H. R. 3802
One Hundred Fourth Congress
of the
United States of America
AT THE SECOND SESSION
Begun and held at the City of Washington on Wednesday,
the third day of January, one thousand nine hundred and ninety-six
An Act
To amend section 552 of title 5, United States Code, popularly known as the
Freedom of Information Act, to provide for public access to information in an
electronic format, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of
the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Electronic Freedom of Information
Act Amendments of 1996’’.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSES.
(a) FINDINGS.—The Congress finds that—
(1) the purpose of section 552 of title 5, United States
Code, popularly known as the Freedom of Information Act,
is to require agencies of the Federal Government to make
certain agency information available for public inspection and
copying and to establish and enable enforcement of the right
of any person to obtain access to the records of such agencies,
subject to statutory exemptions, for any public or private pur-
pose;
(2) since the enactment of the Freedom of Information
Act in 1966, and the amendments enacted in 1974 and 1986,
the Freedom of Information Act has been a valuable means
through which any person can learn how the Federal Govern-
ment operates;
(3) the Freedom of Information Act has led to the disclosure
of waste, fraud, abuse, and wrongdoing in the Federal Govern-
ment;
(4) the Freedom of Information Act has led to the identifica-
tion of unsafe consumer products, harmful drugs, and serious
health hazards;
(5) Government agencies increasingly use computers to con-
duct agency business and to store publicly valuable agency
records and information; and
(6) Government agencies should use new technology to
enhance public access to agency records and information.
(b) PURPOSES.—The purposes of this Act are to—
(1) foster democracy by ensuring public access to agency
records and information;
(2) improve public access to agency records and information;
(3) 
ensure 
agency 
compliance 
with 
statutory 
time
limits; and
H. R. 3802—2
(4) maximize the usefulness of agency records and informa-
tion collected, maintained, used, retained, and disseminated
by the Federal Government.
SEC. 3. APPLICATION OF REQUIREMENTS TO ELECTRONIC FORMAT
INFORMATION.
Section 552(f) of title 5, United States Code, is amended to
read as follows:
‘‘(f) For purposes of this section, the term—
‘‘(1) ‘agency’ as defined in section 551(1) of this title includes
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; and
‘‘(2) ‘record’ and any other term used in this section in
reference to information includes any information that would
be an agency record subject to the requirements of this section
when maintained by an agency in any format, including an
electronic format.’’.
SEC. 4. INFORMATION MADE AVAILABLE IN ELECTRONIC FORMAT AND
INDEXATION OF RECORDS.
Section 552(a)(2) of title 5, United States Code, is amended—
(1) in the second sentence, by striking ‘‘or staff manual
or instruction’’ and inserting ‘‘staff manual, instruction, or cop-
ies of records referred to in subparagraph (D)’’;
(2) by inserting before the period at the end of the third
sentence the following: ‘‘, and the extent of such deletion shall
be indicated on the portion of the record which is made available
or published, unless including that indication would harm an
interest protected by the exemption in subsection (b) under
which the deletion is made’’;
(3) by inserting after the third sentence the following:
‘‘If technically feasible, the extent of the deletion shall be
indicated at the place in the record where the deletion was
made.’’;
(4) in subparagraph (B), by striking ‘‘and’’ after the semi-
colon;
(5) by inserting after subparagraph (C) the following:
‘‘(D) copies of all records, regardless of form or format,
which have been released to any person under paragraph (3)
and which, because of the nature of their subject matter, the
agency determines have become or are likely to become the
subject of subsequent requests for substantially the same
records; and
‘‘(E) a general index of the records referred to under
subparagraph (D);’’;
(6) by inserting after the fifth sentence the following: ‘‘Each
agency shall make the index referred to in subparagraph (E)
available by computer telecommunications by December 31,
1999.’’; and
(7) by inserting after the first sentence the following: ‘‘For
records created on or after November 1, 1996, within one year
after such date, each agency shall make such records available,
including by computer telecommunications or, if computer tele-
communications means have not been established by the
agency, by other electronic means.’’.