Freedom of Information Act

The Freedom of Info. Act (FOIA) requires fed. agencies to provide the public with access to gov¿t. info. In Dec. 2005, the Pres. issued an Exec. Order that required each agency to review its operations and develop plans for improvement. Since its establishment, the Dept. of Homeland Security (DHS) has accounted for a major and increasing portion of pending FOIA requests governmentwide. While it has reported achieving a notable reduction since 2006, DHS still possesses the largest backlog of overdue requests in the gov¿t. This report determines: (1) what key steps DHS has taken to enhance its FOIA program; and (2) what opportunities exist to improve the efficiency and cost-effectiveness of FOIA operations across the dept. Illus.