FOIA Post

FOIA Fee Summit

The Office of Information Policy (OIP) will be hosting a government-wide training session focused on the FOIA’s fee and fee waiver provisions.  This FOIA Fee Summit will be held on May 17, 2011. 

The FOIA has a rather complicated system that agencies must employ in determining the appropriate fees to be charged.  The FOIA first provides for the charging of three different types of fees applicable to the processing of requests.  It then establishes three distinct categories of FOIA requesters. The different fees that can be assessed by agencies depend on the fee category applicable to each requester.  The FOIA also imposes various restrictions on the charging of certain fees, including restrictions that are tied to the time it takes the agency to respond to the request.

 In addition to the various fee provisions, the FOIA contains a standard for the waiver of fees “if disclosure of the information is in the public interest because it is likely to contribute significantly to public understanding of the operations or activities of the government and is not primarily in the commercial interest of the requester.”  To implement this fee waiver standard agencies must consider six different factors.    

OIP’s Fee Summit is designed to address the issues that arise most frequently in connection with assessing fees under the FOIA and in determining whether a fee waiver is appropriate.   Discussion and questions are encouraged.

The details for the event are listed below:

This event is intended for agency personnel and registration is required.  To register, please contact OIP at (202) 514-3642.