Legal Research in a Nutshell by Kent C. Olson

Author:Kent C. Olson
Language: eng
Format: epub, azw3
ISBN: 9781640208049
Publisher: West Academic
Published: 2018-03-15T16:00:00+00:00

Regulations published in the Federal Register and CFR are the most authoritative sources of agency law. Over the years, however, the creation of regulations has become increasingly time-consuming and complicated, as agencies must solicit and consider comments from the public and interested parties. As a result, agencies now are just as likely to create policy through guidance documents, statements or manuals that do not require notice-and-comment procedures and publication in the Federal Register. Although guidance documents do not have 171

the same binding force as regulations, they can be important indicators of how an agency perceives its mandate and how it will respond in a specific situation.

Most guidance documents do not appear in the Federal Register, the CFR, or any other widely available published source, but they are (or should be) available through agency websites. The Electronic Freedom of Information Act Amendments of 1996 mandates that agencies make policy statements, manuals, and frequently requested information available to the public online. Under a 2007 Office of Management and Budget bulletin, “Agency Good Guidance Practice,” agency websites are required to maintain current lists of significant guidance documents in effect, with links to each document.

Even though guidance documents are important statements of agency policy, there is little consistency in their form and function between agencies. Website organization and ease of access vary considerably from agency to agency. An understanding of guidance documents requires a familiarity with an agency’s website and the ways in which the agency informs interested parties of its policies and interpretations.

Agency websites have greatly increased access to government information, but there remains a vast store of additional unpublished documentation such as internal records, correspondence, and staff studies. Under the Freedom of Information Act, individuals can request copies of most documents (although it may take weeks or months to receive a reply and there are broad exceptions for material 172

that agencies need not disclose). The first place to check for policies and procedures is the department or agency’s website, which should have a Freedom of Information or FOIA link on its front page.

Several resources are available for assistance in filing FOIA requests. The Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press has an iFOIA website (www.‌ifoia‌.org), which includes a Federal Open Government Guide and a template for filing FOIA requests. Procedures and sample forms for filing requests and suing to compel disclosure are also available in P. Stephen Gidiere III, The Federal Information Manual: How the Government Collects, Manages, and Discloses Information Under FOIA and Other Statutes (2d ed. 2013).

§ 6–5. Administrative Decisions and Rulings

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