Improving Agency Disclosure of Information

June 2006

A. Overall Nature of the Agency’s Operations That Are Subject to the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA)

Each year, the Copyright Office (Office) receives a small number of FOIA requests. In fiscal year 2005, a typical year, the Office received only 50. The Copyright Information Section, which is the public information office (PIO), has primary responsibility for FOIA requests. Most FOIA requests are for documents or information that are routinely available to the public, as required by the agency’s authorizing legislation and regulations that establish it as an office of public record. See, 17 U.S.C. §705, §706 (2003) and 37 C.F.R. §§203.1-203.6 (2003). Consequently, for most FOIA requests for Copyright Office information, the Certification and Documents Section (C&D), which provides copies of Office documents and records to the public, assists PIO with preparing responses.

The Copyright Office has a number of responsibilities that are subject to FOIA. One of its primary responsibilities is to register copyright claims and to serve as an office of public record for those registrations. Copyright registration is the main area that generates FOIA requests for the Copyright Office.

Other responsibilities for which the Office may receive FOIA requests include administering statutorily mandated licensing provisions; litigation; providing expert assistance to Congress; advising Congress on anticipated changes in law; providing technical support for drafting legislation and accompanying reports; conducting studies for Congress and advising Congress on compliance with multilateral agreements. The Office works with Executive Branch agencies on intellectual property matters, including the Department of State, the U.S. Trade Representatives Office and the Department of Commerce. It also provides technical assistance to assist other countries developing copyright laws.

The Copyright Office produces educational publications relating to its areas of responsibility that are available through its website, at www.copyright.gov. Additional information about Copyright Office responsibilities may be found in United States Copyright Office: A Brief Introduction and History, available at www.copyright.gov/circs/circ1a.html. Copyright Office regulations are set forth at 37 C.F.R. Part 201 et seq., available at www.copyright.gov/title37.

B. Areas Selected for Review

The Copyright Office considered all areas for improving agency disclosure of information suggested by the Department of Justice in its memorandum of April 26, 2006, available at www.usdoj.gov/oip/foiapost/2006foiapost6.htm.

C. Narrative Statement Summarizing Results of Review

FOIA operations in the Copyright Office function efficiently and effectively. The Office continues to meet or exceed FOIA requirements. The median response time has been consistently less than FOIA’s maximum of not more than 20 work days. In 2005, the median response time was four work days, down from a high of 14 work days in 2001. The Office does not have backlogs. It has not received complaints about its FOIA operations. Timely and meaningful responses have contributed to the Office’s excellent record of only six appeals in the past eight years. The Office has also significantly improved its timeliness for filing its annual FOIA report.

To further improve FOIA operations and customer service, the Office intends to increase educational outreach to better publicize the kind of documents and information that are available to the public without a FOIA request, particularly in the registration area. Approximately one quarter of all FOIA requests are for records or resources that are publicly available through a routine request or by going to the Office’s website. The goal is to increase efficiency by encouraging the public to obtain documents or information directly, without the additional step of complying with FOIA procedures. FOIA requests for information that is publicly available are an inefficient use of the public’s time and agency resources.

FOIA requests frequently seek registration information that is readily available through the Copyright Office website. Copyright Office materials and documents relating to registration are available to the public for inspection in person, by obtaining copies and by accessing the Office’s databases. Requests for publicly available information may be submitted in person, by calling on the telephone, by sending an e-mail or by postal delivery. Although, at times, a response may not be faster that it would be through a formal FOIA request, private individuals would still benefit because of eliminating the burden of submitting a request that satisfies FOIA requirements.

Another area in which the public needs to be better informed relates to FOIA requests to the Copyright Office that are typically reference inquiries that can be handled through more accessible resources, like a local library or the Internet. These make up, approximately, another quarter of the Office’s FOIA requests. Presumably, the Office receives such requests because it is a service unit within the Library of Congress. The Office forwards such requests to the Library and works with it to respond, when practicable.

Therefore, additional information to educate the public about documents and information that are available from the Copyright Office without utilizing FOIA will improve efficiency and, depending on what is being sought, may even result in faster responses. Finally, the Office has identified several measures to improve the efficiency of the Office’s internal procedures and to assess what may be done to improve particular procedures.

D. Areas of Improvement

The Copyright Office selected the following six areas for improvement:

1. Evaluate Request Tracking Procedures
2. Improve System for Redirecting Requests to the Library of Congress
3. Identify Subject Matter for Proactive Disclosure
4. Review Website to Identify Improvements
5. Develop a FOIA Reference Guide for the Copyright Office
6. Support Staff Training by Developing SOPs and Written Guidelines

E. Details for Implementing and Measuring Improvements

Area 1

1. Name: Evaluate Request Tracking Procedures

2. Brief statement of goal(s)/objective(s): Although the Copyright Office has not experienced any specific problems with its tracking of FOIA requests, the Office believes that certain changes to its current processing procedures could potentially further improve the efficiency and accuracy of the Office’s operations.

3. List of all distinct steps planned to be taken: Include on all FOIA response letters the Copyright Office’s internal FOIA tracking number for the applicable request. Staple associated envelopes to incoming requests to aid in investigating receipt dates and questions of proper addressing. Use electronic calendaring system for all due dates. Scan all response letters for easier access and tracking in the future.

4.Time milestones: December 31, 2006.

5. Means of measurement of success: This task will be considered successfully implemented when the Office incorporates the above-described actions into its routine processes. Success of these actions will be measured by the reporting of the Copyright Office personnel that they have experienced improvement in their ability to locate the FOIA request records they needed more efficiently, especially in preparing the Copyright Office’s annual report.

Area 2

1. Name: Improve System for Redirecting Requests to the Library of Congress

2. Brief statement of goal(s)/objective(s): To reduce public confusion regarding the information maintained by the Copyright Office which is the proper subject matter of a FOIA request and information maintained by the Library of Congress for which the Copyright Office must refer the request to the Library of Congress.

3. List of all distinct steps planned to be taken: Clarify to the public the distinction between the Copyright Office and the Library of Congress by including an explanation on the Copyright Office’s website. Request that the Department of Justice designate on its FOIA indexes the Copyright Office itself as an entity which is subject to the FOIA, and not index the Copyright Office as the Library of Congress, which is not subject to the FOIA.

4. Time milestones: December 31, 2006.

5. Means of measurement of success: This task will be considered successfully completed when the Office incorporates the relevant explanation into its FOIA website and requests the above-described action from the Department of Justice. The Office hopes to encourage more efficient processing of these requests for information by facilitating the requester’s ability to contact the appropriate entity for a particular request. The Office hopes that an eventual decrease in the number of FOIA requests filed with the Copyright Office for information maintained by the Library of Congress will evidence that requesters are utilizing the more efficient process.

Area 3

1. Name: Identify Subject Matter for Proactive Disclosure

2. Brief statement of goal(s)/objective(s): To improve the public’s understanding of the documents that the Office makes publicly available without the necessity of filing a FOIA request and the procedures by which to obtain these documents. To educate the public as to other procedures and resources that can facilitate efficiency processing the public’s requests.

3. List of all distinct steps planned to be taken: Prepare a list of the specific types of documents which the Office makes publicly available without requiring a FOIA request (including but not limited to copyright registrations, documents recorded against copyright registrations and information circulars) and an explanation of how to obtain copies of these records. Include citations to the pertinent regulations. Provide this list to the public via inserts to FOIA response letters and posting on the Copyright Office’s general and FOIA websites. Include in all response letters the URL of the Copyright Office’s FOIA website for further information as well as the phone number of the FOIA Requester Service Center. Inform the public to send all FOIA requests directly to the attention of the FOIA Requester Service Center to improve efficient processing. Additionally, update the Copyright Office’s FOIA Regulations, including adding information about the Office’s cut-off date for searching for responsive records, notice of the requisite specificity for a request and a further explanation about records publicly available without needing to file a FOIA request and contact information for the FOIA Requester Service Center.

4. Time milestones: Completion of list of publicly available documents by December 31, 2006. Revision of regulations by July 1, 2007.

5. Means of measurement of success: These tasks will be considered successfully completed when the Office begins disseminating the list to the public and publishes its revised regulations in the Federal Register. The Office hopes to witness an eventual decrease in the number of FOIA requests submitted for publicly available information.

Area 4

1. Name: Review Website to Identify Improvements

2. Brief statement of goal(s)/objective(s): To improve the public’s understanding of the Copyright Office’s FOIA processes, including the types of documents that are available through the Copyright Office and the types that are not.

3. List of all distinct steps planned to be taken: Include link to list of publicly available documents prepared in response to Area 1 above. Prepare an explanation of the distinction between the Copyright Office and the Library of Congress as a whole, as well as a link to the pertinent area of the Library of Congress’ website. Include links to pertinent Copyright Office information circulars which explain Copyright Office’s procedures and general concepts of copyright law. Prepare and post a Frequently Asked Questions page relating specifically to the Copyright Office’s FOIA operations. Review entirety of Copyright Office website and revise any outdated information.

4. Time milestones: Completion by December 31, 2007.

5. Means of measurement of success: This task will be considered successfully completed when the Office posts the revised information its FOIA website. The Office hopes to witness an eventual decrease in the number of FOIA requests submitted for publicly available information or information not maintained by the Copyright Office.

Area 5

1. Name: Develop a FOIA Reference Guide for the Copyright Office

2. Brief statement of goal(s)/objective(s): To prepare and make available to the public a guide explaining the FOIA and the Copyright Office’s FOIA operations.

3. List of all distinct steps planned to be taken: Review similarly situated agencies’ FOIA Reference Guides, and prepare a guide relevant to the Copyright Office’s FOIA operations. Provide a link to this guide on the Copyright Office’s FOIA website. Make the guide publicly available through the Public Information Office.

4. Time milestones: Review of other agencies’ guides by June 30, 2007. Completion of Copyright Office’s guide by December 31, 2007.

5. Means of measurement of success: This task will be considered successfully completed when the Office makes its guide publicly available. The Office hopes to witness a decrease in FOIA-related questions posed to the Public Information Office.

Area 6

1. Name: Support Staff Training by Developing SOPs and Written Guidelines

2. Brief statement of goal(s)/objective(s): To provide for consistency in the Copyright Office’s FOIA operations in the cases of turnover in FOIA personnel and/or when the assistance of non-FOIA personnel is required to respond to a request.

3. List of all distinct steps planned to be taken: Prepare an internal FOIA summary and training manual for Copyright Office employees who may be called upon to assume FOIA-related duties or to assist in responding to a FOIA request or searching for responsive documents. Include contact information for interaction with the Library of Congress.

4. Time milestones: after December 31, 2007.

5. Means of measurement of success: This task will be considered successfully completed when the Office finalizes this internal training manual.

F. Time Periods

1. Areas anticipated to be completed by December 31, 2006:

Area 1 (Evaluate Request Tracking Procedures)

Area 2 (Improve System for Redirecting Requests to the Library of Congress)

Area 3 (Identify Subject Matter for Proactive Disclosure–Publication List)

2. Areas anticipated to be completed by December 31, 2007:

Area 3 (Identify Subject Matter for Proactive Disclosure–Revision of Regulations)

Area 4 (Review Website to Identify Improvements)

Area 5 ( Develop a FOIA Reference Guide for the Copyright Office)

3. Areas anticipated to be completed after December 31, 2007:

Area 6 (Support Staff Training by Developing SOPs and Written Procedures)