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Freedom of
Information Activities (FOIA)
Annual Report of the Social Security Administration (SSA) for 2001
- Basic Information Regarding SSA's Report
- Report Prepared By: Darrell Blevins
Title: Freedom of Information Officer
Agency/Component: SSA, Office of Disclosure Policy
Telephone: 410-965-1727 FAX: 410-966-4304
Mailing Address:
Office of Disclosure Policy
3-A-6 Operations Building
6401 Security Blvd.
Baltimore, MD 21235
- Electronic address for a copy of this report on SSA's website: http://www.socialsecurity.gov/foia/
- To obtain a paper copy of this report write to the address
shown above, or phone, fax, or E-Mail to the Office of Disclosure
Policy. E-Mail address: foia.pa.officers@ssa.gov .
- How to Make a FOIA Request
- Complete information on making a FOIA request is contained
in The Code of Federal Regulations (CFR), 20
CFR Part 402. The CFR which is a guide to FOIA requests is
available at SSA's Website at http://www.socialsecurity.gov/foia/
- SSA will try to furnish information as quickly as possible.
However, it may take one month or more to locate, retrieve, and
review many records. Complex requests and requests for numerous
records may take longer.
- We generally do not disclose information about living individuals
without their written consent, as this would be a clearly unwarranted
invasion of personal privacy. 5 U.S.C.552(b)(6).
We do not disclose tax information about third parties obtained by SSA
from the IRS under 5 U.S.C. 552(b)(3).
Depending upon the nature of the document SSA may withhold documents
under the deliberative process privilege, the attorney work product privilege
or attorney-client privilege under 5 U.S.C. 552(b)(5).
- Definitions of Terms and Acronyms Used in the Report
- Agency specific acronyms or other terms.
- SSA - Social Security Administration
- SSN - Social Security number
- Basic terms, expressed in common terminology.
- FOIA/PA Request - Freedom of Information Act/Privacy
Act request. A FOIA request is generally a request for
access to records concerning a third party, an organization,
or a particular topic of interest. A Privacy Act request
is a request for records concerning oneself; such requests
are also treated as FOIA requests. (All requests for access
to records, regardless of which law is cited by the requester,
are included in this report.)
- Initial Request - a request to a Federal agency for access
to records under the Freedom of Information Act.
- 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 FOIA determination such as
a matter pertaining to fees.
- 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.
- 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 an urgent need for records may request expedited processing.
(See below).
- Expedited Processing - an agency will process a FOIA
request on an expedited basis when a requester has shown
an exceptional need or urgency for the records which warrants
prioritization of his or her request over other requests
that were made earlier.
- Simple Request - a FOIA request that an agency using
multi-track processing places in its fastest (nonexpedited)
track based on the volume and/or simplicity of records
requested.
- 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.
- Grant - an agency decision to disclose all records in
full in response to a FOIA request.
- 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.
- Denial - an agency 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 (such as because
no record is located in response to a FOIA request).
- 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 "perfected" FOIA
request).
- "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, and for which there is no
remaining question about the payment of applicable fees.
- Exemption 3 Statute - a separate Federal statute prohibiting
the disclosure of a certain type of information and authorizing
its withholding under FOIA subsection (b)(3).
- Median Number - the middle, not average, number. For
example, of 3, 7, and 14, the median number is 7.
- Average Number - the number obtained by dividing the
sum of a group of numbers by the quantity of numbers in
the group. For example, of 3, 7, and 14, the average number
is 8.
- Exemption 3 Statutes
- List of exemption 3 statutes relied on by Agency during fiscal
year.
- SSA withholds tax return information, such as third party
addresses and employers names and addresses, in situations
in which Section 6103 of the Internal Revenue Code is applicable.
- The withholding of tax return information has been approved
under three different theories. The United States Supreme
Court and most appellate courts that have considered the
matter have held either explicitly or implicitly that section
6103 of the Internal Revenue Code satisfies subpart (B)
of exemption 3.
- See e.g., Church of Scientology v. IRS,
484 U.S. 9, 15 (1987); Aronson v. IRS, 973
F.2d 962, 964-65 (1st Cir.1992) (finding that IRS lawfully
exercised discretion to withhold street addresses pursuant
to 26 U.S.C. section 6103(m)(1)); Long v. IRS,
891 F2d 222, 224 (9th Cir. 1989) (holding that deletion
of taxpapers' identification does not alter confidentiality
of section 6103 information).
- Initial FOIA/PA Access Requests
-
Number of initial FOIA/PA requests
- Number of requests pending as of end of preceding year: 27,087
- Number of requests received during fiscal year 2000: 263,756
- Number of requests processed during fiscal year 2000: 264,055
- Number of requests pending as of end of fiscal year 2000: 26,788
- Disposition of initial requests.
- Number of total grants: 260,271
- Number of partial grants: 963
- Number of denials: 1,285
- Number of times each FOIA exemption is used:
- National defense and foreign policy: 0
- Internal personnel rules and practices: 10
- Records exempted by other statutes (26
U.S.C.6103 Exemption 3
statutes(s) used) 194
- Trade secrets and confidential commercial
or financial information: 10
- Internal memoranda: 50
- Clearly unwarranted invasion of personal
privacy: 1,019
- (A) Interference with Enforcement Proceedings: 0
(B) Prejudicial Pretrial Publicity: 0
(C) Personal Information: 21
(D) Confidential Sources: 0
(E) Techniques and Procedures: 0
(F) Physical Safety: 0
- Records on financial institutions: 0
- Records on wells: 0
- Total other reasons for non-disclosure: 1,536
- No record: 174
- Referrals: 0
- Request withdrawn: 120
- Fee-related reason: 143
- Insufficient identifying information: 135
- Not FOIA jurisdiction: 52
- Not an Agency record: 0
- Duplicate request: 0
- Other: 912
- Not an agency record
- Fee related
- Records not reasonably described
- Referred in error
- Unable to contact requester
- Procedural information
- Appeals of Initial Denials of FOIA/PA Requests
- Number of Appeals
|
Regular
Appeals |
- Appeals received during fiscal year
|
165 |
- Appeals processed during fiscal year
|
155 |
- Disposition of Appeals
- Number completely upheld 102
- Number partially reversed 16
- Number completely reversed 10
- Number of times each FOIA exemption is
used:
- National defense and foreign policy 0
- Internal personnel rules and practices 3
- Records exempted by other statutes (26
U.S.C.6103 Exemption 3
statutes(s)used) 2
- Trade secrets and confidential commercial
or financial information 4
- Internal memoranda 10
- Clearly unwarranted invasion of personal
privacy 83
- (A) Interference with Enforcement Proceedings 1
(B) Prejudicial Pretrial Publicity 0
(C) Personal Information 0
(D) Confidential Sources 0
(E) Techniques and Procedures 0
(F) Physical Safety 0
- Records on financial institutions 0
- Records on wells 0
- Total other reasons for non-disclosure 27
- No record 0
- Referrals 0
- Request withdrawn 16
- Fee-related reason 3
- Insufficient identifying information 0
- Not FOIA jurisdiction 0
- Not an Agency record 0
- Duplicate request 0
- Other 8
- Compliance With Time Limits/Status of Pending Requests
- Median processing time for requests processed during the year.
- Fast track
- Number of requests processed 1,995
- median number of days to process 28
- Simple requests
- Number of requests processed 2,479
- median number of days to process 31
- Complex requests
- Number of requests processed 421
- median number of days to process 62
- Requests accorded expedited processing.
- Number of requests processed 0
- median number of days to process 0
- Simple requests for Social Security Number Applications & other
Office of Earnings Operations records
- Number of requests processed 81,631
- median number of days to process 13
- Simple requests handled by non-FOIA staff
- Number of requests processed 177,529
- median number of days to process not available
NOTE: Simple requests handled by personnel in SSA's 1500 field offices
and various central office locations whose FOIA responsibilities are limited.
Processing statistics were not kept. Most responses were immediate and
typically covered public documents such as agency operating instructions
or Privacy Act requests by individuals for access to records about themselves.
- Status of pending requests.
- Fast track
- Number of requests pending 171
- median number of days pending 99
- Simple requests
- Number of requests pending 96
- median number of days pending 90
- Complex requests
- Number of requests pending 136
- median number of days pending 84
- Requests accorded expedited processing.
- Number of requests pending 0
- median number of days pending 0
- Simple requests for Social Security Number Applications
- Number of requests pending 26,385
- median number of days pending not available
-
Comparisons with Previous Year
Compared to last year, collections are lower and processed requests are
higher. The increase in requests was anticipated because more people are
entaged in genealogical activities and one of the more popular records
they request is the application for social security number. Last year,
we processed 258,342 requests as compared to 264,055 this
year. The increase wasn't as steep as the year before, but people were
asking for more records per request.
Costs were reduced because SSA instituted some process efficiencies and
centralized some workolads, making it easier to access materials (less
handoffs between staffs) and answered some requests more quickly.
In addition, the Agency hired 20 employees to process request for copies
of Social Security Number Applications (SS5) on a part-time basis to enable
faster processing of this workload.
- Costs/FOIA Staffing
- Staffing levels
- No. of Full-time FOIA Personnel 20
- No. of Personnel with part-time or occasional FOIA duties
(Work Years) 127
- Total No. of FOIA Personnel (Work Years) 147
- Total costs (including staff and all resources)
- FOIA processing (including appeals) $14,658,998
- Litigation-related activities $17,124
- Total costs $14,676,122
- Comparison with previous FY 99 Total $16,218,513
- Fees
- Total amount of fees collected by agency for processing requests $2,798,000
- Percentage of total costs .19
- FOIA Regulations
See attached 20
CFR, Part 402. This is available electronically at http://www.socialsecurity.gov/foia/
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