Office of Government Information Services (OGIS)

Home > The Office of Government Information Services > About OGIS > Chief FOIA Officers Council

Chief FOIA Officers Council

The Chief FOIA Officers Council is composed of the Deputy Director for Management of the Office of Management and Budget, the Director of the Office of Government Information Services (OGIS), the Director of the Office of Information Policy (OIP) at the Department of Justice, and agency Chief FOIA Officers.

Co-Chairs: Alina M. Semo, Director of OGIS and Bobak Talebian, Director of OIP

The Council is charged with:

  • developing recommendations for increasing FOIA compliance and efficiency;
  • disseminating information about agency experiences, ideas, best practices, and innovative approaches related to FOIA;
  • identifying, developing, and coordinating initiatives to increase transparency and compliance with FOIA; and
  • promoting the development and use of common performance measures for agency compliance with FOIA.

The Council currently has one committee, the Technology Committee.

Council meetings are open to the public and notice of all meetings will be provided in the Federal Register at least ten business days in advance. Please see this webpage and OIP's webpage for further information.

Upcoming Meeting

October 14, 2020

Stay tuned for more information about this meeting!

Technology Committee of the Chief FOIA Officers Council

Co-Chairs: Eric Stein, U.S. Department of State and Michael Sarich, Veterans Health Administration 

In response to a recommendationof the 2016-2018 term of the FOIA Advisory Committee, the Archivist of the United States proposed that the Chief FOIA Officers (CFO) Council seek to establish a technology committee, in partnership with the Chief Information Officer (CIO) Council, to study the utilization and deployment of technology in FOIA programs across agencies, and identify best practices and recommendations that can be implemented across agencies.

In September 2018, the CFO Council co-chairs established the Technology Subcommittee (later renamed as the Technology Committee). Two senior FOIA professionals at the Department of State and the Veterans Health Administration co-chair the Committee; membership includes FOIA professionals from the Departments of Homeland Security and the Interior, National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), the National Institutes of Health (NIH), Institute of Library and Museum Services, American Battle Monuments Commission, Social Security Administration, Air Force Declassification Office, and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. The Committee liaises with OIP and OGIS.

The Technology Committee was formerly known as the Technology Subcommittee.

Report


Presentations

 

Working Groups

The Technology Committee has the following eight working groups:

  • Searches
  • FOIAXpress
  • FOIA Online
  • Artificial Intelligence
  • 508 Compliance
  • FOIA and Classified Information
  • Collaborative Tools
  • Video Redactions

Each working group is developing a charter with the scope of its responsibilities and target milestones for its work.

 

Chief FOIA Officers Council Report and Meeting Materials

Accordion

Report of the Technology Committee of the Chief FOIA Officers (CFO) Council - Best Practices and Recommendations(Published February 14, 2020)

 

Top