Access - The review of a record or a copy of a record
or parts thereof in a system of records by an individual.
Action Officer - Person who processes FOIA requests
and reviews documents for release.
Administrative Appeal - A request by a member
of the general public, made under the FOIA, asking the appellate
authority of a DoD Component to reverse a decision: to withhold
all or part of a requested record; to deny a fee category claim
by a requester; to deny a request for waiver or reduction of fees.
Agency - Businesses, departments, or services chartered
or controlled by the federal government.
Agency record - Documents created or obtained by an agency
or under to the control of an agency at the time a FOIA request
is made.
Appeal - A request to a federal agency asking
that it review at a higher administrative level a full denial or
partial denial of access to records under the Freedom of Information
Act, or any other adverse FOIA determination.
Appellate Authority - The Head of the DoD Component
or the Component head's designee having jurisdiction for this purpose
over the record, or any of the other adverse determinations.
Circumvent - To go around or avoid.
Complex Request - A FOIA request that an agency
using multi-track processing places in a slower track based on the
volume and/or complexity of records requested.
Confidential Source - A person or organization
who has furnished information to the Federal Government under an
expressed promise that the person's or the organization's identity
will be held in confidence or under an implied promise of such confidentiality.
Denial - Am agency's decision not to release any
part of a record or records in response to a FOIA request because
all the information in the requested records is determined by the
agency to be exempt under one or more of the FOIA's exemptions,
or for some procedural reason.
Disclose - To reveal or show.
Disclosure - The transfer of any personal information
from a system of records by any means of communication (such as
oral, written, electronic, mechanical, or actual review) to any
person, private entity, or Government Agency, other than the subject
of the record, the subject's designated agent or the subject's legal
guardian.
Duplicate Request - A request for the same information
by the same requester. This includes identical requests received
via different means at the same or different times.
Duplication. Producing paper or microfiche copies
of records.
DoD Component - An element of the Department of
Defense authorized to receive and act independently on FOIA requests.
A DoD component has its own initial denial authority (IDA), appellate
authority, and legal counsel.
Electronic Reading Room -
Records made available, via the internet, for public viewing at
no charge.
Electronic Records - Records (including e-mail)
that are created, stored, and retrievable by electronic means.
Initial Denial Authority - The official designated
authority to grant or deny records.
Exemption 3 statute - A separate federal statute
prohibiting the disclosure of a certain type of information and
authorizing its withholding under FOIA Exemption 3.
Expedited processing - An agency will process
a FOIA request on an expedited basis when a requester has shown
a compelling need or urgency for the records which warrants prioritization
of his or her request over other requests that were made earlier.
Federal Agency - A federal agency is any executive
department, military department, government corporation, government
controlled corporation, or other establishment in the Executive
Branch of Government (including the Executive Office of the President),
or any independent regulatory agency.
Fee Related Reason - The requester is unwilling
to pay fees associated with the request; the request is past due
in the payment of fees associated with a previous FOIA request;
or the requester disagrees with a fee estimate.
FOIA Request – A written request for federal
agency records that reasonably describes the record(s) sought, made
by any person, including a member of the public, an organization,
or a business, but not including a Federal Agency or a fugitive
from the law. Requesters should also indicate a willingness to pay
fees associated with the processing of their request, or in the
alternative, why a waiver of fees may be appropriate.
Grant – An agency decision to disclose all
records in full in response to a FOIA request.
Individual – A living citizen of the United
States or an alien lawfully admitted to the United States for permanent
residence. The legal guardian of an individual has the same rights
as the individual and may act on his or her behalf. No rights are
vested in the representative of a dead person under the regulation.
Individual Access – Access to information
pertaining to the individual by the individual or his or her designated
agent or legal guardian.
Initial Denial Authority (IDA) – An official
who has been granted authority by the head of a DoD Component to
withhold records requested under the FOIA for one or more of the
nine categories of records exempt from mandatory disclosure. IDA’s
may also deny a fee category claim by a requester and/or deny a
request for expedited processing due to demonstrated compelling
need.
Initial Request – A request to a federal
agency for access to records under the Freedom of Information Act
(FOIA).
Member of the Public – Any individual or
party acting in a private capacity to include Federal employees
or military personnel.
Multi-track processing – A system in which
simple requests requiring relatively minimal review are placed in
one processing track and more voluminous and complex requests are
placed in one or more other tracks. Requests in each track are processed
on a first-in/first out basis. A requester who has a compelling
need for records may request expedited processing.
No Records – A reasonable search of files
failed to identify records responsive to the request.
Not a Proper FOIA Request for Some Other Reason
– The requester has failed unreasonably to comply with legitimate
procedural requirements which are not fee related.
Not an Agency Record – The requested information
was not a record within the meaning of the FOIA.
Partial grant – An agency decision to disclose
a record in part in response to a FOIA request. Deleting information
determined to be exempt under one or more of the FOIA’s exemptions;
or a decision to disclose some records in their entireties, but
to withhold others in whole or in part.
Perfected request – A FOIA request for records
which adequately describes the records sought, which has been received
by the FOIA office of the agency or agency component in possession
of the records.
Personal Information – Information about
an individual that is intimate or private to the individual, as
distinguished from information related solely to the individual’s
official functions or public life.
Person. Any individual, partnership, corporation,
association, or foreign or domestic government, excluding federal
agencies and fugitives from law.
Privacy Act Request – A request from an
individual for notification as the existence of, access to, or amendment
of records pertaining to that individual. These records must be
maintained in a system of records. The request must indicate that
it is being made under Privacy Act to be considered a Privacy Act
request.
Processed Request or Appeal – A request
or appeal for which an agency has taken a final action on the request
or the appeal in all respects.
Public Interest – The interest in obtaining
official information that sheds light on an Agency’s performance
of its statutory duties because the information falls within the
statutory purpose of the FOIA to inform citizens about what their
government is doing.That statutory purpose, however, is not fostered
by disclosure of information about private citizens accumulated
in various governmental files that reveals nothing about an Agency’s
or official own conduct.
Reading Room. Records made available for public
viewing at no charge.
Record – Any item, collection, or grouping
of information about an individual that is maintained by an agency,
including but not limited to the individual’s education, financial
transactions, medical history, and criminal or employment history,
and that contains the individual’s name, or the identifying
number, symbol, or other identifying particular assigned to the
individual, such as finger or voice print or a photograph.
Records not Reasonably Described – The request
could not be acted upon since the record had not been described
with sufficient particularity to enable the DoD Component to locate
it by conducting a reasonable search.
Redact. To make ready for release. Applies
to the removal of information from within a document.
Review. The process of examining a responsive
record to determine disclosure, apply exemptions, redact exempt
information, and prepare for records for release.
Risk Assessment – An analysis considering information
sensitivity, vulnerabilities, and the cost to a computer facility
or word processing activity in safeguarding personal information
processed or stored in the facility or activity.
Routine Use – The disclosure of a record
outside the Department of Defense for a use that is compatible with
the purpose for which the information was collected and maintained
by the Department of Defense. The routine use must be included in
the published system notice for the system of records involved.
Other – Any other reason a requester does
not comply with published rules, other than those mentioned above.
Search. The process of looking for responsive
records.
Statute. Federal law.
System of Records – A group of records under
the control of a DoD Component from which information is retrieved
by the individual’s name or by some identifying number, symbol,
or other identifying particular assigned to the individual. System
notices for all Privacy Act systems of records must be published
in the Federal Register.
Time limits – The time period in the Freedom
of Information Act for an agency to respond to a FOIA request (ordinarily
20 working days from proper receipt of a FOIA request).
Unusual circumstances – the need occurs
to search for and collect records from separate offices, the need
to examine a voluminous amount of records required by the request
and the need to consult with another agency component.
Unwarranted. Groundless, without reason or provocation.
Withdrawn – The request was withdrawn by
the requester.
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