U.S. NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION 

FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT IMPROVEMENT PLAN

MODIFIED - DECEMBER 27, 2006

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is submitting its Freedom of Information Act

(FOIA) Improvement Plan, as required by Executive Order (EO) 13392, “Improving Agency

Disclosure of Information,” in accordance with the template provided by the U.S. Department of

Justice (DOJ) on April 27, 2006.

A. Characterize the overall nature of the agency’s FOIA operations.

The NRC FOIA program is effective, but the agency can improve it. FOIA staff are

knowledgeable, experienced, and dedicated to properly administering the FOIA program and

meeting the requirements of EO 13392. NRC has five individuals working full-time on FOIA

activities— four Government employees in the Office of Information Services (OIS) FOIA/Privacy

Team (FPT) and one contractor employee. Twenty-five part-time FOIA coordinators, located in

NRC headquarters offices and regions, provide additional support to the FOIA program. For each

of the last 5 fiscal years (FYs), FY 2000 through FY 2005, NRC received an average of 401 FOIA

requests and closed an average of 395 requests. The difference between received and closed

requests contributed to an aggregate backlog of 58 cases at the end of FY 2005. 

NRC uses its Web site, http://www.nrc.gov, to provide information to the public about its FOIA

program. The site includes the NRC FOIA Information Guide, NRC Management Directive 3.1,

“Freedom of Information Act,” annual FOIA reports to DOJ, and other information about the NRC

FOIA program. Title 10, Part 9, “Public Records,” of the Code of Federal Regulations (10 CFR

Part 9) and the “Citizen’s Guide to U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission Information” also provide

information about the FOIA program. 

NRC receives FOIA requests via email, U.S. mail, facsimile, and the NRC Web site. The FOIA

staff uses a commercial software program, FOIAXpress, to administratively track cases and

produce the annual FOIA report to DOJ. However, NRC only occasionally uses information

technology to communicate with requesters and does not provide them with a final response via

email. When the agency provides a final response in digital form, the staff sends the documents

on a CD-ROM through the U.S. mail. NRC does not perform onscreen redactions of documents or

electronic archiving of FOIA request files.

NRC is very proactive at making information available to the public in the absence of a FOIA

request through its Web site Electronic Reading Room, Public Document Room, and Public Affairs

Office, as well as at public meetings. Despite the ever-increasing volume of information voluntarily

made public by NRC, FOIA requests have not decreased. Approximately 70 percent of FOIA

requests are for information that the agency would not routinely make publicly available, such as

information about allegations, investigations, and Inspector General activities. 

As described on the NRC FOIA Web site, http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/FOIA/executiveorder.html, the agency has established the NRC FOIA Service Center and designated a Chief

FOIA Officer and two FOIA Public Liaisons, in accordance with the EO. The full NRC FOIA

program review report is an attachment to this plan and can also be found in the above section of

the NRC FOIA Web site.

Enclosure
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B. List all areas selected for review.

The NRC reviewed the following four areas to identify ways to improve FOIA services and make

them more citizen centered, create solutions and a path forward that will enable NRC to reduce its

FOIA backlog, and find ways to make more information available to the public without a FOIA

request:

(1) NRC’s administration of the FOIA program, including expenditure of resources on FOIA 

compliance, and the extent to which the staff has not responded to requests for records 

within the statutory time limit (backlog)

(2) NRC’s procedures and practices to assist and inform the public regarding the FOIA 

process

(3) NRC’s use of information technology in responding to FOIA requests and 

communicating with requesters, including practices with respect to requests for

expedited processing and the NRC’s implementation of multitrack processing

(4) NRC’s policies and practices with respect to making records available through its Web 

site and other means without receiving a FOIA request

C. Include a narrative statement summarizing the results of the review.

NRC’s review of the agency’s FOIA program resulted in the following conclusions about the four

evaluation areas listed above: 

(1) In FY 2005, NRC provided completed responses to 65 percent of requests in 20 days or

less. Some requests took longer than 20 days because of the volume of documents

encompassed by the request or the need for extensive coordination between multiple NRC

offices. In FY 2005, NRC experienced a 15 percent increase, from 29 to 34, in the number

of requests for expedited processing and granted 14 of these requests. However, although

NRC granted expedited processing in 14 cases, 6 requests (42 percent) took longer than

20 days, underscoring a need to improve procedures for expedited processing. From FY

2000 through FY 2005, NRC received, on average, more requests each year than it closed,

contributing to a backlog. An additional full-time equivalent (FTE) FOIA specialist is

needed to meet the intent of the EO.

The agency can enhance the training of NRC staff who make the initial determination

recommendations, which should reduce response times for some requests by minimizing

the need for coordination with FOIA staff.

(2) NRC determined that sufficient information about the NRC FOIA program is available to the

public, but the agency can improve that information by providing examples of the types of

NRC records to which each FOIA exemption may apply in NRC’s FOIA publications and its

annual end-of-year report to DOJ.

(3) The agency may also improve processing time by using electronic processing tools to

enable the FOIA staff to make onscreen redactions and electronic responses to

requesters.
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(4) With regard to multitrack processing, the staff did not always assign requests to the correct

track. More accurate placement will also allow the staff to more accurately inform the

requester about the length of time it will take to process his or her request. 

(5) One of the five NRC Strategic Plan goals is openness, and NRC is very proactive at

making information available to the public without a FOIA request. NRC makes millions of

records available through its Electronic Reading Room on the NRC Web site. The public

may also visit the NRC Public Document Room and attend numerous public meetings held

by NRC. The NRC Office of Public Affairs at NRC Headquarters and its offices in the four

NRC regions provide information on NRC activities to the media and public by issuing news

releases, speeches, brochures, fact sheets, and videos. 

D. List all areas chosen as improvement areas for the agency plan.

NRC has identified the following five areas for improvement. These improvements, milestones,

and measures of success are contingent upon the resources requested through the FY 2008

budget process.

(1) Reduce the backlog.

(2) Leverage the use of information technology to electronically track requests, perform

onscreen redactions, and communicate with requesters.

(3) Enhance training of FOIA coordinators and staff who conduct initial reviews of records and

make document release recommendations to the FOIA staff.

(4) Improve expedited processing.

(5) Update publications and the NRC Web site to include examples of the types of NRC

documents to which exemptions apply.

E. For each improvement area provide:

• Improvement area 1:

1. Name: Backlog reduction

2. Brief statement of goal/objective/improvement sought to be made: The purpose of

this improvement area is to reduce the processing time for FOIA requests. 

Improvements in areas 2 through 4 will also contribute to backlog reduction.

3. List all distinct steps planned to be taken:

(a) Hire an additional FTE FOIA specialist.

(b) Hire an additional full-time contractor to assist with processing records in

response to FOIA requests. 
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4. Time milestones:

(a) Initiate the recruitment process for the additional FTE no later than

June 1, 2007.

(b) Obtain additional contractor personnel in FY 2007.

5. Means of measurement of success:

(a) By September 30, 2008, improve FOIA responsiveness for simple FOIA

requests by providing 75 percent of completed responses within 20 days.

(b) By September 30, 2008, improve FOIA responsiveness for complex FOIA

requests so that 50 percent of complex requests are completed in 180 days

or less. 

• Improvement area 2:

1. Name: Leverage the use of information technology

2. Brief statement of goal/objective/improvement sought to be made: The purpose of

this improvement area is to acknowledge receipt of FOIA requests via email to the

maximum extent possible, process requested records electronically by performing

onscreen redactions, and provide final responses to requesters via email when they

agree to receive them in electronic form.

3. List all distinct steps to be taken:

(a) Implement a process to acknowledge requests via email.

(b) Obtain the necessary equipment [software and hardware (scanners)] to test

onscreen redaction processes.

(c) Implement full-scale onscreen processing.

(d) Provide records to the maximum extent possible in electronic form either via

attachment to an email or via CD-ROM sent by U.S. mail.

4. Time milestones:

(a) Develop a process and begin acknowledging requests via email no later

than August 31, 2006.

(b) Complete test of onscreen redaction software and identify best business

practices for using it no later than January 31, 2007. 

(c) Obtain additional software and hardware, conduct training, and begin

implementation of full-scale use of onscreen redactions no later than

March 31, 2008.
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5. Means of measurement of success:

(a) No later than August 31, 2006, acknowledge receipt of 100 percent of FOIA

requests via email when the requester has provided an email address.

(b) No later than December 31, 2008, complete implementation of full-scale use

of onscreen redaction, based on best business practice plan.

! Improvement area 3:

1. Name: Training of FOIA initial processors

2. Brief statement of goal/objective/improvement sought to be made: The purpose of

this improvement area is to develop and provide training for NRC staff who conduct

initial reviews of records in response to FOIA requests to enhance the accuracy of

their application of FOIA exemptions to the information. This should minimize the

amount of coordination required and shorten the processing time.

3. List of distinct steps planned to be taken:

In addition to the quarterly classroom FOIA training already available to 

NRC staff, develop a computer based training (CBT) module that NRC staff

can access through the NRC internal Web site.

4. Time milestones:

Develop the FOIA CBT module and make it available on the NRC internal 

 Web site no later than December 31, 2007.

5. Means of measurement of success:

(a) By September 30, 2008, improve FOIA responsiveness for simple FOIA

requests by providing 75 percent of completed responses within 20 days.

(b) By September 30, 2008, improve FOIA responsiveness for complex FOIA

requests so that 50 percent of complex requests are completed in 180 days

or less. 

! Improvement area 4:

1. Name: Improve expedited processing

2. Brief statement of goal/objective/improvement sought to be made: The purpose of

this improvement area is to reduce the amount of time for addressing requests that

are granted expedited processing status so that these requests are truly expedited.

3. List all distinct steps planned to be taken:

(a) Develop a specific plan for expedited processing that identifies each step 

of the process and designates responsibilities for each step.
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(b) Educate offices about the requirements for expedited processing,

including their role and responsibility to ensure expedited review of

records.

4. Time milestones:

(a) Complete development of the specific plan for expedited processing no later

than October 31, 2006.

(b) Provide the expedited process plan and educate FOIA coordinators and

senior management FOIA officials no later than November 30, 2006.

5. Means of measurement of success:

(a) By September 30, 2008, process 75 percent of simple requests granted

expedited processing within 15 days.

(b) By September 30, 2008, process 75 percent of complex requests granted

expedited processing within 90 days.

! Improvement area 5:

1. Name: Update publications and Web site

2. Brief statement of goal/objective/improvement sought to be made: The purpose of

this improvement area is to identify in NRC’s publications and on its Web site

examples of the types of documents for which NRC may invoke FOIA exemptions.

3. List all distinct steps planned to be taken:

Update the NRC FOIA Information Guide and the annual end-of-year FOIA report to

DOJ to include examples of the NRC record categories for each FOIA exemption

used by NRC.

4. Time milestones:

Update the FOIA Information Guide on the NRC FOIA Web site and the end-ofyear

report to DOJ no later than September 30, 2006.

5. Means of measurement of success:

By the milestone date, update all publications on the Web site to reflect the new

information.

F. For the entire plan, group the improvement areas into the following time periods:

1. Areas anticipated to be completed by December 31, 2006:

(a) Develop a process and begin acknowledging receipt of requests via 

 email.
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(b) Complete the development of a specific plan to enhance processing of 

 requests granted expedited processing and distribute it to FOIA office 

coordinators and senior management FOIA officials.

(c) Update the NRC FOIA Information Guide and NRC Web site with 

examples of the NRC record types for which FOIA exemptions apply.

2. Areas anticipated to be completed by December 31, 2007:

(a) Hire an additional FOIA specialist.

(b) Acquire additional contractor assistance for FOIA processing.

(c) Complete test of onscreen redaction software and identify best business 

 practice for its use.

(d) Develop FOIA CBT module.

3. Areas anticipated to be completed after December 31, 2007:

(a) Obtain additional software and hardware, conduct training, and complete 

 implementation of full-scale use of onscreen redactions no later than 

December 31, 2008.

(b) By September 30, 2008, improve FOIA responsiveness for simple FOIA 

 requests by providing 75 percent of completed responses within 20 days.

(c) By September 30, 2008, improve FOIA responsiveness for complex FOIA 

 requests so that 50 percent of complex requests are completed in 180 

 days or less. 

(d) By September 2008, process 75 percent of simple requests granted 

expedited processing within 15 days.

(e) By September 2008, process 75 percent of complex requests granted 

 expedited processing within 90 days.

Attachment:

NRC FOIA Program Review