OFFICE OF INFORMATION AND PRIVACY

The Office of Information and Privacy (OIP) was created on November 2, 1981, and was established as an independent office by Attorney General Janet Reno on May 14, 1993.

The mission of OIP is to manage and coordinate the discharge of the Department of Justice’s responsibilities under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) and the Privacy Act of 1974, through the coordination of compliance with the FOIA within all federal agencies and compliance with the Privacy Act within the Department of Justice.

The major functions of OIP are to:

• Act on behalf of the Attorney General on administrative appeals under the FOIA and the Privacy Act from denials by all components of the Department of Justice.
• Provide staff support to the Department Review Committee, which acts on the Attorney General’s behalf in making the Department’s final national security classifications decisions under Executive Order 12958, as amended.
• Act on all initial FOIA and Privacy Act requests for records of the Offices of the Attorney General, Deputy Attorney General, Associate Attorney General, and other senior leadership offices of the Department.
• Promote agency compliance with the FOIA throughout the Executive branch through governmentwide policy development and dissemination activities, which include:
  1. Publishing the Freedom of Information Act Guide & Privacy Act Overview; electronically publishing FOIA Post; and maintaining a central website repository for FOIA-related reference materials.
  2. Providing both agency-specific and governmentwide training to federal agency employees at basic, intermediate, and advanced levels.
  3. Responding to requests from federal agency personnel who seek information, advice, and policy guidance on FOIA-related matters, through its FOIA Counselor service.
• Provide advice and assistance on FOIA and Privacy Act matters within the Department of Justice, including litigation consultations, and directly handle certain FOIA and Privacy Act litigation cases.

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