Freedom Of Information and Openness NIH Margaret Snyder, Ph.D. FOIA Coordinator Office of Extramural Research s of Health 1
Today s Conversation How are these laws being used by animal rights groups? NIH Perspectives Are there limitations to the types of information that can be obtained? FOIA legislation and litigation Can greater transparency lead to less effort needed in response to FOI demands? It depends 2
NIH Portfolio 3
GRANTS ADMINISTRATION NIH Guide to Grants & Contracts Grants Compliance & Policy Development GRANTS ADMINISTRATIVE SUPPORT Division of Extramural Activities Support (DEAS) COMMUNICATION & OUTREACH OER Web Site NIH Regional Seminars Freedom of Information Electronic Updates (Nexus, Insider) Development of workshops & exhibits HUMAN SUBJECTS Guidance Resolution of Pre-award Human Subject Issues ANIMAL CARE AND USE Assurance Negotiation (Domestic & Foreign) Policy Interpretation and Guidance Development LIAISON WITH COMMUNITY OF STAKEHOLDERS INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY iedison Extramural Policy Development and Management RESEARCH INTEGRITY Research Misconduct Conflict of Interest Policy & Management PEER REVIEW Policy Development, Implementation, and Training Core Activities of the OER OTHER ACTIVITIES Public Access Project Clearance Human Capital Planning (ETFC) OER ADMINISTRATION Budget Operations Human Resources DATA MANAGEMENT & REPORTING CRISP Data Quality Award Trends Unified Reporting Web Site ELECTRONIC RESEARCH ADMINISTRATION (era) e-submission Grants Policy Input External Electronic Business Portal End-to-End Electronic Grants Administration EXTRAMURAL LOAN REPAYMENT & NRSA PAYBACK RESEARCH EDUCATION PROGRAMS & TRAINING (Internal & External) Research Program Leadership Small Business Awards, AREA, Training (T s & F s) NIH Staff Training (ESA, STEP, Grants Management Training) 4
RePORTER http://projectreporter.nih.gov/rep orter.cfmhttp://projectreporter.ni h.gov/reporter.chttp://projectrep orter.nih.gov/reporter.cfmfm 5
Requires IACUC Approval (39.49%) NIH funded research grants FY 2010 Both IRB and IACUC Approvals (7.80%) Neither IRB or IACUC (24.10%) IRB Approval required (28.60%) 6
NIH Organizational Structure Office of the Director OER on Aging on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism of Allergy and Infectious Diseases of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases National Cancer Institute of Child Health and Human Development on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders of Dental and Craniofacial Research of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases on Drug Abuse of Environmental Health Sciences National Eye Institute of General Medical Sciences National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute National Human Genome Research Institute of Mental Health of Neurological Disorders and Stroke of Nursing Research National Center on Minority Health and Health Disparities National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine Fogarty International Center National Center for Research Resources National Library of Medicine of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering NIH Clinical Center Center For Information Technology Center for Scientific Review These 3 Centers Do Not Issue Grants 7
Total FOIA Requests 8
FOIA Requests from Animal Advocates 9
General Observations Total number of FOIA request from Animal Advocacy organizations is increasing Animal Advocacy Organization requests were 6.46% of total for FY 2010 Of particular interest to animal advocates is: o Primate research o Non-compliance involving animals 10
Freedom Of Information Act (FOIA) The Purpose Open Access to information fosters democracy and empowers an informed citizenry Signed July 4, 1966 A democracy works best when the people have all the information that the security of the nation permits. At the same time, the welfare of the Nation or the rights of individuals may require that some documents not be made available. 11
Disclosure The FOIA is a Disclosure Statute Presumption is that all responsive records/information will be released unless 1 of 9 exemptions applies The responding agency may not consider the identity of the requester or the use the requester intends to make of the records when deciding whether to release or withhold records 12
Electronic Freedom Of Information Act E-FOIA Signed October 2, 1996 Government computers, and the internet, are used to conduct business; therefore, the internet should be used as a means to improve public access to records. Electronic distribution will resolve FOIA backlog Reading Room concept was introduced Frequently requested documents (FRD s) became available through electronic means i.e., reading rooms. 13
OPEN Government Act of 2007 Signed on Dec 31. 2007 Does not change the government s basic obligation under the FOIA Imposes consequences for Agency noncompliance - 20 day response time 14
January 21, 2009 Memo Creating a New Era of Open Government Attorney General Holder s FOIA Memorandum Be as forthcoming as possible 15
FOIA Exemptions permit withholding Exemption 4 : trade secrets and commercial or financial information Exemption 5 : inter-agency or intra-agency memoranda and incorporates; Certain Privileges Exemption 6: certain information if disclosure would constitute of clearly unwarranted invasion of personal privacy (e.g. personnel actions); Exemption 7: protects certain information in law enforcement files 16
Court Challenges For FOIA: Any assertion of harm must be specific and be the type of harm anticipated by the exemption. 17
Community Concerns The community & affiliated organizations concerns: The concern is not that information is being shared with the public; The concern is defining what is appropriate to share without risking safety, loss of security or confidentiality. 18
Final Comments How are these laws being used by animal rights groups? Increasing requests for a variety of documents by Animal Advocacy organizations Are there limitations to the types of information that can be obtained? Persistent challenges and current position of the Administration have resulted in increased release of information Can greater transparency lead to less effort needed in response to FOI demands? What do you think? 19
Acknowledgements Susan Cornell, J.D. Freedom of Information Officer and Chief FOIA Liaison Della Hann, Ph.D., Deputy Director, Office of Extramural Research 20