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Monday, November 4, 2024

Department of Justice opens nominations for Sunshine Week FOIA Awards

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Lisa O. Monaco Deputy Attorney General | Official Website

The Department of Justice's Office of Information Policy (OIP) has announced the opening of nominations for the 2025 Sunshine Week FOIA Awards. These awards aim to honor the contributions of FOIA professionals across various government agencies. This year, OIP has opened the nomination window earlier than in previous years to accommodate an increasing number of submissions.

Attorney General emphasized in his March 2022 FOIA Guidelines that, “[t]he federal government could not process the hundreds of thousands of FOIA requests that are received every year without its dedicated FOIA professionals.” The awards will recognize these individuals' efforts in ensuring effective FOIA administration.

Nominations are open for five award categories: Exceptional Service by a FOIA Professional or Team, Outstanding Contributions by a New Employee, Exceptional Advancements in IT to Improve Agency’s FOIA Administration, Exceptional Advancements in Proactive Disclosure of Information, and Lifetime Service Award. Agencies and members of the public can submit nominations until December 6th, 2024.

Awardees will be honored at the Department’s 2025 Sunshine Week event on March 17th, 2025. Eligible personnel include Government Information Specialists, supervisors, FOIA attorneys, and other relevant staff. Nominations must be submitted via email with specific details about nominees and their accomplishments.

Each award category recognizes different aspects of excellence within FOIA administration. For instance, exceptional service awards highlight exemplary performance that benefits FOIA administration through increased efficiency or improved timeliness. The lifetime service award honors professionals with over two decades in FOIA work who have consistently demonstrated high standards.

Nominations should be sent to DOJ.OIP.FOIA@usdoj.gov with “2025 Sunshine Week FOIA Award Nomination” as the subject line by December 6th.

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