32 C.F.R. § 286.3 Definitions.
Title 32 - National Defense
As used in this part, the following terms and meanings shall be applicable: Administrative appeal. A request by a member of the general public, made under the FOIA, asking the appellate authority of a DOD Component to reverse a decision: to withhold all or part of a requested record; to deny a fee category claim by a requester, to deny a request for waiver or reduction of fees; to deny a request to review an initial fee estimate; to deny a request for expedited processing due to demonstrated compelling need under §286.4(d)(3) of this part; to confirm that no records were located during the initial search. Requesters also may appeal the failure to receive a response determination within the statutory time limits, and any determination that the requester believes is adverse in nature. Agency record. (1) The products of data compilation, such as all books, papers, maps, and photographs, machine readable materials, inclusive of those in electronic form or format, or other documentary materials, regardless of physical form or characteristics, made or received by an agency of the United States Government under Federal law in connection with the transaction of public business and in Department of Defense possession and control at the time the FOIA request is made. Care should be taken not to exclude records from being considered agency records, unless they fall within one of the categories in paragraph (2) of this definition. (2) The following age not included within the definition of the word “record”. (i) Objects or articles, such as structures, furniture, vehicles and equipment, whatever their historical value, or value as evidence. (ii) Anything that is not a tangible or documentary record, such as an individual's memory or oral communication. (iii) Personal records of an individual not subject to agency creation or retention requirements, created and maintained primarily for the convenience of an agency employee, and not distributed to other agency employees for their official use. Personal papers fall into three categories: those created before entering Government service; private materials brought into, created, or received in the office that were not created or received in the course of transacting Government business; and work-related personal papers that are not used in the transaction of Government business (see “Personal Papers of Executive Branch Officials: A Management Guide”2 2 Available from the Records Administration Information Center, Agency Service Division (NIA), Washington, DC 20408. (3) A record must exist and be in the possession and control of the Department of Defense at the time of the request to be considered subject to this part and the FOIA. There is no obligation to create, compile, or obtain a record to satisfy a FOIA request. See §286.4(g)(2) on creating a record in the electronic environment. (4) Hard copy or electronic records, that are subject to FOIA requests under 5 U.S.C. 552(a)(3), and that are available to the public through an established distribution system, or through the Appellate authority. The Head of the DoD Component or the Component head's designee having jurisdiction for this purpose over the record, or any of the other adverse determinations outlined in definitions “Initial denial authority (IDA)” and “Administrative appeal”. DoD Component. An element of the Department of Defense, as defined in §286.1(b), authorized to receive and act independently on FOIA requests. (See appendix F of this part.) A DoD Component has its own initial denial authority (IDA), appellate authority, and legal counsel. Electronic record. Records (including e-mail) that are created, stored, and retrievable by electronic means. Federal agency. As defined by 5 U.S.C. 552(f)(1), a Federal agency is any executive department, military department, Government corporation, Government controlled corporation, or other establishment in the executive branch of the Government (including the Executive Office of the President), or any independent regulatory agency. FOIA request. A written request for DoD records that reasonably describes the record(s) sought, made by any person, including a member of the public (U.S. or foreign citizen/entity), an organization, or a business, but not including a Federal Agency or a fugitive from the law, that either explicitly or implicitly invokes the FOIA, DoD Directive 5400.7, this part, or DoD Component supplementing regulations or instructions. Requesters should also indicate a willingess to pay fees associated with the processing of their request or, in the alternative, why a waiver of fees may be appropriate. Written requests may be received by postal service or other commercial delivery means, by fascimile, or electronically. Requests received by fascimile or electronically must have a postal mailing address included since it may be practical to provide a substantive response electrically. The request is considered properly received, or perfected, when the above conditions have been met and the request arrives at the FOIA office of the Component in possession of the records. Initial denial authority (IDA). An official who has been granted authority by the head of DoD component to withhold records requested under the FOIA for one or more of the nine categories of records exempt from mandatory disclosure. IDA's may also deny a fee category claim by a requester; deny a request for expedited processing due to demonstrated compelling need under §286.4(d)(3) of this part; deny a request for a waiver or reduction of fees; review a fee estimate; and confirm that no records were located in response to a request. Public interest. The interest in obtaining official information that sheds light on an agency's performance of its statutory duties because the information falls within the statutory purpose of the FOIA to inform citizens about what their Government is doing. That statutory purpose, however, is not fostered by disclosure of information about private citizens accumulated in various governmental files that reveals nothing about an agency's or officials own conduct.
Title 32: National Defense
PART 286—DOD FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT PROGRAM REGULATION
Subpart A—General Provisions
§ 286.3 Definitions.
