Source: https://www.federalregister.com/Browse/Document/usa/na/fr/2015/8/17/2015-20140
Timestamp: 2020-01-22 11:03:18
Document Index: 297322157

Matched Legal Cases: ['art 10000', '§ 10000', '§ 10000', '§ 10000', '§ 10000', '§ 100000', '§ 10000', 'arts 10000', 'ART 10001', 'ART 10002', 'ARTS 10003', '§ 10000', '§ 10000', '§ 10000', '§ 10001', '§ 10002', 'ARTS 10003']

80 FR 158 pgs. 49117-49127 - Freedom of Information Act, Privacy Act, and Government in the Sunshine Act Procedures
Years > 2015 > August, 2015 > Monday, August 17, 2015
Type: RULEVolume: 80Number: 158Pages: 49117 - 49127
FR document: [FR Doc. 2015-20140 Filed 8-14-15; 8:45 am]
Pages: 49117, 49118, 49119, 49120, 49121, 49122, 49123, 49124, 49125, 49126, 49127
The National Council on Disability is finalizing regulations which implement the Freedom of Information Act, the Privacy Act of 1974, and the Government in the Sunshine Act. This rule describes the procedures for members of the public to request access to records. In addition, this document also describes procedures for the Council's responses to these requests, including the timeframe for response and applicable fees. These rules should be read in conjunction with the text of the Freedom of Information Act, the Privacy Act of 1974, the Government in the Sunshine Act, and the Uniform Freedom of Information Fee Schedule and Guidelines published by the Office of Management and Budget.
Effective September 16, 2015.
Joan Durocher, General Counsel, National Council on Disability, at 202-272-2004 or jdurocher@ncd.gov. To ensure proper handling, please include the docket number on your correspondence.
These regulations in a proposed rule were published for public comment in the Federal Register on June 11, 2015 (80 FR 33199), the comment period ended on August 10, 2015, and one commenter provided input. He is a private citizen and submitted his comments by mail.
The commenter provided various comments on the proposed Freedom of Information Act procedures at part 10000. First, the commenter recommended that § 10000.6(b) should state that responses to a FOIA request should include the case number and the date of the original request. Reasoning that the absence of this information can cause confusion and wasted effort should an administrative appeal be necessary. We agree with the suggestion and § 10000.6(b) has been modified to reflect that correspondence responding to FOIA requests should include the case number and date of the original request.
In addition, the commenter had several comments about the proposed § 10000.10 concerning fees. The commenter stated that a page duplication fee of $.10 per page should be identified. The commenter states that the fee is supposed to be a proxy based on actual duplication costs. The commenter states actual duplication costs are substantially less than $.10 per page, but the standard rate for most agencies is $.10. FOIA regulation 5 U.S.C. 552(a)(4)(A)(ii) states fees shall be limited to reasonable standard charges for document search, duplication, and review. No specific fee scale was applied in the regulation, the Council does not intend to cite a specific cost for duplication. Not having specific rates listed in the regulation allows the Council to adjust costs accordingly when a price fluctuation exists which allows the Council flexibility to adjust rates without first necessitating a change in the regulation.
In addition, the commenter states in § 10000.10(c) the reference to the operating costs for a central processing unit is obsolete as well as the reference to the salary of the operators performing the search. FOIA regulation 28 CFR 16.10(a)(2) defines direct costs as expenses that an agency incurs in searching for and duplicating (and, in the case of commercial use requests, reviewing) records in order to respond to a FOIA request. For example, direct costs include the salary of the employee performing the work ( i.e., the basic rate of pay for the employee, plus 16 percent of that rate to cover benefits) and the cost of operating computers and other electronic equipment, such as photocopiers and scanners. The Council did not find it necessary to make changes to the section, the Council will adhere to all applicable statutes when assessing direct costs.
The commenter states in § 100000.10(d) the rules are ambiguous and should clearly state unambiguously that noncommercial requesters are not charged review fees. The commenter added that OMB guidance is quite clear that noncommercial requesters are not charged. The commenter also stated charging review fees following the results of an appeal in which the written initial determination was reversed or remanded is procedurally unfair and could impose needless hurdles. Council maintains there is sufficient clarity in the current language "review fees shall be charged for requesters who make commercial use requests". As to the assessment of review fees post an appeal, Council followed OMB guidelines when proposing review fees be assessed. We appreciate the commenter's perspective, the Council has decided to retain the language which mirrors the FOIA statute. Such fees are allowable under the FOIA regulations and therefore current language will remain unchanged.
Additionally, in § 10000.10(e) the commenter suggests changing the wording of "statutory entitlements of 100 pages of duplication . . ." To "statutory entitlements of 100 pages of duplication or equivalent", so that other types of duplicated media can be accommodated. With the ever-changing nature in which data is collected the Council agrees with the commenter and will add specific language to the final rule indicating that duplication costs equivalent of 100 pages in print or equivalent will be processed at no charge.
This final rule is not a "significant regulatory action" within the meaning of Executive Order 12866. The economic impact of these regulations should be minimal, therefore, further economic evaluation is not necessary.
[top] The Regulatory Flexibility Act, as amended by the Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Act of 1996 (5 U.S.C. 601 et seq. ), generally requires an agency to prepare a regulatory flexibility analysis for any rule subject to notice and comment rulemaking under the Administrative Procedure Act or any other statute, unless the agency certifies that the rule will not have a significant economic impact on a number of small entities. Small entities include small businesses, small organizations, and small government jurisdictions. The Council considered the effects on this final rule on small entities and certifies that these final rules will not have a significant impact on a substantial number of small entities.
The Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995 (UMRA), Public Law 104-4, requires each agency to assess the effects of its regulatory actions on state, local, and tribal governments, and the private sector. Agencies must prepare a written statement of economic and regulatory alternatives anytime a proposed or final rule imposes a new or additional enforceable duty on any state, local, or tribal government or the private sector that causes those entities to spend, in aggregate, $100 million or more (adjusted for inflation) in any one year (defined in UMRA as a "federal mandate"). The Council determined that such a written statement is not required in connection with these final rules because they will not impose a federal mandate, as defined in UMRA.
In consideration of the foregoing, the Council amends title 5, Code of Federal Regulations, by establishing chapter C, consisting of parts 10000-10049, to read as follows:
Chapter C-National Council On Disability
PART 10001-IMPLEMENTATION OF THE PRIVACY ACT OF 1974
PART 10002-IMPLEMENTATION OF THE GOVERNMENT IN THE SUNSHINE ACT
PARTS 10003-10049 [RESERVED]
Sec. 10000.1 Purpose and scope.10000.2 Definitions.10000.3 Availability of records.10000.4 Categories of exemptions.10000.5 Requests for records.10000.6 Responsibility for responding to requests.10000.7 Administrative appeals.10000.8 Timeframe for Council's response to a FOIA request or administrative appeal.10000.9 Business information.10000.10 Fees.
Council means the National Council on Disability, established by the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C. 780 et seq. ), as amended, and amended by the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (Pub. L. 113-128) in 2014.
Direct costs are those expenses that an agency incurs in searching for and duplicating (and, in the case of commercial use requests, reviewing) records in order to respond to a FOIA request. For example, direct costs include the salary of the employee performing the work ( i.e., the basic rate of pay for the employee, plus 16 percent of that rate to cover benefits) and the cost of operating computers and other electronic equipment, such as photocopiers and scanners. Direct costs do not include overhead expenses such as the costs of space, and of heating or lighting a facility.
A request from a professor of geology at a university for records relating to soil erosion, written on letterhead of the Department of Geology, would be presumed to be from an educational institution.
A request from the same professor of geology seeking drug information from the Food and Drug Administration in furtherance of a murder mystery he is writing would not be presumed to be an institutional request, regardless of whether it was written on institutional stationery.
[top] A student who makes a request in furtherance of the completion of a course of instruction would be presumed to be carrying out an individual research goal, rather than a scholarly research goal of the institution and would not qualify as part of this fee category.
Representative of the news media is any person or entity organized and operated to publish or broadcast news to the public that actively gathers information of potential interest to a segment of the public, uses its 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 through a variety of means to the general public, including news organizations that disseminate solely on the Internet. A request for records supporting the news-dissemination function of the requester shall not be considered to be for a commercial use. "Freelance" journalists who demonstrate a solid basis for expecting publication through a news media entity shall be considered as a representative of the news media. A publishing contract would provide the clearest evidence that publication is expected; however, components shall also consider a requester's past publication record in making this determination.
[top] (v) Would disclose techniques and procedures for law enforcement investigations or prosecutions or would disclose guidelines for law enforcement investigations or prosecutions if such disclosure could reasonably be expected to risk circumvention of the law; or
(3) A brief statement of the reason(s) for the denial, including any FOIA exemption applied in denying the request. The FOIA Officer will indicate, if technically feasible, the amount of information deleted and the exemption under which a deletion is made on the released portion of the record, unless including that indication would harm an interest protected by the exemption;
(5) A statement that the adverse determination may be appealed and a description of the requirements for an appeal under § 10000.7.
(a) You may appeal an adverse determination related to your FOIA request, or the Council's failure to respond to your FOIA request within the prescribed time limits, to the Executive Director, National Council on Disability, 1331 F Street, NW., Suite 850, Washington, DC 20004.
[top] (b) Your appeal must be in writing and must be postmarked or electronically received by the Executive Director within 60 days of the date of the letter denying your request, in whole or in part. For the most expeditious handling, your appeal letter and envelope should be marked "Freedom of Information Act Appeal" and reference the request number.
(c) The Executive Director shall respond to all administrative appeals in writing and within the time frame stated in § 10000.8(d). If the decision affirms, in whole or in part, the Chief FOIA Officer's determination, the letter shall contain a statement of the reasons for the affirmance, including any FOIA exemption(s) applied, and will inform you of the FOIA's provisions for court review. If the Executive Director reverses or modifies the Chief FOIA Officer's determination, in whole or in part, you will be notified in writing and your request will be reprocessed in accordance with that decision. The Council may work with Office of Government Information Services (OGIS) to resolve disputes between FOIA requestors and the Council. A requester may also contact OGIS in the following ways: Via mail to OGIS, National Archives and Records Administration, 8601 Adelphi Road-OGIS, College Park, MD 20740 ( ogis.archives.gov ), via email at ogis@nara.gov, or via the telephone at 202-741-5770 or 877-684-6448. Facsimile is also available at 202-741-5769.
§ 10000.8 Timeframe for Council's response to a FOIA request or administrative appeal.
(e) Tolling timelines. We may toll the 20-day timeframe set forth in paragraph (c) or (d) of this section:
(f) Unusual circumstances. In the event of unusual circumstances, we may extend the time frame for response provided in paragraph (c) or (d) of this section by providing you with written notice of the unusual circumstances and the date on which a determination is expected to be made. Where the extension is for more than ten working days, we will provide you with an opportunity either to modify your request so that it may be processed within the statutorily-prescribed time limits or to arrange an alternative time period for processing your request or modified request.
(1) For requests for expedited processing, a "compelling need" involves:
(a) Designation of confidential business information. In the event a FOIA request is made for confidential business information previously submitted to the Government by a commercial entity or on behalf of it (hereinafter "submitter"), the regulations in this section apply. When submitting confidential business information, you must use a good-faith effort to designate, by use of appropriate markings, at the time of submission or at a reasonable time thereafter, any portions of your submission that you consider to be exempt from disclosure under FOIA Exemption 4, 5 U.S.C. 552(b)(4). Your designation will expire ten years after the date of submission unless you request, and provide justification for, a longer designation period.
[top] (2) In cases involving a voluminous number of submitters, notice may be made by posting or publishing the notice in a place or manner reasonably likely to accomplish it.
(e) Exceptions to the notice requirement. The notice requirements of paragraphs (c) and
(d) of this section shall not apply if:
(d) Review fees shall be charged for requesters who make commercial use requests. Review fees shall be assessed only for the initial review-that is the review undertaken the first time we analyze the applicability of a specific exemption to a particular record or portion of a record. Records or portions of records withheld in full under an exemption that is subsequently determined not to apply may be reviewed again to determine the applicability of other exemptions not previously considered. We may assess the costs for such subsequent review. Review fees are charged at the same rates as those charged for a search.
(e) Notice of anticipated fees in excess of $25.00:
[top] (i) Except for a commercial use request, we will not charge you for the first 100 pages of duplication and the first two hours of search.
(ii) Disclosure of the requested records must be meaningfully informative about government operations or activities in order to be "likely to contribute" to an increased public understanding of those operations or activities. The disclosure of information that already is in the public domain, in either the same or a substantially identical form, would not contribute to such understanding where nothing new would be added to the public's understanding.
(iv) The public's understanding of the subject in question must be enhanced by the disclosure to a significant extent. However, components shall not make value judgments about whether the information at issue is "important" enough to be made public.
Sec. 10001.1 Purpose and scope.10001.2 Definitions.10001.3 Privacy Act requests.10001.4 Responses to Privacy Act requests.10001.5 Administrative appeals.10001.6 Fees.10001.7 Penalties.
[top] (b) Requests for access. You may request access to a Council record about you in writing or by appearing in person. You should direct your request to the Privacy Act Officer. Written requests may be sent to: Privacy Act Officer, National Council on Disability, 1331 F Street NW., Suite 850, Washington, DC 20004. Your request should include the following information:
(iii) The Council, in its discretion, may require additional proof of identification depending on the nature and sensitivity of the records in the system of records(iv) For the quickest possible handling, your letter and envelope should be marked "Privacy Act Request."
(a) Appeal procedures. (1) You may appeal any decision by the Council to deny, in whole or in part, your request under § 10001.3 no later than 60 days after the decision is rendered.
[top] (b) Statement of disagreement. If your appeal of our determination related to your request for amendment or correction is denied in whole or in part, you may file a Statement of Disagreement that states the basis for your disagreement with the denial. Statements of Disagreement must be concise and must clearly identify each part of any record that is disputed. The Privacy Act Officer will place your Statement of Disagreement in the system of records in which the disputed record is maintained and shall mark the disputed record to indicate that a Statement of Disagreement has been filed and where it may be found.
Sec. 10002.1 Purpose and scope.10002.2 Definitions.10002.3 Open meetings.10002.4 Procedures for public announcement of meetings.10002.5 Grounds on which meetings may be closed or information withheld.10002.6 Procedures for closing meetings or withholding information, and requests by affected persons to close a meeting.10002.7 Changes following public announcement.10002.8 Transcripts, recordings, or minutes of closed meetings.10002.9 Public availability and retention of transcripts, recordings, and minutes, and applicable fees.
(c) If public notice is provided by means other than publication in the Federal Register , notice will be promptly submitted to the Federal Register for publication.
[top] (a) Specifically authorized under criteria established by an executive order to be kept secret in the interests of national defense or foreign policy; and, in fact, are properly classified pursuant to such executive order. In making the determination that this exemption applies, the Council shall rely on the classification assigned to the document or assigned to the information from the federal agency from which the document was received.
(c) A person whose interests may be directly affected by a portion of a meeting may request in writing that the Council close that portion for any of the reasons referred to in § 10002.5(e) through (g). Upon the request of a member, a recorded vote shall be taken whether to close such meeting or portion thereof.
PARTS 10003-10049-[RESERVED]
[FR Doc. 2015-20140 Filed 8-14-15; 8:45 am]