OIP Issues Guidance on Backlog Reduction Plans for FOIA Offices
DOJ/OIP, FOIA Post, Aug. 22, 2025
The Office of Information Policy (OIP) released guidance this week on the benefits of and considerations for developing and updating agency backlog reduction plans. A request is backlogged if it is pending past the FOIA’s standard 20- or 30-day response timeframes. Developing adaptable and sustainable plans to manage and reduce backlogs is a key part of agency FOIA administration.
The guidance is tailored to address considerations for agencies that are in the process of developing or updating their backlog reduction plans. It explains the importance of involving key stakeholders, tailoring content based on component-specific needs, and obtainable goal-setting and accountability measures. The guidance also stresses the importance of implementing and maintaining agency backlog reduction plans as living documents subject to modification as improvements to processes are made or changes in the law occur over time. By implementing backlog reduction plans, agencies and requesters will benefit from institutionalized best practices of effective FOIA administration.
Read more here.
[Given shrinking FOIA staffs and rising requests, the coming fiscal year is likely to test the limits of even the best-crafted backlog plan. As T.S. Eliot warned, “This is the way the world ends / Not with a bang but a whimper.”]