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FOIA - Freedom of Information Act
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Open Goverment

Mission and Structure

How We Process Requests

Quality Review

Results

Improvement Initiatives

Training

Technology

 

FOIA Requests

 

Mission and Structure


Mission

The Office of Privacy and Disclosure (OPD) is one of the major components within the Office of the General Counsel (OGC). CLICK HERE to see a copy of OGC’s Organization Chart. OPD develops and interprets Social Security Administration (SSA) policy governing the collection, use, maintenance, and disclosure of personally identifiable information under the Privacy Act, section 1106 of the Social Security Act, section 6103 of the Internal Revenue Code, and related privacy statutes and regulations. Additionally, OPD develops policy for data exchange agreements governed by the Privacy Act and the Computer Matching and Privacy Protection Act.

OPD also directs all FOIA activities within SSA, including developing FOIA policies and procedures, establishing national guidelines for handling FOIA requests, publishing the Annual Report on FOIA activities, and reviewing FOIA and Privacy Act requests and appeals to determine the proper disclosure of records.

 

OPD Organizational Structure

We employ a “centralized” approach for handling all FOIA requests and appeals. OPD’s structure includes a Privacy Implementation division and a FOIA and Transparency division, each aligned to specific SSA Regional Offices (CLICK HERE to see a copy of OPD’s Organization Chart and regional alignment). This alignment helps us efficiently and consistently process FOIA requests, as well as disclosure and privacy matters. Regional staff may directly consult with the same core set of analysts on disclosure policy and procedure matters, instead of going through a clearinghouse process that randomly assigns inquiries to a “pool” of analysts.”

This arrangement also allows the OPD analyst to become familiar with privacy and disclosure issues that may be unique to a particular geographic region due to state or local laws.


How We Process Requests

We receive FOIA requests via the Internet, by fax, by email, and through the mail. CLICK HERE to go to our internet submission page, or CLICK HERE to see our mailing address, email address, and fax number.

Regardless of the submission method, we capture all FOIA requests in our electronic Freedom of Information Act (eFOIA) system. We scan and image all paper requests (mail, email, and fax) into eFOIA, whereas requests submitted through our Internet request form go directly into eFOIA. As soon as we enter a request into the system, or a person submits an online request, eFOIA generates an acknowledgement letter. While this letter confirms for the requester our receipt of their request, it also provides a reference number specifically assigned to their case, along with a voice mailbox telephone number, the requester can call to inquire on the status of his or her request. OPD maintains a policy of responding to all calls placed to this number within one working day.

Under FOIA, we may charge fees to process certain FOIA requests. The eFOIA system allows requesters to pay online for some routine requests, which accelerates our responsiveness to the public and reduces our administrative costs.

We strive to handle each request within 20 working days from the date we receive it. We process requests under a “first in” “first out” basis. However, sometimes it may take us longer depending on the complexity of the request, the amount of records sought, where the documents are located, and how much other work we have.

A complex request may require us to obtain more information from either the requester, or from components within SSA. A request may require us to seek paper records that we collectively maintain in multiple geographic locations, or in archived storage.

 

Data Release

We are committed to sharing and being accountable for information the public wants from us. We have published a data inventory and release plan. We respond to requests for information and release information in a format the public can use.
Browse our data catalog


Quality Review

Prior to releasing records in response to a FOIA request, OPD conducts a thorough internal review to ensure that we apply SSA’s privacy and disclosure rules consistently and accurately.  The complexity and nature of each request determines the level of review we require, which can include input and review by other offices within SSA such as the Office of General Law, the Press Office, or the Office of Legislation and Congressional Affairs.


Results

We take pride in our ability to act on Privacy Act and FOIA requests in an accurate and timely manner. You can view the result of our efforts in this area in our Annual Report (CLICK HERE to gain access to our annual reports).  In 2011, agency components reported processing 32,445 FOIA requests. We continue to make great progress in reducing the FOIA backlog, and our timeframes are significantly better than most other large Federal agencies.  In fact, our backlog declined to 38 cases, which represents 0.01% of our total caseload, and a 55% reduction from FY 2010.


Improvement Initiatives

We continue to strive to improve our capacity and capability to respond to Privacy Act and FOIA requests. 



Training

  • OPD instituted an in-house FOIA/Privacy Act training program for analysts that focuses on various technical, legal, and “hands-on” issues involved in processing requests.  Some of these sessions focus on the administrative processes that arise under FOIA and that can cause unnecessary delay in responding.  This training provides a formal platform to emphasize the importance of presumptive disclosure, to discuss recent disclosures, and to examine new possibilities for additional disclosures.
  • OPD maintains a strong commitment to encourage and provide staff the opportunity to attend outside FOIA training such as that sponsored by, or in conjunction with, the Department of Justice, university programs, and not-for-profit organizations.  During the course of the last year, we participated in training sessions that included all levels of FOIA, including those that focused on basic FOIA overview, presumptive disclosure, and privacy policy. 
  • OPD continues to provide Privacy Act and FOIA training at an agency level through our biennial Privacy and Disclosure Training Conference.  This year’s conference will include sessions on the importance of openness and transparency in government.



Technology


OPD maintains a commitment to use technology to enhance our capabilities.  In 2007, OPD implemented a new browser-based platform (eFOIA) designed specifically to automate much of the workflow for handling Privacy Act and FOIA requests. In fiscal year 2010, OPD released four updates/changes/enhancements to the system.


 
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Last reviewed or modified Thursday May 17, 2012
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