to the other office before 

responding to the Government Information Specialist.

(b) If an office locates responsive records, or information in responsive records 

obtained from, or that originated in, another NRC office, if the first office has 

equities in that information, the office, when responding to the Government 

Information Specialist, should include its disclosure recommendation along with 

the suggestion that the information be referred to the appropriate office.

(c) If an office locates responsive records, or information in responsive records,

relating to a program or project for which another NRC office is principally 

responsible, or with respect to which another NRC office is known to have an 

interest, the office conducting the search (“first office”) must coordinate its 

recommended disclosure determination regarding these shared-equity records 

with the other NRC office before responding to the Government Information 

Specialist. Under certain circumstances and in complex cases, the Government 
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Information Specialist will refer the matter to other responsible or interested 

office(s).

(d) If a request captures records of a task force, an office having responsive records 

must consult with the lead office’s director or SMFO. The lead office for the 

project or task force will consult with any other affected office’s SMFO.

(e) If an office locates responsive records, or information in responsive records that 

was sent to or received from an NRC attorney or consists of legal advice or 

analysis, the office must identify this information and coordinate its 

recommended disclosure determination with OGC or the Regional Counsel (if 

possible, the specific attorney(s) or regional counsel involved in the matter). 

(f) Records created by and received from a Commissioner or his or her staff or 

communicated to a Commissioner or his or her staff, will be referred to the Office 

of the Secretary of the Commission (SECY) to coordinate the Commissioner’s 

review of the records to obtain approval from the Commissioner before records 

are released. If they are to be withheld in their entirety or in part, the Executive 

Assistant to the Secretary of the Commission will be designated as the denying 

official. If a Commissioner is no longer with the agency, OGC will provide a 

recommendation to SECY whether to release the records, and if records are to 

be withheld, the Executive Assistant to the Secretary of the Commission will be 

designated as the denying official.

14. Records Identified for External Consultation

(a) If records located in NRC offices originated with another agency, and no NRC 

office has any interest in the records, the records should be processed consistent 

with any agreement between the NRC and the agency. If there is no agreement, 

the records originating from another agency will be referred to the originating 

agency. If records located in NRC offices contain information of interest to 

another agency, after consulting with the NRC office that “owns” the records, the 

Government Information Specialist assigned the request will consult with the 

agency that has an interest in the records. 

(b) Occasionally when processing a FOIA request, records originated by the 

Executive Office of the President (White House), or records containing 

information originating from the White House, may be located. These records 

may raise issues of executive privilege and, therefore, require special handling. 

Whenever White House records, or White House information contained in NRC 

records, are located in response to a FOIA request, it is especially important that 

the office FOIA coordinator highlight the nature of the records or information 

when responding to the Government Information Specialist. The Government 

Information Specialist will consult with the appropriate point-of-contact for the 

White House before making a final disclosure determination.
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15. Special Retention Options for SECY or Investigative Files

(a) Offices reporting to the Commission and individual Commissioner offices may, at 

their discretion, retain copies of records that they deny in whole or in part, rather 

than send the records to the Government Information Specialist. The records 

must be placed in a sealed envelope, marked with the FOIA number and the 

name of the responsible Commission office, and sent to the Executive Assistant 

to the Secretary of the Commission. The Executive Assistant to the Secretary of 

the Commission will retain the sealed envelope in a specially designated, secure 

container for the period provided in NUREG-0910, “General Records 

Schedule 14.” The records will be given to OGC for review if denial of the records 

is appealed or if a suit is filed in Federal court challenging their denial.

(b) OIG may, at its discretion, retain copies of records withheld in whole or in part by 

the Assistant Inspector General for Investigations. The OIG will retain the records 

for the period provided in NUREG-0910, “General Records Schedule 14.”

(c) If requested records relate to an allegation, investigation, enforcement action, or 

disciplinary or adverse actions and it is determined that disclosure of any of the 

records in the file could reasonably be expected to interfere with open 

investigations or pending enforcement proceedings, the office may choose to 

retain the records, mark in the file the records captured by the request, and 

provide the assigned Government Information Specialist an NRC Form 656, 

“Exemption 7(A) Certification” (available in the NRC Forms Library), signed by 

two individuals stating that disclosure of any of the records in the file could 

reasonably be expected to interfere with open investigations or pending 

enforcement proceedings. An estimate of the number of records withheld must 

be indicated.

16. Cover Sheets

As stated in MD. 8.8, “Management of Allegations,” cover sheets must be attached to 

allegation records provided in response to a FOIA request. These cover sheets must 

remain with the records throughout the FOIA process.

17. Marking an E-mail 

When an office assigned to search for records submits a responsive e-mail to the 

assigned Government Information Specialist, the program or regional office must 

identify the office affiliation of the e-mail’s sender (if not indicated on the e-mail itself) 

at the time the e-mail was sent.

18. Submission of Records by FOIA Coordinators to the Government Information 

Specialist

(a) Within 10 working days of the Government Information Specialist informing the 

office FOIA coordinator that a request has been perfected and a search should 

be conducted, each program or regional office FOIA coordinator must provide the 

assigned Government Information Specialist copies of any records maintained in 
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that office that are responsive to the request along with the program or regional 

office’s disclosure recommendations by the indicated due date. Records sent to 

the Government Information Specialist should be identified clearly as—

(i) Already publicly available;

(ii) Records to be moved from non-public ADAMS to public ADAMS;

(iii) Records to be released in full, in part, or denied in full;

(iv) Records to be referred to another office or agency;

(v) Proprietary records; and

(vi) Records recommended for discretionary release.

(b) If a program office chooses to retain copies of records responsive to a request, 

due to their sensitivity, then they shall provide the Government Information 

Specialist with an appendix of the documents withheld. The appendix must 

include the date of the record, a description, and the page count for each record. 

The appendices will be sent with the response to the requester and, if 

appropriate, placed in ADAMS.

D. Responding to the Requester 

1. Preparing a FOIA Response

The assigned Government Information Specialist will—

(a) Conduct a detailed review of all records provided by the program or regional 

office in response to a FOIA request.

(b) Identify issues regarding the appropriateness of the exemptions cited as the 

basis for withholding of the information and any inconsistencies between offices. 

(c) Conduct a review of foreseeable harm statements to determine their sufficiency 

in consultation with OGC. Where the justifications are inadequate, obtain 

additional justifications or work with the office to release the information.

(d) Consult with other agencies, as necessary, and submitters on the release of their 

information, or transfer requests to the originating agencies for their direct 

response to the requester.

(e) Make referrals between NRC offices, as needed, under certain circumstances 

and in complex cases. 

(f) Finalize electronic redactions with the applicable exemptions after resolving 

proposed release determinations.
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(g) Prepare a response to the requester using NRC Form 464 or other type of 

response, such as an e-mail or letter, as appropriate. If the request involves a 

significant number of records, or the responses from some offices are delayed, 

the Government Information Specialist may prepare a series of interim responses 

to the requester. If records are withheld, the applicable FOIA exemption(s) and 

reason(s) for the denial must be specified in the response. The final response 

also names the denying official(s) and informs the requester of the right to appeal

within 90 days, the right to seek assistance or dispute resolution services from 

the FOIA Public Liaison, and of dispute resolution services from the Office of 

Government Information Services (OGIS).

(h) Obtain all necessary concurrences on the response(s). Once all concurrences 

have been obtained, the FOIA Officer will sign and a Government Information 

Specialist will dispatch the response and make the released records publicly 

available through the public portal and in ADAMS, consistent with NRC 

regulations.

2. Denying Official

(a) For records that originate with a Commissioner’s office and/or SECY, the 

Executive Assistant to SECY will be designated as the denying official.

(b) For records that originate with OGC, the General Counsel will be designated as 

the denying official.

(c) For records that originate with OIG, the Assistant Inspector General for 

Investigations will be designated as the denying official.

(d) For all other records, the FOIA Officer makes an independent determination on 

whether agency records are exempt from disclosure and should be withheld, in 

whole or in part. The FOIA Officer will be the denying official for these records 

and will consult with OGC regarding the use of FOIA exemptions.

3. FOIA Requests and Records Made Publicly Available 

(a) Incoming FOIA requests are not made publicly available upon receipt. Except as 

described in Section II.D.4, below, the requests, or redacted versions, will be 

made public no later than the date of the first interim response or, if no interim 

responses are provided, the date of the final response to the requester, and 

promptly released publicly through the public portal and entered into ADAMS for 

posting.

(b) Records requested 3 or more times are required to be made available for public 

inspection in an electronic format.

(c) Only the OCIO FOIA team may make FOIA requests and responses publicly 

available through the public portal and ADAMS.
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4. FOIA Requests and Responses Not Made Publicly Available 

(a) FOIA requests for OI, OE, and OIG records must not be placed in ADAMS, 

unless specifically authorized by the respective offices.

(b) FOIA responsive records that contain personal privacy information, the 

disclosure of which would clearly cause an unwarranted invasion of personal 

privacy, will not be made publicly available except with the consent of the 

responsible offices.

E. Special Procedures for Processing Records Containing Classified Information 

At all times during the FOIA process, classified information must be marked, processed, 

reproduced, stored, transmitted, and destroyed in accordance with MD 12.2, 

“NRC Classified Information Security Program” and MD 12.1, “NRC Facility Security 

Program.”

1. Records Classified in Accordance with an Executive Order 

(a) When, in response to a FOIA request, a program office or regional office locates 

a classified record, the program office or regional office will conduct an initial 

declassification review in accordance with MD 12.2 to segregate exempt 

classified information from information that may be declassified or is unclassified. 

The classified portions of the record will be clearly bracketed. The unclassified 

portions of the record will be bracketed, as required, for withholding or disclosure 

under the FOIA.

(b) The program or regional office will provide the classified record and the 

preliminary results of the classification review in its entirety to the Government 

Information Specialist, who, in turn, will route the record to the Office of Nuclear 

Security and Incident Response, Division of Security Operations, Information 

Security Branch (NSIR/DSO/ISB) for review and concurrence before making the 

deletions or redactions proposed by the program office or regional office. The 

program office or regional office will ensure the security clearance level of the

Government Information Specialist is equal to or greater than the classification of 

the information that is contained within the classified record before it is 

transferred to the FOIA Office. If the sensitivity of the information exceeds the 

clearance level of the Government Information Specialist, the program office or 

regional office can route the record directly to NSIR/DSO/ISB and inform the 

Government Information Specialist accordingly.

(c) NSIR/DSO/ISB will conduct a supplemental declassification review of the 

classified record in accordance with MD 12.2 to verify that the exempt classified 

information is segregated from unclassified information.

(i) If NSIR/DSO/ISB’s review determines that the classified record contains or 

potentially contains Restricted Data (RD), Formerly Restricted Data (FRD), 

and/or Transclassified Foreign Nuclear Information (TFNI), then 
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NSIR/DSO/ISB will route the FOIA request, to include the incoming 

transmittal from the requester, to the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) for a 

classification review, with a copy of the DOE transmittal to the Government 

Information Specialist handling the FOIA. DOE is the appropriate authority to 

deny information in a record that contains RD, FRD, and/or TFNI. If DOE 

determines that the classified record contains RD, FRD, and/or TFNI, then 

DOE will clearly bracket the RD, FRD, and/or TFNI portions of the record and 

return the record to the NRC through NSIR/DSO/ISB. The classified RD, 

FRD, and TFNI will be withheld under Exemption 1, Exemption 3, or any other 

applicable exemption of the FOIA.

(ii) If NSIR/DSO/ISB’s review determines that the classified record contains or 

potentially contains another agency’s classified equities, then NSIR/DSO/ISB 

will route the FOIA request, to include the incoming transmittal from the 

requester, to the appropriate agency for a classification review, with a copy of 

the DOE transmittal to the Government Information Specialist handling the 

FOIA. The information in the record determined to be classified National 

Security Information (NSI) under another agency’s purview will be clearly 

bracketed by the other agency and returned to the NRC through 

NSIR/DSO/ISB. The classified NSI portions will be withheld under Exemption 

1 of the FOIA. This process will be repeated for all agencies with equities in 

the record.

(iii) If NSIR/DSO/ISB’s review determines that the classified record contains NSI 

under the NRC’s purview that meets the standards for classification under 

E.O. 13526 or successor Orders, then the information in the record 

determined to be NSI will be clearly bracketed by NSIR/DSO/ISB. 

The classified NSI portions will be withheld under Exemption 1 of the FOIA.

(iv) If NSIR/DSO/ISB’s review determines that the classified record contains NSI 

under the NRC’s purview that no longer meets the standards for classification 

under E.O. 13526 or successor Orders, then NSIR/DSO/ISB will declassify 

the applicable portions in accordance with MD 12.2.

(v) The unclassified portions of the record will be bracketed, as appropriate, for 

withholding or disclosure under the FOIA.

(d) NSIR/DSO/ISB will provide the Government Information Specialist and the 

program office or regional office with a copy of the classified record with the 

exempt portions clearly bracketed. The Government Information Specialist

requires a copy of the classified record in the event the denial of the record is 

appealed. If the sensitivity of the information exceeds the clearance level of the 

Government Information Specialist, NSIR personnel will retain a copy of the 

record.
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(e) The Government Information Specialist will delete or redact the classified 

portions of the record in accordance with MD 12.2. If the sensitivity of the 

information exceeds the clearance level of the Government Information 

Specialist, NSIR personnel with the appropriate clearance will perform the 

deletion/redaction and submit the unclassified record to the Government 

Information Specialist for further processing.

(f) The Government Information Specialist will disclose to the requester the 

unclassified portions of the record except to the extent those portions still warrant 

withholding under a FOIA exemption (e.g., if there are unclassified portions 

containing proprietary information protected by Exemption 4, or personal privacy 

information protected by Exemption 6, etc.).

2. Records Containing Classified Information That Are Not Properly Classified in 

Accordance with an Executive Order

(a) When, in response to a FOIA request, the program office or regional office

locates a record that it believes may contain classified material that has either 

been improperly declassified or is not properly marked as containing classified 

information (e.g., the record is not stamped "Confidential," "Secret," or "Top 

Secret"), the program office or regional office will conduct an initial classification 

review in accordance with MD 12.2 to segregate exempt classified information 

from unclassified information. The classified portions of the record will be clearly 

bracketed. The unclassified portions of the record will be bracketed, as required, 

for withholding or disclosure under the FOIA.

(b) The program office or regional office will provide the classified record and the 

preliminary results of the classification review in its entirety to the Government 

Information Specialist, who, in turn, will route the record to NSIR/DSO/ISB for 

review and concurrence before making the deletions or redactions proposed by 

the program office or regional office. If the sensitivity of the information exceeds 

the clearance level of the Government Information Specialist, the program office

or regional office can route the record directly to NSIR/DSO/ISB and inform the 

Government Information Specialist accordingly.

(c) The program office or regional office discovering or suspecting that a record or 

records exists that have not been properly marked and/or stored must report the 

security incident to the Office of Administration (ADM) immediately. The report 

can be made through the use of the link on the NRC Web page (top of the menu 

bar “Report a Safety/Security Incident), or by telephone call to (301) 415-2000 or 

(301) 415-6666. 

(d) NSIR/DSO/ISB will conduct a supplemental classification review of the classified 

record in accordance with MD 12.2 to verify that the exempt classified 

information is segregated from unclassified information.
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(i) If the NSIR/DSO/ISB review determines that the classified record contains or 

potentially contains Restricted Data (RD), Formerly Restricted Data (FRD), 

and/or Transclassified Foreign Nuclear Information (TFNI), then 

NSIR/DSO/ISB will route the FOIA request, to include the incoming 

transmittal from the requester, to the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) for a 

classification review. DOE is the appropriate authority to deny information in a 

record that contains RD, FRD, and/or TFNI. If DOE determines that the 

classified record contains RD, FRD, and/or TFNI, then DOE will clearly 

bracket the RD, FRD, and/or TFNI portions of the record and return the 

record to the NRC through NSIR/DSO/ISB. The classified RD, FRD, and TFNI 

will be withheld under Exemption 3 of the FOIA.

(ii) If the NSIR/DSO/ISB review determines that the classified record contains or 

potentially contains another agency’s classified equities, then NSIR/DSO/ISB 

will route the FOIA request, to include the incoming transmittal from the 

requester, to the appropriate agency for a classification review. 

The information in the record determined to be classified National Security 

Information (NSI) under another agency’s purview will be clearly bracketed by 

the other agency and returned to the NRC through NSIR/DSO/ISB. 

The classified NSI portions will be withheld under Exemption 1 of the FOIA. 

This process will be repeated for all agencies with equities in the record.

(iii) If the NSIR/DSO/ISB review determines that the classified record contains 

NSI under the NRC’s purview that meets the standards for classification 

under E.O. 13526 or successor orders, then the information in the record 

determined to be NSI will be clearly bracketed by NSIR/DSO/ISB. 

The classified NSI portions will be withheld under Exemption 1 of the FOIA.

(iv) If the NSIR/DSO/ISB review determines that the classified record contains 

NSI under the NRC’s purview that no longer meets the standards for 

classification under E.O. 13526 or successor orders, then NSIR/DSO/ISB will 

declassify the applicable portions in accordance with MD 12.2.

(v) The unclassified portions of the record will be bracketed, as appropriate, for 

withholding or disclosure under the FOIA.

(e) If it is determined that any portion of the record has been improperly declassified 

or that a portion has not been properly marked as containing classified 

information, then NSIR/DSO/ISB shall immediately report the security incident or 

infraction to the ADM in accordance with MD 12.1.
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(f) NSIR/DSO/ISB will provide the Government Information Specialist and the 

program or regional office with a copy of the classified record with the exempt 

portions clearly bracketed. The Government Information Specialist requires a 

copy of the classified record in the event the denial of the record is appealed. If 

the sensitivity of the information exceeds the clearance level of the Government 

Information Specialist, NSIR personnel can retain a copy of the record.

(g) The Government Information Specialist will delete or redact the classified 

portions of the record in accordance with MD 12.2. If the sensitivity of the 

information exceeds the clearance level of the Government Information 

Specialist, NSIR personnel with the appropriate clearance will perform the 

deletion/redaction and submit the unclassified record to the Government 

Information Specialist for further processing.

(h) The Government Information Specialist will disclose to the requester the 

unclassified portions of the record except to the extent those portions still warrant 

withholding under a FOIA exemption (e.g., if there are unclassified portions 

containing proprietary information protected by Exemption 4, or personal privacy 

information protected by Exemption 6).

F. Special Procedures for Processing Records Containing Safeguards Information

At all times during the FOIA process, Safeguards Information (SGI) must be marked, 

transmitted, stored, processed, reproduced, and destroyed in accordance with MD 12.7, 

“NRC Safeguards Information Security Program,” and MD 12.1 “NRC Facility Security 

Program.”

1. Records Designated as SGI in Accordance with a Statute

(a) When, in response to a FOIA request, the program office or regional office

locates an SGI record the program office or regional office will conduct an initial 

designation review in accordance with MD 12.7 to segregate exempt SGI from

non-SGI or information that is marked as SGI, but believed to no longer meet the 

designation requirements for SGI as specified in 10 CFR 73.22, 10 CFR 73.23, 

or MD 12.7. The SGI portions of the record will be clearly bracketed. 

The program office or regional office will also review the remaining portions of the 

record that is believed to warrant the removal of the SGI designation for 

disclosure under the FOIA.

(b) The program office or regional office will provide the SGI record and results of 

the designation review in its entirety to the FOIA team, who, in turn, will route the 

record to the NSIR/DSO/ISB for review and concurrence before making 

deletions, re-designation, or redactions proposed by the program office or 

regional office.
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(c) NSIR/DSO/ISB will conduct a supplemental designation review of the SGI record 

in accordance with MD 12.7 to verify that the exempt SGI is segregated from the 

non-SGI information. The SGI portions will be withheld under Exemption 3 of the 

FOIA.

(d) NSIR/DSO/ISB will provide the Government Information Specialist and the 

program office or regional office with a copy of the SGI record with the exempt 

portions clearly bracketed. The Government Information Specialist requires a 

copy of the SGI record in the event the denial, or portions, of the record are

appealed.

(e) The Government Information Specialist will delete or redact the SGI portions of 

the record in accordance with MD 12.7.

(f) The Government Information Specialist will disclose to the requester the non-SGI

portions of the record except to the extent those portions still warrant withholding

under a FOIA exemption (e.g., if there are non-SGI portions containing 

proprietary information protected by Exemption 4 or personal privacy information 

protected by Exemption 6).

2. Records Containing Safeguards Information That Are Not Properly Controlled in

Accordance with a Statute

(a) When in response to a FOIA request the program office or regional office locates 

a record that it believes may contain SGI material that has been improperly 

decontrolled or that is not properly marked as containing SGI (e.g., the record is 

not stamped "Safeguards Information"), the program office or regional office must 

mark the document to identify the proposed SGI content. The proposed SGI 

portions of the record will be clearly bracketed. The program office or regional 

office will also review the remaining non-SGI portions of the record for disclosure 

under the FOIA.

(b) Once the document has been edited to reflect the proposed correct designation, 

the program office or regional office must provide the record in its entirety to the 

Government Information Specialist, who, in turn, will route the record to the 

NSIR/DSO/ISB for review and concurrence before making deletions or 

redactions proposed by the program office or regional office.

(c) NSIR/DSO/ISB will conduct a supplemental designation review of the SGI record 

in accordance with MD 12.7 to verify that the exempt SGI is segregated from 

non-SGI information. The SGI portions will be withheld under Exemption 3 of the 

FOIA.

(d) The program office or regional office discovering or suspecting that a record or 

records exists that have not been properly marked and/or stored must report the 

security incident to ADM immediately. The report can be made through the use of 

the link on the NRC Web page (top of the menu bar “Report a Safety/Security 

Incident”) or by telephone call to (301) 415-2000 or (301) 415-6666.
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(e) NSIR/DSO/ISB will provide the FOIA team and the program office or regional 

office with a copy of the SGI record with the exempt portions clearly bracketed. 

The Government Information Specialist requires a copy of the SGI record in the 

event the denial, or portions, of the record is appealed.

(f) The FOIA team will delete or redact the SGI portions of the record in accordance 

with MD 12.7.

(g) The Government Information Specialist will disclose to the requester the non-SGI

portions of the record except to the extent those portions still warrant withholding

under a FOIA exemption (e.g., if there are non-SGI portions containing 

proprietary information protected by Exemption 4, or personal privacy information 

protected by Exemption 6).

G. Special Procedures for Processing Records Containing Proprietary Information

1. Submission of Records Identified as Proprietary 

Records responsive to a FOIA request that have previously been identified as 

containing trade secrets or privileged or confidential commercial or financial 

information will be sent to the Government Information Specialist along with a copy 

of the affidavit required under 10 CFR 2.390, “Public Inspections, Exemptions, 

Requests for Withholding,” if applicable; the NRC staff’s decision on the submitter’s 

request that the information be deemed proprietary; and the contact information for 

the submitter or other entity identified as having a proprietary interest in the records. 

The Government Information Specialist will process information that has previously 

been identified as containing trade secrets or privileged or confidential commercial or 

financial information as provided in 10 CFR 9.28, “Predisclosure Notification 

Procedures for Information Containing Trade Secrets or Confidential Commercial or

Financial Information.”

2. Records Not Previously Identified as Proprietary but Believed to Contain Proprietary 

Information

(a) When a program office or regional office determines that a record submitted by 

(or otherwise obtained from) a person may contain trade secrets or confidential 

commercial or financial information, but has not been previously marked or 

designated as proprietary, the office FOIA coordinator will send the record to the 

assigned Government Information Specialist, along with the NRC staff’s initial 

determination on whether the potentially proprietary information may be released, 

and the contact information for the submitter of the records or other entity 

identified as potentially having a proprietary interest in the records.

(b) The procedures specified in 10 CFR 9.28 will be followed.
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3. Contractor Proposals 

The disclosure of a contractor proposal in the possession and control of a Federal 

agency in response to a FOIA request is prohibited under FOIA Exemption 3 and 41 

U.S.C. 4702, “Prohibition on release of contractor proposals,” except where the 

proposal has been incorporated directly or by reference into a contract between the 

agency and the contractor. 

H. Special Procedures for Processing a Record Containing Agency Action Review 

Meeting (AARM) Information 

1. If a program office or regional office locates a responsive record pertaining to an 

Agency Action Review Meeting (AARM), the record is to be identified as an AARM 

record and sent to the Government Information Specialist. The originating office will 

provide a disclosure recommendation. The Government Information Specialist will 

send the record to OEDO for final approval for release. If the response withholds 

information, the EDO will be the denying official.

2. The EDO approves the release of records pertaining to the AARM process, which is 

described in MD 8.14, "Agency Action Review Meeting." These records include 

AARM-related plant performance information, the applicable sections of the AARM 

executive summary, and the minutes of the AARM. 

I. Special Procedures for Processing an Allegation Record 

1. An allegation record transmitted in paper must be transmitted with a cover sheet, in 

accordance with MD 8.8, “Management of Allegations.” An allegation record 

transmitted electronically must be transmitted with “Sensitive Allegation/Investigation 

Material Attached.”

2. Allegation information should not be released to the public and will not be made 

publicly available without consulting with the Agency Allegation Advisor (AAA) or 

designee.

3. The AAA or designee will notify the Government Information Specialist that the 

information disclosed from the record would not cause harm to an open allegation or 

disclose the identity of an alleger.

4. If the incoming FOIA request requests allegation records by the name of a purported

alleger or witness, without identity verification or release authorization (whether such 

records actually exist at the NRC or not), the NRC will provide a Glomar response 

“neither confirm nor deny.” If a Glomar response is deemed appropriate, the 

response would constitute a denial under FOIA exemption (b)(7)(C): disclosure of 

which could reasonably be expected to constitute an unwarranted invasion of 

personal privacy.
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J. Special Procedures Regarding Treatment of Critical Energy/Electric Infrastructure 

Information (CEII)

Critical Energy/Electric Infrastructure Information (CEII) is defined in the Federal Energy 

Regulation Commission’s (FERC) regulations at 18 C.F.R. § 388.113(c)(1) and (2). 

FERC is statutorily authorized to designate information as being CEII, including 

information of agencies other than FERC. The NRC and FERC have entered into a 

Memorandum of Understanding (ML18164A182), which sets forth the basic parameters 

under which NRC and FERC will cooperate under 18 C.F.R. § 388.113(a) to protect CEII 

in the NRC’s possession that is responsive to a FOIA request.

1. Program Office Action

If, in response to a FOIA request, NRC staff identifies material that it believes is CEII, 

NRC FOIA team will consult with the FERC CEII Coordinator to receive a supporting 

determination for the designation of the material as CEII pursuant to Section 215A of 

Part II of the Federal Power Act, 16 U.S.C. 824o-1. NRC staff should mark on the 

material itself, either through pencil bracketing if the record is in paper format, 

or through Adobe’s redaction tool (remembering only to “mark,” not “apply,” the 

redaction), for the material believed to be CEII. To assist in the CEII consultation with 

FERC, NRC staff must provide the following input in writing to the office’s FOIA 

coordinator, who will then submit the input to the assigned FOIA team:

(a) A concise summary indicating why the office believes the material meets the 

definition of CEII,

(b) An explanation of how long the material should be designated as CEII (up to five 

years) and whether renewal of CEII treatment will likely be needed, and

(c) Any views about public disclosure of the material received by the staff before

submission of the FOIA request, such as under 10 CFR 2.390.

2. OCIO Government Information Specialist Action

(a) Identify the records that will need consultation with FERC for FERC designation.

(b) Prepare cover letter to transmit records.

(c) Obtain OGC concurrence on the proposed consultation package.

(d) Transmit to FERC CEII Coordinator.

(e) Once FERC responds, notify the program office FOIA coordinator.

(f) Appropriately redact and apply FOIA exemptions.

(g) Obtain OGC concurrence on the proposed FOIA response.

(h) Obtain FOIA Officer signature on the FOIA response.

(i) Send FOIA response to requester.
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III. PROCESSING A FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA) APPEAL

A. Receipt of a FOIA Appeal 

Any NRC employee who receives a FOIA appeal will immediately send it to the FOIA 

Officer. The FOIA requires that an agency respond to an appeal within 20 working days 

of the receipt date. A requester may appeal a denial of records, in whole or in part; the 

adequacy of search; a no record response; or the lack of response to a FOIA request. 

A requester may also appeal the denial of a request for a waiver or reduction of fees or 

denial of a request for expedited processing. Upon receipt, the FOIA office will date 

stamp the appeal letter and assign it a tracking case number. The requester will be sent 

a written acknowledgement within 2 working days of the appeal.

B. Assigning a FOIA Appeal Action to an Office

The Government Information Specialist will provide to SECY, if the office reports to the 

Commission, or to the OIG, if the appeal is to the IG, a copy of the appeal letter, a copy 

of the initial request letter, a copy of the NRC Form 464, “Response to Freedom of 

Information Act Request,” or other response (if applicable), and a copy of the records 

provided to the requester. For offices that report to the EDO, the Government 

Information Specialist, as appropriate, will provide to the office that provided disclosure 

recommendations a copy of the appeal letter, a copy of the initial request letter, a copy 

of the Form 464 or other response (if applicable), and a copy of the records provided to 

the requester. 

C. Processing a FOIA Appeal to the Executive Director for Operations

The original staff offices that recommended the withholding of information in full or in 

part will, as appropriate, review the records, consider new information presented in the 

appeal letter, and recommend to the Government Information Specialist whether the 

records denied in full or in part should continue to be withheld. The office response must 

reflect the office director’s or designee’s signature. OGC will review proposed decisions 

resolving administrative appeals to the EDO. The Chief FOIA Officer will be the signing 

authority on the appeals. If the appeal is denied, whether in full or in part, the response 

will specify the basis for the denial and will advise the requester of his or her right to 

seek judicial review under 5 U.S.C. 552(a)(4)(B), as well as his or her opportunity to use 

the mediation services offered by the Office of Government Information Services (OGIS).

D. Processing a FOIA Appeal to the Secretary of the Commission 

SECY will coordinate a review of the denied records and any new information presented 

in the appeal letter with OGC and the appropriate office for which the initial denial was 

made. After resolving all identified problems, the Assistant General Counsel for Legal 

Counsel, Legislation, and Special Projects will prepare a response for the approval and 

signature of the Secretary of the Commission, who will make the final agency decision 

on the appeal. If the appeal is denied, whether in full or in part, the response will specify 

the basis for the denial and will advise the requester of his or her right to seek judicial 
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review under 5 U.S.C. 552(a)(4)(B), as well as his or her opportunity to use the 

mediation services offered by OGIS.

E. Processing a FOIA Appeal to the Secretary of the Commission and the Executive 

Director for Operations

For FOIA appeals that involve both records originated by offices that report to the 

Commission and records originated by offices that report to the EDO, the process 

described in section C above should be followed for the former set of records and the 

process described in section D above should be followed for the latter set of records. 

The Government Information Specialist will forward the resulting recommendations to 

the Assistant General Counsel for Legal Counsel, Legislation, and Special Projects, who 

will prepare a joint response for the approval and signature of the Secretary of the 

Commission and the Chief FOIA Officer. If the appeal is denied, whether in full or in part, 

the response will specify the basis for the denial and will advise the requester of his or 

her right to seek judicial review under 5 U.S.C. 552(a)(4)(B), and of his or her 

opportunity to use the mediation services offered by OGIS. 

F. Processing a FOIA Appeal to the Inspector General (IG) 

A response will be prepared by the General Counsel to the Inspector General for the 

approval and signature of the IG, the final appellate authority. If the appeal is denied, 

whether in full or in part, the response will specify the basis for the denial and will advise 

the requester of his or her right to seek judicial review under 5 U.S.C. 552(a)(4)(B), as 

well as his or her opportunity to use the mediation services offered by OGIS.

G. Dispatch 

The FOIA office will dispatch all appeal responses to the requester.

IV. FEES FOR SEARCH, REVIEW, AND DUPLICATION OF RECORDS CAPTURED 

BY AN INITIAL FOIA REQUEST

A. General 

The FOIA Officer determines the appropriate fee category for each FOIA request based

on the information contained in the request letter. In addition, the FOIA Officer may look 

to how a requester was categorized in prior requests, contact the requester for additional 

information, or perform web-based searching if there is uncertainty regarding a 

requester’s fee category. Each NRC staff member who is assigned responsibility to 

search for or review FOIA records will report the time he or she spent on these tasks, 

along with his or her grade level (clerical 1-10, professional/managerial 11-15, 

SES/Commission), on NRC Form 496 at the request of the office’s FOIA coordinator. 

This information is used to bill certain requesters.
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B. Charging Fees Under the FOIA

1. Fees may be charged in accordance with 10 CFR Part 9, Subpart A.

2. The NRC may aggregate FOIA requests for fee purposes if it finds that a requester, 

or a group of requesters acting in concert, has divided what could have been a single 

request into multiple requests for the purpose of avoiding fees. When determining

whether to aggregate requests, the NRC will consider whether the requests involve 

related subjects and the time period in which the requests were filed.

3. The NRC will assess interest, penalties, and administrative costs on delinquent 

invoices. As indicated in 10 CFR 9.34, “Assessment of Interest and Debt Collection,” 

interest will be charged at the rate prescribed in 31 U.S.C. 3717, “Interest and 

penalty on claims.”

C. Requests for which Fees Are Not Charged 

1. Except as provided above, the NRC will not charge for a search if the requester is a 

representative of—

(a) The news media, 

(b) An educational institution, or

(c) A non-commercial scientific institution. 

2. The NRC will not charge for the first 2 hours of a search unless the requester is a 

commercial use requester. 

3. The NRC will not charge a requester for review unless the requester is a commercial 

use requester. 

4. Duplication is provided without charge for the first 100 pages of standard paper 

copies or equivalent pages on microfiche for all FOIA requesters, except commercial 

use requesters. No duplication fees are assessed where the records are provided to 

requesters electronically. Unless requesters specify they want released records in 

paper format, the FOIA office will provide the released records electronically.

5. Fees assessed will not be billed to a requester if the cost of collecting the fee would 

be equal to or greater than the fee itself.

6. If a fee estimate exceeds $250, the NRC will require the requester to remit an 

advance payment before it will consider the request “perfected” and proceed to 

process the request.

7. If the NRC determines that it is not able to respond to a FOIA request timely, it may 

not charge search and duplication fees (or for requesters with preferred fee status, 

may not charge duplication fees).
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8. Per Department of Justice Office of Information Policy, when agencies determine 

“that an “unusual” circumstance applies to the processing of a request and has 

provided “timely written notice to the requester,” the delay is “excused for an 

additional 10 days.” “If the agency fails to comply with the extended time limit,” it may 

not charge search fees (or for requesters with preferred fee status, may not charge 

duplication fees). Exception: If unusual circumstances apply, and more than 5,000 

pages are necessary to respond to the request, agencies charge search fees (or, for 

requesters referred to in C.1(a), (b), or (c) above), may charge duplication fees) if 

timely written notice has been made to the requester and the agency has discussed 

with the requester by written mail, e-mail, or telephone (or made not less than 3 good 

faith attempts to do so) how the requester could limit the scope of the request.”

D. Waiving or Reducing Fees 

Fees may be waived only upon written request. A person requesting the NRC to waive 

or reduce fees must provide the information requested under 10 CFR 9.41(b). This 

information will permit the FOIA Officer to determine whether waiving or reducing the 

fees is in the public interest because disclosure of the information would likely contribute 

significantly to public understanding of the operations or activities of the Government 

and not primarily to the commercial interest of the requester.

V. GLOSSARY

Agency record

A record in the possession and control of the NRC that is associated with the NRC’s 

official Government business. An agency record does not include—

1. Publicly available books, periodicals, or other publications that are owned or 

copyrighted by non-Federal sources.

2. Records solely in the possession and control of NRC contractors, unless they are 

maintaining them for archival/storage purposes for the agency.

3. Records of a personal nature not associated with any Government actions, business, 

or decisions.

4. Records in the possession of NRC personnel that have not been circulated or shared 

with any NRC staff members, were not required to be created or retained by the 

NRC, were not commingled with agency records and can be retained or discarded at 

the author's sole discretion.

5. Records of the Chairman or Commissioners that have not been circulated or shared 

with any NRC staff member, except for typing or recording purposes, were not 

required to be created or retained by the NRC, were not commingled with agency 

records, and could be retained or discarded at the author's sole discretion.
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Alternate office FOIA coordinator

Person designated to perform the functions of the office FOIA coordinator whenever the 

primary coordinator will be away from the office for 3 or more days.

Commercial use request

A request made under 10 CFR 9.23(b), “Requests for Records,” for a use or purpose 

that furthers the commercial, trade, or profit interests of the requester or the person on 

whose behalf the request is made.

Commission-level office records

All records originated by a board, a panel, an advisory committee, or an office reporting 

directly to the Commission, that are not sent to the Commission or to an individual 

Commissioner's office but are retained by the originating organization.

Commission records

All records originated by the Commission or records transmitted to the Commission from 

any NRC board, panel, office, or advisory committee, or from outside the NRC. The term 

"Commission" refers to the collegial body and not to individual Commissioners.

Direct costs

Expenditures that an agency incurs searching for and duplicating agency records. For a 

commercial use request, direct costs include the expenditures involved in the initial 

review of records by the responsible office in responding to the request. Direct costs 

include the salary of the employee performing the work based on the basic rate of pay 

for that category, plus 16 percent of that rate to cover fringe benefits and the cost of 

operating duplicating machinery.

Duplication

The process of making a copy of a record necessary to respond to a request made in 

accordance with 10 CFR 9.23. Copies may take the form of paper copy, microfiche, 

audiovisual materials, disk, magnetic tape, or machine-readable documentation, among 

others.

EDO-level office records

All records originated by an office reporting to the Executive Director for Operations

(EDO) that are not submitted to the Commission or to an individual Commissioner's 

office but are retained by the originating organization or records received from outside 

the NRC for which that office has primary responsibility.
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EDO records

All records originated by the EDO or his or her personal staff, or records received from 

outside the NRC for which the EDO's office has primary responsibility.

Educational institution

An institution that operates a program or programs of scholarly research. Refers to a 

preschool, a public or private elementary or secondary school, an institution of 

undergraduate higher education, an institution of professional education, an institution of 

vocational education, or an institution of graduate higher education.

Employees

Employees, consultants, and members of advisory boards, committees, and panels of 

the NRC; members of boards designated by the Commission to preside at adjudicatory 

proceedings; and officers or employees of Government agencies, including military 

personnel, assigned to duty at the NRC.

Exempt Information

Not all records are required to be released under the FOIA. Congress established nine 

exemptions from disclosure for certain categories of information to protect against 

certain harms. The FOIA authorizes agencies to withhold information covered by an 

exemption when they reasonably foresee that disclosure would harm an interest 

protected by the exemption, or when disclosure is prohibited by law. 

Expedited processing

The placement of a FOIA request at the front of the queue for the particular processing 

track where the requester clearly demonstrates a compelling need because (1) the 

failure to obtain requested records on an expedited basis could reasonably be expected 

to pose an imminent threat to the life or physical safety of an individual or (2) with 

respect to a person primarily engaged in disseminating information, an urgency to inform 

the public concerning actual or alleged Federal Government activity.

Federal agency

Any executive department, military department, Government corporation, 

Government-controlled corporation, or other establishment in the executive branch of the 

Government (including the Executive Office of the President), or any independent 

regulatory agency.

FOIA Coordinator

Serves as the office/regional FOIA point-of-contact and liaison between the office/region 

and the Government Information Specialist.
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FOIA Officer

Administers the FOIA program for the NRC and exercises various FOIA-related 

functions, as described in Section III.M of the directive portion of this management 

directive.

FOIA Public Liaison

Reports to the Chief FOIA Officer. Serves as a supervisory official to whom a requester 

can raise concerns about the processing of their requests.

FOIA Requester

The person who submits a request for agency records subject to the FOIA.

Government Information Specialist

Title for the Office of the Chief Information Officer (OCIO) FOIA personnel responsible 

for coordination of FOIA actions between the office FOIA coordinators and requesters 

and preparation of responses to requesters.

Individual Commissioner's records

All records originated by a Commissioner or his or her staff and all records received by a 

Commissioner or his or her staff from sources outside the NRC and not distributed to 

other NRC offices.

Non-commercial scientific institution

An institution that is not operated on a commercial basis, as the term "commercial" is 

referred to in the definition of "commercial use request," and is operated solely for the 

purpose of conducting scientific research, the results of which are not intended to 

promote any product or industry.

Office

Unless otherwise indicated, all offices, boards, panels, and advisory committees of the 

NRC.

Office FOIA coordinator

The person designated by the head of an office to serve as the primary point-of-contact 

between the FOIA team and his or her office to coordinate the search, review, and all 

other processing of FOIA requests within the office.
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Perfected request

A FOIA request for records received by the FOIA Officer that adequately describes the 

records sought, and for which there are no remaining questions about the payment of 

applicable fees, the scope of the request, or other matters that preclude processing of 

the request.

Personal record

Records of a private or nonofficial character that ordinarily pertain only to an individual's 

personal affairs and do not affect the conduct of agency business. A personal record 

also includes notes that are prepared by an NRC employee pertaining to agency 

business that—

1. Have not been commingled with agency records, 

2. Have not been circulated or shared with others in the course of transacting NRC 

business, 

3. Are prepared for the individual's own use, 

4. Are not required to be created or retained by the NRC, 

5. Can be retained or discarded at the author's sole discretion, and

6. Are not used as a substantive part in writing an agency record.

Record

Information in any format, including an electronic format, such as any book, paper, map, 

drawing, diagram, photograph, brochure, magnetic tape, tape, sound recording, 

pamphlet, slide, motion picture, or other documentary material, regardless of form or 

characteristics. A record does not include an object or an article (e.g., a structure, 

furniture, a tangible exhibit or model, a vehicle, or a piece of equipment).

Redact

The process of removing from or marking information in a record that is to be withheld

under a FOIA exemption or removing or marking an individual record to be withheld as

nonresponsive record of the FOIA request within a larger document containing other 

records that are within the scope of the FOIA request.

Representative of the News Media

Any person that gathers information of potential interest to a segment of the public, uses 

his or her editorial skills to turn the raw materials into a distinct work, and distributes that 

work to an audience. The term “news” means information that is about current events or 

that would be of current interest to the public. Examples of news media entities include 

television or radio stations that broadcast “news” to the public at large and publishers of 

periodicals that disseminate “news” and make their products available to the general 
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public, including by disseminating information solely on the Internet. “Freelance” 

journalists who demonstrate a solid basis for expecting publication through a news 

media entity will be considered representatives of the news media. A publication contract 

would present a solid basis for such an expectation.

Review

The initial examination of records identified as responsive to a request to determine 

whether they are exempted from disclosure in whole or in part. "Review" includes 

examining records to determine which FOIA exemptions are applicable, determining 

whether there is foreseeable harm if exempt material were to be released, identifying 

records or portions of records to be disclosed, and performing the redactions necessary 

to prepare the records for release.

Search

All time spent looking for responsive records, either by manual or electronic search 

methods, including a page-by-page or a line-by-line identification of responsive 

information within the records.

Senior Management FOIA Official (SMFO)

Appointed by the office director, serves as the office contact to resolve problems that 

cannot be resolved between OCIO FOIA team and the office FOIA coordinator or among 

responding offices. Possesses substantial knowledge of the work and current technical 

and policy considerations within the office.

Suspension

The period between the actual date of receipt of a FOIA request and the date the 

request is "perfected," which does not count as processing time. Also called “tolling.”

Working days

Monday through Friday, except legal holidays.
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EXHIBIT 1 LINES OF RESPONSIBILITY

Initial Requests

Action Coordination Denying Official

Commission 

Records

SECY OGC, Commission Executive Assistant 

to the Secretary

Individual 

Commissioner 

Records

SECY OGC, Individual 

Commissioner 

Office

Executive Assistant 

to the Secretary

Former 

Commissioner 

Records

SECY OGC Executive Assistant 

to the Secretary

CommissionLevel Office 

Records

Originating 

Office

OGC, Commission Executive Assistant 

to the Secretary

OGC Records OGC N/A General Counsel

EDO Records EDO OGC EDO/DEDOs

EDO-Level 

Office Records

Originating 

Office

Originating Office, 

OGC

FOIA Officer

IG Records IG N/A Assistant Inspector 

General for 

Investigations

Appeals

Action Coordination Denying Official

Commission 

Records

SECY OGC, Chairman, 

Commission

SECY

Individual 

Commissioner 

Records

SECY Individual 

Commissioner 

Office, OGC

SECY

CommissionLevel Office 

Records

Originating 

Office

OGC, Commission SECY

OGC Records OGC N/A SECY

EDO Records SECY OGC, Commission SECY

EDO-Level 

Office Records

Originating 

Office

Originating Office, 

OGC

CIO

IG Records IG N/A IG