2018 Chief FOIA Officer Report for the U.S. Railroad Retirement Board (RRB) 

The RRB submits this report for 2018 in response to the request in the United States 

Department of Justice Office of Information Policy, “Guidelines for 2018 Chief 

FOIA Officer Reports.” The report has been prepared by Ana M. Kocur, General 

Counsel/Chief FOIA Officer, RRB. 

Section I: Steps Taken to Apply the Presumption of Openness 

The guiding principle underlying the FOIA memoranda and Department of 

Justice FOIA Guidelines is the presumption of openness. 

Describe the steps your agency has taken to ensure that the presumption of 

openness is being applied to all decisions involving the FOIA. To do so, you 

should answer the questions listed below and then include any additional 

information you would like to describe how your agency is working to apply the 

presumption of openness. 

A. FOIA Training: 

1. Did your FOIA professionals or the personnel at your agency who have 

FOIA responsibilities attend any FOIA training or conference during the 

reporting period such as that provided by the Department of Justice? 

Yes. 

2. If yes, please provide a brief description of the type of training attended 

and the topics covered. 

The RRB is a small, independent agency in the Executive Branch of the 

Federal government. As the RRB’s General Counsel/Chief FOIA Officer, I 

am responsible for the RRB’s overall FOIA program. I have made certain 

that all FOIA staff are properly trained and refreshed annually as part of 

the agency’s Privacy Awareness training. All FOIA staff are trained on 

FOIA policy memoranda and guidance and are responsible for carrying 

out those responsibilities as they respond to all FOIA requests. During this 

reporting period, two General Attorneys on my staff attended a two and a 

half-day “FOIA and Privacy Act Workshop” provided by the American 

Society of Access Professionals (ASAP) in Chicago, Illinois. 
 

 

 

 

 

 

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3.	 Provide an estimate of the percentage of your FOIA professionals and staff 

with FOIA responsibilities who attended substantive FOIA training during 

this reporting period. 

All RRB FOIA staff were trained and refreshed on the FOIA and relevant 

policy guidance in FY 2017. The Office of General Counsel issued a Legal 

Opinion (L-2017-6) providing a legal review of Public Law 114-185, the 

FOIA Improvement Act of 2016. 

4. OIP has directed agencies to “take steps to ensure that all of their FOIA 

professionals attend substantive FOIA training at least once throughout the 

year.” If your response to the previous question is that less than 80% of your 

FOIA professionals attended training, please explain your agency’s plan to 

ensure that all FOIA professionals receive or attend substantive training 

during the next reporting year. 

We continue to monitor our FOIA training opportunities annually and 

provide for the necessary training as required. FOIA personnel are 

advised of training opportunities conducted by the Department of Justice 

as well as by other outside vendors. 

B. Outreach: 

5. Did your FOIA professionals engage in any outreach or dialogue with the 

requester community or open government groups regarding your 

administration of the FOIA? 

No. 

C. Other Initiatives: 

6. Describe any efforts your agency has undertaken to inform non-FOIA 

professionals of their obligations under the FOIA? 

All agency employees participate in annual mandatory Privacy 

Awareness training and are trained on their obligations pursuant to the 

FOIA. 

If there are any other initiatives undertaken by your agency to ensure the 

presumption of openness is being applied, please describe them here. 
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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FOIA staff review all records that are responsive to a particular FOIA 

request. When there is a possibility of making a release under the 

foreseeable harm standard, they consult with the agency’s General 

Counsel/ Chief FOIA Officer. 

7. If there are any other initiatives undertaken by your agency to ensure that 

the presumption of openness is being applied, please describe them here. 

Not applicable. 

Section II: Steps Taken to Ensure that Your Agency
 

Has an Effective System in Place for Responding to Requests 

DOJ’s FOIA Guidelines emphasized that "[a]pplication of the proper disclosure 

standard is only one part of ensuring transparency. Open government requires 

not just a presumption of disclosure, but also an effective system for responding 

to FOIA requests." It is essential that agencies effectively manage their FOIA 

program. 

Please answer the following questions to describe the steps your agency has 

taken to ensure that the management of your FOIA program is effective and 

efficient. You should also include any additional information that describes your 

agency’s efforts in this area. 

1. For Fiscal Year 2017, what was the average number of days your agency 

reported for adjudicating requests for expedited processing? Please see 

Section VIII.A. of your agency’s Fiscal Year 2017 Annual FOIA Report. 

The RRB did not adjudicate any requests for expedited processing in Fiscal 

Year 2017. 

2. If your agency’s average number of days to adjudicate requests for 

expedited processing was above ten calendar days, please describe the 

steps your agency will take to ensure that requests for expedited 

processing are adjudicated within ten calendar days or less. 

N/A. 

3. During the reporting period, did you agency conduct a self-assessment of 

its FOIA program? If so, please describe the methods used, such as 

reviewing Annual Report data, using active workflows and track 

management, reviewing and updating processing procedures, etc. 
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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During FY 2017, the RRB reviewed its previous FOIA Annual Report data 

and updated its FOIA website content to remain compliant with the FOIA 

Improvement Act of 2016. 

4. The FOIA Improvement Act of 2016 requires additional notification to 

requestors about the services provided by the agency’s FOIA Public 

Liaison. Please provide an estimate of the number of times requestors 

sought assistance from you agency’s FOIA Public Liaison during FY 2017. 

The RRB received one request for assistance from the agency’s FOIA 

Public Liaison. 

5. Optional Survey Question: If possible, please provide an estimate of the 

average number of pages that your agency processes for each request. 

You may provide estimates for each track. 

The RRB estimates the average number of pages that the agency 

processes for each request to be 15 pages. 

6. If there are any other steps your agency has undertaken to ensure that 

your FOIA system operates efficiently and effectively, such as improving 

search processes, eliminating redundancy, etc., please describe them 

here. 

We routinely review our entire FOIA processing system to identify any 

improvements and efficiencies which can be made. 

Section III: Steps Taken to Increase Proactive Disclosures 

The Department of Justice has long focused on the need for agencies to 

work proactively to post information online without waiting for individual 

requests to be received. 

Please answer the following questions to describe the steps your agency has 

taken both to increase the amount of material that is available on your agency 

websites. In addition to the questions below, you should also describe any 

additional steps taken by your agency to make and improve proactive 

disclosure of information. 

1. Provide examples of material that your agency has proactively disclosed 

during the past reporting year, including links to the posted material. 

We continue to monitor FOIA webpage content to make sure it remains 

timely and consistent with current law. FOIA staff have the responsibility 
 

 

 

 

 

 

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and authority to update the RRB website as necessary. The website offers 

access to copies of the agency’s procedure manuals, final decisions of 

the three-member Board which heads the agency, rulings of the Board 

and legal opinions. Other information is available to the public without 

filing a FOIA request in the Federal Register and the RRB Group 

Information Locator System (GILS) website. An example of additional 

material provided since the issuance of the new FOIA Guidelines include 

the Railroad Retirement Board’s Office of General Counsel’s online 

database of Legal Opinions and Board Coverage Decisions which was 

launched in FY 2016 located at https://legallibrary.rrb.gov/Home.aspx. 

(See also “Success Stories” below). Additionally, five data sets of statistical 

information have been added to the RRB’s Open Government Initiative 

located at http://www.rrb.gov/open/default.asp. 

High-Value Data Sets: 

Active Employees and Railroad http://www.data.gov/details/1331 

Retirement Act Beneficiaries by State, 2008 

Longevity of Railroad Retirement http://www.data.gov/details/1332 

Beneficiaries 

Railroad Retirement Act Annuitants and http://www.data.gov/details/1330 

Active Railroad Employees by 

Congressional District 

Total Number of Railroad Employees by http://www.data.gov/details/455 

State and Last Railroad Employer, 2007 

Total Railroad Employment by State and http://www.data.gov/details/456 

County, 2007 

Open Government Webpage www.rrb.gov/open 

Freedom of Information Act Report Publishing www.rrb.gov/open) 

Agency Plans, Management and Reports 

http://www.rrb.gov/general/plan_rpt_inv.asp#fair 

http://www.rrb.gov/mep/agency_mgt.asp 

http://www.rrb.gov/opa/AnnualRprt/Ann_Rpt_toc.asp 
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Agency Procedure Manuals 

http://www.rrb.gov/general/admin_manuals_index.asp 

Board Coverage Decisions http://www.rrb.gov/blaw/bcd/cov_introduction.asp 

Congressional Requests ola@rrb.gov 

Federal Register http://www.gpoaccess.gov/fr/index.html 

http://www.rrb.gov/irm/fedreg_notices.asp 

http://www.rrb.gov/irm/fedreg_regs.asp 

Financial, Actuarial and Statistical Data 

http://www.rrb.gov/mep/fin_act_stat.asp 

Forms and Publications 

http://www.rrb.gov/general/handbook/toc.asp 

http://www.rrb.gov/mep/ben_forms.asp 

http://www.rrb.gov/mmo/rail_forms.asp 

Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) 

http://www.rrb.gov/blaw/foia/foia.asp 

Information Dissemination 

http://www.rrb.gov/bis/section515/introduction.asp 

http://www.rrb.gov/bis/section515/guidelines.asp 

http://www.rrb.gov/bis/section515/correct.asp 

IMPAC Credit Card Holders List 

http://www.rrb.gov/general/impac.asp 

News Releases http://www.rrb.gov/mep/news_releases.asp 

Privacy Act - Privacy Act Systems of Records 

http://www.rrb.gov/bis/privacy_act/introduction.asp 

http://www.rrb.gov/bis/privacy_act/SORNList.asp 
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Records Management http://www.rrb.gov/rrbvision/video_library.asp 

2. Did your agency use any means to publicize or highlight important 

proactive disclosures for public awareness? If yes, please describe those 

efforts. 

Yes. The RRB utilized Really Simple Syndication (RSS) and E-mail 

Subscriptions to allow users to easily stay up-to-date with areas of the RRB's 

web site that are of interest and provide resultant feedback. RSS is a 

technology that allows organizations to deliver content to a desktop 

computer or other Internet device. By subscribing to RSS feeds, users can 

easily stay up-to-date with areas of the RRB's web site that are of interest. 

The RRB offers several RSS feeds for use in an RSS reader or RSS-enabled 

web browser. RRB feeds consist of headline, brief summary, and a link that 

leads back to the agency's web site for more information. We also offer 

the ability to receive email when certain pages are updated.The RRB did 

not utilize social media to publicize proactive disclosures. 

3. Beyond posting new material, is your agency taking steps to make the 

posted information more useful to the public, especially to the community 

of individuals who regularly access your agency’s website? 

Yes. 

4. If yes, please provide examples of such improvements. 

See answer to question 2 above. 

5. If there are any other steps that your agency has taken to improve 

proactive disclosures, please describe them here. For example, has your 

agency engaged requesters in determining how and what to post? Has 

your agency used web analysis to inform your proactive disclosures? 

See answer to question 2 above. 

Section IV: Steps Taken to Greater Utilize Technology 

A key component of FOIA administration is using technology to make 

information more accessible. In addition to using the internet to make proactive 

disclosures, agencies should also be exploring ways to utilize technology in 

responding to requests. 

Please answer the following questions to describe how your agency is utilizing 

technology to improve its FOIA administration and the public’s access to 
 

 

 

 

 

 

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information. You should also include any additional information that describes 

your agency’s efforts in this area. 

1. Has your agency identified any best practices to leverage technology to 

facilitate overall FOIA efficiency, such as improving record search 

capabilities, utilizing document sharing platforms for consultations and 

referrals, or employing software that can sort and de-duplicate 

documents? If yes, please describe the best practices, the types of 

technology used and the impact on your agency’s processing. 

No. 

2. Did your agency successfully post all quarterly reports for Fiscal Year 2017? 

No. 

3. If your agency did not successfully post all quarterly reports, with 

information appearing on FOIA.gov, please explain why and provide your 

agency’s plan for ensuring that such reporting is successful in Fiscal Year 

2018. 

Due to unexpected delays caused by other agency priorities, specifically 

pending appeal and litigation cases, we were unable to comply with the 

quarterly reporting and raw statistical data reporting requirements. We 

plan to provide appropriate staffing and resources to achieve the 

quarterly reporting and raw statistical data reporting requirements in Fiscal 

Year 2018. 

4. The FOIA Improvement Act of 2016 requires all agencies to post the raw 

statistical data used to compile their Annual FOIA Reports. Please provide 

the link to this posting for your agency’s Fiscal Year 2016 Annual FOIA 

Report and, if available, for your agency’s Fiscal Year 2017 Annual FOIA 

Report. 

See # 3 above. Not yet available. 

5.	 If there are any other steps your agency has taken to improve use of
 

technology in FOIA, please describe them here.
 

N/A. 
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Section V: Steps Taken to Improve Timeliness in
 

Responding to Requests and Reduce Backlogs 

The Department of Justice has emphasized the importance of improving 

timeliness in responding to requests. This section of your Chief FOIA Officer 

Report addresses both time limits and backlog reduction. Backlog reduction is 

measured both in terms of numbers of backlogged requests or appeals and by 

looking at whether agencies closed their ten oldest requests, appeals and 

consultations. 

A. Simple Track: 

Section VII.A of your agency’s Annual FOIA Report, entitled “FOIA Requests – 

Response Time to All Processed Requests, “includes figures that show your 

agency’s response time for processed requests. For agencies utilizing a multitrack system to process requests, there is a category for “simple requests, 

which are those requests that are placed in the agency’s fastest (nonexpedited) track, based on the low volume and/or simplicity of the records 

requested. 

1. Does your agency utilize a separate track for simple requests? 

No. 

2. If so, for your agency overall in Fiscal Year 2017, was the average number 

of days to process simple requests twenty working days or fewer? 

N/A. 

3. Please provide the percentage of requests processed by your agency in 

Fiscal year 2017 that were placed in your simple track. 

Zero (0). 

4. If your If your agency does not track simple requests separately, was the 

average number of days to process non-expedited requests twenty 

working days or fewer? 

Yes. The average number of days to process non-expedited requests was 

337.75 days. 
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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B. BACKLOGS: 

Section XII.A of your agency’s Annual FOIA Report, entitled “Backlogs of FOIA 

Requests and Administrative Appeals” shows the numbers of any backlogged 

requests or appeals from the fiscal year. You should refer to these numbers 

from your Annual FOIA Reports for both Fiscal Year 2016 and Fiscal Year 2017 

when completing this section of your Chief FOIA Officer Report. 

5.	 If your agency had a backlog of requests at the close of Fiscal Year 2017, 

did that backlog decrease as compared with the backlog reported at 

the end of Fiscal Year 2016? 

Yes. 

6. If not, explain why and describe the causes that contributed to your 

agency not being able to reduce its backlog. When doing so, please also 

indicate if any of the following were contributing factors: 

- An increase in the number of incoming requests 

- A loss of staff 

- An increase in the complexity of the requests received. If 

possible please provide examples or briefly describe the 

types of complex requests contributing to your backlog 

increase. 

- Any other reasons – please briefly describe or provide 

examples when possible 

The number of backlogged requests reported by the RRB’s Office of 

Inspector General (OIG) decreased from 11 reported in FY 2016 to 8 in FY 

2017. 

The agency’s Office of Inspector General states that an increase in the 

complexity of the requests, voluminous document requests, and staffing 

issues have contributed to its request backlog. 

7. If you had a request backlog, please report the percentage of requests 

that make up the backlog out of the total number of requests received by 

your agency in Fiscal Year 2017. 

The percentage of requests that make up the backlog out of the total 

number of requests received by the RRB in FY 2017 is 8 percent. 
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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BACKLOGGED APPEALS:
 

8. If your agency had a backlog of appeals at the close of Fiscal Year 2017, 

did that backlog decrease as compared with the backlog reported at 

the end of Fiscal Year 2016? 

No backlog of appeals was reported by the RRB in FY 2015 or FY 2016. 

9. If not, explain why and describe the causes that contributed to your 

agency not being able to reduce the backlog. When doing so, please 

also indicate if any of the following were contributing factors: 

- An increase in the number of incoming requests 

- A loss of staff 

- An increase in the complexity of the requests received. If 

possible please provide examples or briefly describe the 

types of complex requests contributing to your backlog 

increase. 

- Any other reasons – please briefly describe or provide 

examples when possible 

N/A. 

10.	 If you had an appeal backlog, please report the percentage of appeals 

that make up the backlog out of the total number of appeals received by 

your agency in Fiscal Year 2017. If your agency did not receive any 

appeals in Fiscal Year 201 and/or has no appeal backlog, please answer 

“N/A.” 

N/A. 

C. Backlog Reduction Plans 

11. In the 2017 guidelines for Chief FOIA Officer Reports, any agency with a 

backlog of over 1000 requests in Fiscal Year 2016 was asked to provide a 

plan for achieving backlog reduction in the year ahead. Did your 

agency implement a backlog reduction plan last year? If so, describe 

your agency’s efforts in implementing this plan and note if your agency 

was able to achieve backlog reduction in Fiscal Year 2017? 

N/A. 
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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12.	 If your agency had a backlog of more than 1,000 requests in Fiscal Year 

2017, what is your agency’s plan to reduce this backlog during Fiscal Year 

2018? 

N/A. 

D. Status of Ten Oldest Requests, Appeals, and Consultations: 

Section VII.E, entitled “Pending Requests – Ten Oldest Pending Requests,” 

Section VI.C (5), entitled “Ten Oldest Pending Administrative Appeals,” and 

Section XII.C, entitled “Consultations on FOIA Requests – Ten Oldest 

Consultations Received from Other Agencies and Pending at Your Agency,” 

show the ten oldest pending requests, appeals, and consultations. You 

should refer to these numbers from your Annual FOIA Reports for both Fiscal 

Year 2016 and Fiscal Year 2017 when completing this section of your Chief 

FOIA Officer Report. 

TEN OLDEST REQUESTS 

13.In Fiscal Year 2017, did your agency close the ten oldest requests that 

were reported pending in your Fiscal Year 2016 Annual FOIA Report? 

No. 

14.If no, please provide the number of these requests your agency was able 

to close by the end of the fiscal year, as listed in Section VII.E of your Fiscal 

Year 2016 Annual FOIA Report. If you had less than the ten total oldest 

requests to close, please indicate that. 

Three of the ten total oldest requests reported in FY 2016 were closed in FY 

2017. 

15.Of the requests your agency was able to close from your ten oldest, 

please indicate how many of these were closed because the request was 

withdrawn by the requester. If any were closed because the request was 

withdrawn, did you provide any interim responses prior to the withdrawal? 

None of the ten total oldest requests were withdrawn in FY 2017. 
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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TEN OLDESTAPPEALS 

16.In Fiscal Year 2017, did your agency close the ten oldest appeals that 

were pending in your Fiscal Year 2016 Annual FOIA Report? 

No. No appeals were pending at the end of FY 2016 or FY 2017. 

17.If no, please provide the number of these appeals your agency was able 

to close by the end of the fiscal year, as listed in Section VII.C(5) of your 

Fiscal Year 2018 Annual FOIA Report. If you had less than ten total oldest 

appeals to close, please indicate that. 

N/A. 

TEN OLDEST CONSULTATIONS 

18.In Fiscal Year 2017, did your agency close the ten oldest consultations that 

were reported pending in your Fiscal Year 2017 Annual FOIA Report? 

No consultations were reported pending in our FY 2017 Annual Report. 

19.If no, please provide the number of these consultations your agency was 

able to close by the end of the fiscal year, as listed in Section XII.C. of your 

Fiscal Year 2016 Annual FOIA Report. If you had less than ten oldest 

consultations to close, please indicate that. 

N/A. 

E. Additional Information on Ten Oldest Request, Appeals, and Consultations 

& Plans: 

20.Briefly explain any obstacles your agency faced in closing its ten oldest 

requests, appeals, and consultations from Fiscal Year 2017. 

The RRB’s OIG reports that a lack of resources, as well as the complexity of 

the individual requests, contributed to its inability to close its ten oldest 

requests. 

21.If you agency was unable to close any of its ten oldest requests because 

you were waiting to hear back from other agencies on consultations you 

sent, please provide the date the request was initially received by your 

agency, the date when your agency sent the consultation, and the date 

when you last contacted the agency where the consultation was 

pending. 
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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N/A. 

22.If your agency did not close its ten oldest pending requests, appeals, or 

consultations, please provide a plan describing how your agency intends 

to close those ”ten oldest” requests, appeals, and consultations during 

Fiscal year 2017. 

In FY 2018, the RRB/OIG plans to ensure that proper resources and priority 

are given to the handling of the eight pending requests reported at the 

end of FY 2017. 

F. Success Stories: 

RRB Legal Opinion/Board Coverage Decision Digitization Project 

Beginning in FY 2014 and continuing through FY 2017, the Railroad Retirement 

Board’s Office of General Counsel’s began a major research and preservation 

project, partnering with a private document preservation firm (National Business 

Systems, Inc.) to create an online, text-searchable, database of Legal Opinions 

and Board Coverage Decisions. The Library contains over 80 years of Legal 

Opinions issued by the Office of General Counsel and its predecessor Bureau of 

Law since the Railroad Retirement Board’s (Board) founding in 1935. In addition, 

the Library contains all Board Coverage Decisions issued by the Board. 

The project was divided into six phases, broken down as follows: 

1. Phase 1 legal opinions : (1935 – ‘37; ’75 – ’76; ’94 – 2013) 

2. Phase 2 legal opinions : (1938 – 1943) 

3. Phase 3 legal opinions : (1973 – ’74; 1977 – 1993) 

4. Phase 4 legal opinions : (1944 – 1954) 

5. Phase 5 legal opinions : (1955 – 1972) 

6. Phase 6 Board Coverage Decisions (1993 – present)* 

*Board Coverage Decisions in this phase are pending review and will be 

loaded in the near future. 

Currently, Board Coverage Decisions from 1993 to 2016 (i.e., 23 bound binders, 

each containing approximately 50-75 decisions) are now being scanned and 

posted to the online searchable database. 

The General Counsel has issued legal opinions on topics covering all aspects of 
 

 

 

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the Railroad Retirement Act (RRA - 45 U.S.C. § 231 et. seq.) and the Railroad 

Unemployment Insurance Act (RUIA – 45 U.S.C. § 351 et. seq.) and the attendant 

Federal Regulations promulgated by the Board (20 CFR Parts 200 – 375). We are 

pleased to report that all legal opinions through calendar year 2014 have been 

posted to the searchable database in FY 2017. We plan to post legal opinions 

for calendar years 2015 through 2017 when the agency receives its FY 2018 

appropriation.