The Office of Information Policy (OIP) has released its summary and assessment of federal agencies’ 2025 Chief FOIA Officer (CFO) Reports. The annual evaluation focuses on how agencies are implementing the Department of Justice’s (DOJ) 2022 FOIA Guidelines in areas such as leadership, openness, administration fairness, proactive disclosures, technology use, and efforts to improve access and reduce backlogs.
“OIP’s 2025 summary and assessment focuses on steps agencies have taken to improve FOIA administration in five key areas highlighted in the Department of Justice’s (DOJ) 2022 FOIA Guidelines: FOIA Leadership and Applying a Presumption of Openness; Ensuring Fair and Effective FOIA Administration; Proactive Disclosures; Utilizing Technology to Improve Efficiency; and Steps Taken to Remove Barriers to Access, Improve Timelines, and Reduce Backlogs.”
OIP encourages both agency staff and the public to review its summary as well as each agency's individual report for a comprehensive view of government-wide progress in Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) administration.
In addition to summarizing agency activities, OIP's assessment provides an overview using a five-step scoring system that measures success across milestones relevant to high- and medium-volume agencies. Agencies with more than 50 requests were assessed against either twenty-two or twenty milestones depending on their request volume. The complete assessment is available as both a spreadsheet and PDF on OIP’s Reports page alongside previous years' summaries.
OIP has also published new guidelines for agencies preparing their 2026 CFO Reports. These guidelines continue to emphasize the same five key areas from DOJ’s 2022 guidance. Reporting requirements differ based on request volume: agencies receiving fewer than 100 requests in Fiscal Year 2024 are encouraged to share any notable efforts or success stories, while those with at least 100 requests face more detailed reporting obligations.
Draft reports from larger agencies must be submitted by January 12, 2026. Agencies with fewer than 100 requests should submit their reports by February 6, 2026 if they have information to share. The guidelines include links listing all reporting requirements for reference. OIP will provide refresher training for officials responsible for compiling these reports.
“OIP encourages agencies and the public to read both OIP’s summary and each agency’s individual report to gain a comprehensive understanding of the various steps taken to improve the administration of the FOIA across the government.”
“OIP is also issuing new guidelines for agencies’ 2026 CFO Reports, which continue to focus on the five key areas of FOIA administration highlighted in the DOJ’s 2022 FOIA Guidelines. The 2026 CFO Report Guidelines once again include separate reporting requirements for agencies depending on the number of FOIA requests received in the prior fiscal year. Agencies that received less than 100 requests in Fiscal Year 2024 are encouraged to report on any efforts or success stories they’ve experienced. All other agencies receiving 100 or more requests have more extensive reporting requirements.”
“Agencies that received 100 or more requests must submit their draft 2026 Chief FOIA Officer Reports to OIP for review by no later than Monday, January 12, 2026. For the remaining agencies receiving less than 100 requests in Fiscal Year 2024, if they do have information to report, they must provide their reports by no later than Friday, February 6, 2026. A listing of all agencies with a link to their reporting requirements is included at the end of the Guidelines. OIP will once again host refresher training on the preparation of the 2026 Chief FOIA Officer Reports.”
