The following information is submitted to the U.S. Department of Justice by the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (Board) in accordance with the requirements of the Freedom of Information Act (5 U.S.C. § 552(e)) (FOIA), as amended.
I. Basic Information Regarding Report
The Board's contact person for questions about this report is Ms. Jeanne M. McLaughlin, Manager, Freedom of Information Office, Mail Stop 132, Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, 20th Street and Constitution Avenue, NW, Washington, DC 20551; Tel: 202-452-3684; TDD only: 202-452-3544; FAX: 202-872-7565.
A paper copy of this report may be obtained by downloading it from the Board's website or requesting it from the Board's Freedom of Information Office (Tel: 202-452-3684).
II. How to Make a FOIA Request
The Federal Reserve does not have individual agency components or offices that receive FOIA requests; all requests may be made to Ms. Jennifer J. Johnson, Secretary of the Board, Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, 20th Street and Constitution Avenue, NW, Washington, DC 20551; Tel: 202-452-3259; FAX: 202-872-7565; or electronically.
The exemptions most often applicable to information requested from the Board include (b)(4), (b)(5), and (b)(6). The Board receives a great deal of privileged and private financial information concerning individuals, business, and banking entities. Therefore, exemptions (b)(4) and (b)(6) are used to withhold confidential or privileged material. The Board uses exemption (b)(5) to withhold staff analyses and recommendations and inter-agency or intra-agency communications.
III. Acronyms, Definitions, and Exemptions
Agency-specific acronyms or other terms.
Board -- Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System
FOIA -- Freedom of Information Act (5 U.S.C. § 552)
Basic terms used in this Report:
Administrative Appeal -- a request to a federal agency asking that it review at a higher administrative level a FOIA determination made by the agency at the initial request level.
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.
Backlog -- the number of requests or administrative appeals that are pending at an agency at the end of the fiscal year that are beyond the statutory time period for a response.
Component -- for agencies that process requests on a decentralized basis, a "component" is an entity, also sometimes referred to as an Office, Division, Bureau, Center, or Directorate, within the agency that processes FOIA requests. The FOIA now requires that agencies include in their Annual FOIA Report data for both the agency overall and for each principal component of the agency.
Consultation -- the procedure whereby the agency responding to a FOIA request first forwards a record to another agency for its review because that other agency has an interest in the document. Once the agency in receipt of the consultation finishes its review of the record, it responds back to the agency that forwarded it. That agency, in turn, will then respond to the FOIA requester.
Exemption 3 Statute -- a federal statute that exempts information from disclosure and which the agency relies on to withhold information under subsection (b)(3) of the FOIA.
FOIA Request -- a FOIA request is generally a request to a federal agency for access to records concerning another person (i.e., a "third-party" request), or concerning an organization, or a particular topic of interest. FOIA requests also include requests made by requesters seeking records concerning themselves (i.e., "first-party" requests) when those requesters are not subject to the Privacy Act, such as non-U.S. citizens. Moreover, because all first-party requesters should be afforded the benefit of both the access provisions of the FOIA as well as those of the Privacy Act, FOIA requests also include any first-party requests where an agency determines that it must search beyond its Privacy Act "systems of records" or where a Privacy Act exemption applies, and the agency looks to FOIA to afford the greatest possible access. All requests which require the agency to utilize the FOIA in responding to the requester are included in this Report. Additionally, a FOIA request includes records referred to the agency for processing and direct response to the requester. It does not, however, include records for which the agency has received a consultation from another agency. (Consultations are reported separately in Section XII of this Report.)
Full Grant -- an agency decision to disclose all records in full in response to a FOIA request.
Full Denial -- an agency decision not to release any records in response to a FOIA request because the records are exempt in their entireties under one or more of the FOIA exemptions, or because of a procedural reason, such as when no records could be located.
Median Number -- the middle, not average, number. For example, of 3, 7, and 14, the median number is 7.
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 granted expedited processing are placed in yet another track. Requests in each track are processed on a first in/first out basis.
Expedited Processing -- an agency will process a FOIA request on an expedited basis when a requester satisfies the requirements for expedited processing as set forth in the statute and in agency regulations.
Simple Request -- a FOIA request that an agency using multi-track processing places in its fastest (non-expedited) track based on the low volume and/or simplicity of the records requested.
Complex Request -- a FOIA request that an agency using multi-track processing places in a slower track based on the high volume and/or complexity of the records requested.
Partial Grant/Partial Denial -- in response to a FOIA request, an agency decision to disclose portions of the records and to withhold other portions that are exempt under the FOIA, or to otherwise deny a portion of the request for a procedural reason.
Pending Request or Pending Administrative Appeal -- a request or administrative appeal for which an agency has not taken final action in all respects.
Perfected Request -- a request for records which reasonably describes such records and is made in accordance with published rules stating the time, place, fees (if any) and procedures to be followed.
Processed Request or Processed Administrative Appeal -- a request or administrative appeal for which an agency has taken final action in all respects.
Range in Number of Days -- the lowest and highest number of days to process requests or administrative appeals.
Time Limits -- the time period in the statute for an agency to respond to a FOIA request (ordinarily twenty working days from receipt of a perfected FOIA request).
Nine FOIA Exemptions:
Exemption 1: classified national defense and foreign relations information
Exemption 2: internal agency rules and practices
Exemption 3: information that is prohibited from disclosure by another federal law
Exemption 4: trade secrets and other confidential business information
Exemption 5: inter-agency or intra-agency communications that are protected by legal privileges
Exemption 6: information involving matters of personal privacy
Exemption 7: records or information compiled for law enforcement purposes, to the extent that the production of those records (A) could reasonably be expected to interfere with enforcement proceedings, (B) would deprive a person of a right to a fair trial or an impartial adjudication, (C) could reasonably be expected to constitute an unwarranted invasion of personal privacy, (D) could reasonably be expected to disclose the identity of a confidential source, (E) would disclose techniques and procedures for law enforcement investigations or prosecutions, or would disclose guidelines for law enforcement investigations or prosecutions, or (F) could reasonably be expected to endanger the life or physical safety of any individual
Exemption 8: information relating to the supervision of financial institutions
Reports pertaining to monetary instruments transactions filed under subchapter II of chapter 53 of title 31 and records of those reports
Hulstein vs. DEA, No.10-4112, 2011 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 25788, at *7-8 (N.D. Iowa Mar. 11, 2011); Berger v. IRS, 487 F. Supp. 2d 482, 496-97 (D. N.J. 2007, aff'd on other grounds, 288 F. App's 829 (3d Cir. 2008), cert. denied, 129 S. Ct. 2789 (U.S. 2009); Sciba v. Bd. Of Governors of the Fed. Reserve Sys., No 04-1011, 2005 WL 3201206, at *6 (D.D.C. Nov. 4, 2005).
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V. FOIA Requests
Received, Processed and Pending FOIA Requests
Number of Requests Pending as of Start of Fiscal Year
Number of Requests Received in Fiscal Year
Number of Requests Processed in Fiscal Year
Number of Requests Pending as of End of Fiscal Year
70*
823
848
45
*After reviewing our database the number of pending requests was adjusted
(1) Disposition of initial requests
Number of Full Grants
Number of Partial Grants/ Partial Denials
Number of Full Denials Based on Exemptions
Number of Full Denials Based on Reasons Other Than Exemptions
Total
No Records
All Records Referred to Another Component or Agency
Request Withdrawn
Fee-Related Reason
Records Not Reasonably Described
Improper FOIA Request For Other Reason
Not Agency Record
Duplicate Request
Other
522
81
28
63
34
71
15
15
3
0
6
10
848
(2) Disposition of FOIA Requests
Description of "Other" Reasons For Denials from Chart B (1) & Number of Times Those Reasons Were Relied Upon
TOTAL
No Forwarding Address
1
Not likely to have the records
9
(3) Disposition of FOIA Requests--Number of Times Exemptions Applied
Ex. 1
Ex. 2
Ex. 3
Ex. 4
Ex. 5
Ex. 6
Ex. 7(A)
Ex. 7(B)
Ex. 7(C)
Ex. 7(D)
Ex. 7(E)
Ex. 7(F)
Ex. 8
Ex. 9
0
2
3
67
51
43
1
1
1
1
0
0
39
0
VI. ADMINISTRATIVE APPEALS OF INITIAL DETERMINATIONS OF FOIA REQUESTS
Received, Processed, and Pending Administrative Appeals
Number of Appeals Pending as of Start of Fiscal Year
Number of Appeals Received in Fiscal Year
Number of Appeals Processed in Fiscal Year
Number of Appeals Pending as of End of Fiscal Year
2
16
17
1
Disposition of Administrative Appeals--All Processed Appeals
Number Affirmed on Appeal
Number Partially Affirmed & Partially Reversed/Remanded on Appeal
Number Completely Reversed/Remanded on Appeal
Number of Appeals Closed for other Reasons
TOTAL
12
2
0
3
17
(1) Reasons for Denial on Appeal--Number of Times Exemptions Applied
Ex. 1
Ex. 2
Ex. 3
Ex. 4
Ex. 5
Ex. 6
Ex. 7(A)
Ex. 7(B)
Ex. 7(C)
Ex. 7(D)
Ex. 7(E)
Ex. 7(F)
Ex. 8
Ex. 9
0
0
3
4
1
2
0
0
0
0
0
0
3
0
(2) Reason for Denial on Appeal--Reasons Other than Exemptions
No Records
Records Referred at Initial Request Level
Request Withdrawn
Fee- Related Reason
Records Not Reasonably Described
Improper Request for Other Reasons
Not Agency Record
Duplicate Request Or Appeal
Request In Litigation
Appeal Based Solely on Denial of Request For Expedited Processing
Other *Explain in chart below
5
0
0
0
0
1
0
0
0
0
3
(3) Reasons for Denial on Appeal--"Other" Reasons from Section VI, C (2) Chart
Description of "Other" Reasons for Denial On Appeal from Chart C (2) & Number of Times Those Reasons Were Relied upon
TOTAL
Untimely Appeal
2
Fee waiver denial
1
(4) Response Time for Administrative Appeals
Median Number of Days
Average Number of Days
Lowest Number of Days
Highest Number of Days
16
16
11
24
(5) Ten Oldest Pending Administrative Appeals
10th Oldest Appeal
9th
8th
7th
6th
5th
4th
3rd
2nd
Oldest Appeal
Date of Receipt of Ten Oldest Appeals
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
2011-08-03
Number of Days Pending
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
41
VII. FOIA REQUESTS: RESPONSE TIME FOR PROCESSED AND PENDING REQUESTS
Processed Requests--Response Time for All Processed Perfected Requests
SIMPLE
COMPLEX
EXPEDITED
Median Number of Days
Average Number of Days
Lowest Number of Days
Highest Number of Days
Median Number of Days
Average Number of Days
Lowest Number of Days
Highest Number of Days
Median Number of Days
Average Number of Days
Lowest Number of Days
Highest Number of Days
1
3
<1
33
21
47
<1
516
0
0
0
0
Processed requests--Response Time for Perfected Requests in Which Information Was Granted
SIMPLE
COMPLEX
EXPEDITED
Median Number of Days
Average Number of Days
Lowest Number of Days
Highest Number of Days
Median Number of Days
Average Number of Days
Lowest Number of Days
Highest Number of Days
Median Number of Days
Average Number of Days
Lowest Number of Days
Highest Number of Days
1
3
<1
32
19
31
1
319
0
0
0
0
Processed Requests--Response Time in Day Increments