The Department of Defense has released a final rule amending the Freedom of Information Act, or FOIA, regulation to add additional FOIA requester service centers and update organizational names.
With the final rule, DOD is implementing the standards outlined in the Department of Justice’s Template for Agency FOIA Regulations stating that the decision to take part in FOIA alternative dispute resolution services is voluntary on the part of DOD and the requestor, according to a Federal Register notice published Tuesday.
Under the FOIA amendment, the Pentagon is changing the Directorate for Oversight and Compliance to the Office of the Assistant to the Secretary of Defense for Privacy, Civil Liberties and Transparency and the Defense Security Service to the Defense Counterintelligence and Security Agency.
The department is adding U.S. Cyber Command, U.S. Southern Command, U.S. Space Command and U.S. Space Force as authorized FOIA requester service centers.
“The benefit of USCYBERCOM and USSPACECOM establishing their own FOIA Requester Service Center is that FOIA action officers would have a direct and deeper knowledge of USCYBERCOM and USSPACECOM records, allowing for requests to be more readily completed within statutory timelines,” the notice states.
The rule will take effect on Jan. 4.
