I
104TH CONGRESS
2D SESSION
H. R. 3802
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.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
JULY 12, 1996
Mr. TATE (for himself, Mr. HORN, Mrs. MALONEY, and Mr. PETERSON of
Minnesota) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Com-
mittee on Government Reform and Oversight
A BILL
To amend section 552 of title 5, United States Code, popu-
larly known as the Freedom of Information Act, to pro-
vide for public access to information in an electronic
format, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Electronic Freedom
of Information 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 In-
formation Act, is to require agencies of the Federal
Government to make certain agency information
available for public inspection and copying and to es-
tablish and enable enforcement of the right of any
person to obtain access to the records of such agen-
cies, subject to statutory exemptions, for any public
or private purpose;
(2) since the enactment of the Freedom of In-
formation Act in 1966, and the amendments enacted
in 1974 and 1986, the Freedom of Information Act
has been a valuable means through which any per-
son can learn how the Federal Government operates;
(3) the Freedom of Information Act has led to
the disclosure of waste, fraud, abuse, and wrong-
doing in the Federal Government;
(4) the Freedom of Information Act has led to
the identification of unsafe consumer products,
harmful drugs, and serious health hazards;
(5) Government agencies increasingly use com-
puters to conduct agency business and to store pub-
licly valuable agency records and information; and
(6) Government agencies should use new tech-
nology 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
(4) maximize the usefulness of agency records
and information collected, maintained, used, re-
tained, and disseminated by the Federal Govern-
ment.
SEC. 3. APPLICATION OF REQUIREMENTS TO ELECTRONIC
FORMAT INFORMATION.
Section 552(f) of title 5, United States Code, is
amended—
(1) by redesignating such section as section
(f)(1);
(2) by striking the period at the end and insert-
ing ‘‘; and’’; and
(3) by adding at the end the following:
‘‘(2) For purposes of this section, ‘information’,
‘record’, and any other term used in this section in ref-
erence to information includes such information main-
tained in an electronic format.’’.
SEC. 4. HONORING FORM OR FORMAT REQUESTS.
Section 552(a)(3) of title 5, United States Code, is
amended—
(1) by inserting ‘‘(A)’’ after ‘‘(3)’’;
(2) by striking out ‘‘(A)’’ the second place it
appears and inserting ‘‘(i)’’;
(3) by striking out ‘‘(B)’’ and inserting ‘‘(ii)’’;
and
(4) by adding at the end the following new sub-
paragraphs:
‘‘(B) In making any record available to a person
under this paragraph, an agency shall provide the record
in any form or format requested by the person if the
record is readily reproducible by the agency in that form
or format. Each agency shall make reasonable efforts to
maintain its records in forms or formats that are repro-
ducible for purposes of this section.
‘‘(C) In responding under this paragraph to a request
for records, an agency shall make reasonable efforts to
search for the records in electronic form or format.
‘‘(D) For purposes of this paragraph, the term
‘search’ means to review, manually or by automated
means, agency records for the purpose of locating those
records which are responsive to a request.’’.
SEC. 5. STANDARD FOR JUDICIAL REVIEW.
Section 552(a)(4)(B) of title 5, United States Code,
is amended by adding at the end the following new sen-
tence: ‘‘A court shall accord substantial weight to an affi-
davit of an agency concerning the agency’s determination
as to technical feasibility under paragraph (2)(C) and sub-
section (b) and reproducibility under paragraph (3)(B).’’.
SEC. 6. ENSURING TIMELY RESPONSE TO REQUESTS.
(a) MULTITRACK PROCESSING.—Section 552(a)(6)
of title 5, United States Code, is amended by adding at
the end the following new subparagraph:
‘‘(D)(i) Each agency may promulgate regulations,
pursuant to notice and receipt of public comment, provid-
ing for multitrack processing of requests for records or
information.
‘‘(ii) Regulations under this subparagraph may pro-
vide a person making a request that does not qualify for
the fastest multitrack processing an opportunity to limit
the scope of the request in order to qualify for faster proc-
essing.
‘‘(iii) This subparagraph shall not be considered to
affect the requirement under subparagraph (C) to exercise
due diligence.’’.
(b) 
UNUSUAL
CIRCUMSTANCES.—Section
552(a)(6)(B) of title 5, United States Code, is amended
to read as follows:
‘‘(B)(i) In unusual circumstances as specified in this
subparagraph, the time limits prescribed in either clause
(i) or clause (ii) of subparagraph (A) may be extended
by written notice to the person making such request set-
ting forth the unusual circumstances for such extension
and the date on which a determination is expected to be
dispatched. No such notice shall specify a date that would
result in an extension for more than ten working days,
unless the person making the request has (I) agreed upon
a longer timeframe for processing the request, or (II) re-
fused to reasonably modify the request. In the event that
the person making the request refuses to agree upon a
reasonable timeframe for processing the request or to rea-
sonably modify the request, the agency may offer such re-
fusal as evidence of exceptional circumstances under sub-
paragraph (C).
‘‘(ii) As used in this subparagraph, ‘unusual cir-
cumstances’ means, but only to the extent reasonably nec-
essary to the proper processing of the particular re-
quests—
‘‘(I) the need to search for and collect the re-
quested records from field facilities or other estab-
lishments that are separate from the office process-
ing the request;
‘‘(II) the need to search for, collect, and appro-
priately examine a voluminous amount of separate
and distinct records which are demanded in a single
request; or
‘‘(III) the need for consultation, which shall be
conducted with all practicable speed, with another
agency having a substantial interest in the deter-
mination of the request or among two or more com-
ponents of the agency having substantial subject-
matter interest therein.’’.
(c) 
EXCEPTIONAL
CIRCUMSTANCES.—Section
552(a)(6)(C) of title 5, United States Code, is amended
by inserting ‘‘(i)’’ after ‘‘(C)’’, and by adding at the end
the following new clauses:
‘‘(ii) For purposes of this subparagraph, the term ‘ex-
ceptional circumstances’ does not include a delay that re-
sults from a predictable agency workload of requests
under this section.
‘‘(iii) If a person refuses to reasonably modify the
scope of a request under this section after being requested
to do so by the agency to whom the person made the re-
quest, such refusal may be considered evidence of excep-
tional circumstances.
‘‘(iv) In determining whether exceptional cir-
cumstances exist, a court may consider the efforts by an
agency to reduce the number of pending requests under
this section.’’.
SEC. 7. TIME PERIOD FOR AGENCY CONSIDERATION OF RE-
QUESTS.
(a) EXPEDITED PROCESSING.—Section 552(a)(6) of
title 5, United States Code (as amended by section 6(a)
of this Act), is further amended by adding at the end the
following new subparagraph:
‘‘(E)(i) Each agency shall promulgate regulations,
pursuant to notice and receipt of public comment, provid-
ing for expedited processing of requests for records—
‘‘(I) in cases in which the person requesting the
records demonstrates a compelling need; and
‘‘(II) in other cases determined by the agency.
‘‘(ii) Notwithstanding subparagraph (A)(i), regula-
tions under this subparagraph must ensure—
‘‘(I) that a determination of whether to provide
expedited processing shall be made, and notice of the
determination shall be provided to the person mak-
ing the request, within 10 days after the date of the
request; and