[Title 40, Volume 28]

[Revised as of
July 1, 2002]

From the
U.S. Government Printing
Office via GPO Access

[CITE: 40CFR1515.1]

[Page 494]

                   TITLE
40--PROTECTION OF ENVIRONMENT

               CHAPTER
V--COUNCIL ON ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY

PART 1515--FREEDOM OF
INFORMATION ACT PROCEDURES--Table of Contents

Sec. 1515.1  What are these
procedures?

    The Freedom of Information Act (5 U.S.C. 552, commonly
known as 

FOIA) is a law which creates a procedure for any person to request

official documents and other records from United
States Government 

agencies. The law requires every
Federal agency to make available to the 

public the
material requested, unless the material falls under one of 

the limited exceptions stated in section 552(b)(5) of the Act, and the

agency has good reason to refuse the request. These
procedures explain 

how the Council on Environmental
Quality--one of several offices in the 

Executive Office of the President--will
carry out the Freedom of 

Information Act. They are
written from the standpoint of a member of the 

public
requesting material from the
Council.

                          
Organization of CEQ

Sec. 1515.2  What is the Council on Environmental
Quality (CEQ)?

    (a) The Council on Environmental Quality (``CEQ'' or ``the

Council'') was created by the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969,

as amended (42 U.S.C. 4321 through 4347). The
Council's authority is 

derived from that Act, the
Environmental Quality Improvement Act of 

1970, as amended (42 U.S.C.
4371-4374), Reorganization Plan No. 1 of 

1977 (July 15, 1977), and Executive Order 11514, Protection and

Enhancement of Environmental Quality, March 5, 1970, as amended by 

Executive Order 11991,
May 24, 1977.

    (b) The Council's primary
responsibilities include the following:

    (1) To review and evaluate the programs and activities of
the 

Federal Government to determine how they are contributing to the

attainment of the national environmental
policy;

   
(2) To assist
Federal agencies and departments in appraising the 

effectiveness of their existing and proposed facilities, programs,

policies, and activities affecting environmental
quality;

    (3) To
develop and recommend to the President policies to improve 

environmental quality to meet the conservation, social, economic,

health, and other requirements and goals of the
Nation;

    (4) To advise and assist the President in
achieving international 

cooperation for dealing with
environmental problems;

   
(5) To assist in coordinating among Federal agencies and departments

those programs which affect, protect, and improve
environmental quality, 

including Federal compliance
with the environmental impact statement 

process, and
to seek resolution of significant environmental issues;

    (6) To foster research relating to
environmental quality and the 

impacts of new or
changing technologies; and

   
(7) To analyze long and short term environmental problems and trends

and assist in preparing an annual Environmental
Quality Report to the 

President and the
Congress.

    (c)
The Council maintains a ``Quarterly Index'' which lists its 

current policies and procedures, as required by section
552(a)(2) of the

Freedom of Information Act. This index is updated and
published in the 

Federal Register quarterly, starting in 1976. The Quarterly
Index--and 

the specific items listed in the
index--are available on request from 

the Freedom of
Information Officer. You may also inspect or copy

any
of these materials at the Council's office during the hours stated 

below in Sec. 1515.3(f).

Sec.
1515.3  How is CEQ
organized?

    (a) The Council is made up of three members appointed by
the 

President and subject to approval by the Senate. One member is

designated as chairman by the President. All three
serve in a full-time 

capacity.

    (b) The National Environmental Policy
Act and the Environmental 

Quality Improvement Act give the Council the authority to hire any 

officers and staff that may be necessary to carry out responsibilities

and functions specified in these two Acts. Also, the
use of consultants 

and experts is
permitted.

    (c) In
addition to the three members, the Council has program and 

legal staff.

    (d) The Council has no field or regional
offices.

    (e) The
Council has a public affairs office which is responsible for 

providing information to the general public, the Congress, and the

press. If you are interested in general information
about the Council or 

have questions about the
Council's recent activities or policy 

positions, you
should call this office at (202) 633-7005 or write to the 

``Public Affairs
Office'' of the Council at the address given in the 

next paragraph.

    Note: The CEQ public affairs office can respond fully and
promptly 

to most questions you may have; the Council
suggests that the Freedom of 

Information Act procedures be used when you are
seeking a specific 

document and have had difficulty
obtaining it.

    (f) The
Council is located at 722 Jackson Place NW., Washington,
DC 

20503. Office hours are 9-5:30, Monday
through Friday, except legal 

holidays. If you wish to
meet with any of the staff, please write or 

phone
ahead for an appointment. The main number is 202-456
6224.

                   
Procedures for Requesting Records

Sec. 1515.5  How to make a Freedom of Information Act
request.

    (a) The Chairman has appointed a Freedom of Information
Officer who 

will be responsible for overseeing the
Council's administration of the 

Freedom of Information Act and for receiving,
routing, and overseeing 

the processing of all Freedom
of Information requests. The Chairman has 

also
appointed an Appeals Officer who is responsible for processing any 

appeals.

   
(b) Requesting information from the Council. (1) When you make a

Freedom of Information Act request to the Council, the Freedom of

Information Officer shall decide how to respond to--or ``make an initial

determination on''--your request within 10 working
days from the date 

the Officer receives the request.
The Freedom of Information Officer 

will then provide
you with written notification of the determination.

    (2) You can make a Freedom of Information Act request by
writing a 

letter which states that you are making a
Freedom of Information Act 

request. Address your
letter to:

    Freedom of Information Officer, Council on Environmental
Quality, 

Executive Office of the President, 722
Jackson Place NW.,
Washington, DC

20503.

    (3) In your request you should identify the desired record
or 

reasonably describe it. The request should be as
specific as possible so 

that the item can be readily
found. You should not make blanket 

requests, such as
requests for ``the entire file of'' or ``all materials 

relating to'' a specified subject.

    (4) The Council will make a
reasonable effort to assist you in 

defining the
request to eliminate extraneous and unwanted materials and 

to keep search and copying fees to a minimum. If you have budgetary

constraints and anticipate that your request might be
costly you may 

wish to indicate the maximum fee you
are prepared to pay for acquiring 

the information.
(See Sec. 1515.15(c) also.)

   
(5) The 10 day
period for making a determination on a request will 

begin when the records reqested are
specified or reasonably 

identifiable.

    (6) Despite its name, the Freedom of
Information Act does not 

require a government agency
to create or research information that you 

would like
or that you may think the agency should have. The Act only 

requres that existing records be made
available to the public.

   
(c) Council's response to a request. (1) Upon receipt of any request

under the Act, the Freedom of Information Officer
shall direct the 

request to the appropriate staff
member at the Council, who will review 

the request
and advise the Freedom of Information Officer as soon as 

possible.

   
(2) If it is appropriate to grant the request, the staff member will

immediately collect the requested materials in order
to accompany, 

wherever possible, the Freedom of
Information Officer's letter notifying 

you of the
decision.

    (3) If your
request is denied, in part or in full, the letter 

notifying you of the decision will be signed by the Freedom of

Information Officer, and will include the names of any other individuals

who participated in the decision. The letter will
include the reasons 

for any denial and the procedure
for filing an appeal.

   
(d) Appeals. (1) If you are not satisfied with the response you have

received from the Freedom of Information Officer, you
may ask the 

Council to reconsider the decision. You
should explain what material you 

still wish to
receive, and why you believe the Council should disclose 

this to you. This is called an ``appeal.'' You must make you appeal

within 45 days of the date on the letter which denied
your request.

    (2) You
can make an appeal by writing a letter to:

FOIA
Appeals Officer, Council on Environmental Quality, Executive Office 

of the President, 722 Jackson
Place NW., Washington,
DC
20503.

    (3) Your letter should specify the
records being requested and ask 

the Appeals Officer
to review the determination made by the Freedom of 

Information Officer. The
letter should explain the basis for the appeal.

    (4) The Appeals Officer shall decide the appeal--or ``make
a final 

determination''--within 20 working days from
the date the Officer 

receives the appeal. The Appeals
Officer (or designee) will send you a 

letter
informing you of the decision as soon as it is made. If the 

Appeals Officer
denies your request, in part or in whole, the letter 

will also notify you of the provisions for judicial review and the
names 

of any persons who participated in the final
determination of the 

appeal.

    (e) Extending the Council's time to
respond. In unusual 

circumstances, the time limits
for response to your request (paragraphs 

(b) and (d)
of this section) may be extended by the Council for not more 

than 10 working days. Extensions may be granted by the Freedom of

Information Officer in the case of initial requests and by the Appeals

Officer in the case of any appeals. The extension
period may be split 

between the initial request and
the appeal but may not exceed 10 working 

days
overall. Any extension will be made or confirmed to you in writing 

and will set forth the reasons for the extension and the date that the

final determination is expected. The term ``unusual
circumstances'' 

means:

    (i) The
need to search for and collect the requested records from * 

* * establishments
that are separate from the office processing the 

request;

   
(ii) The need to search for, collect, and appropriately examine a 

voluminous amount of separate and distinct records which are demanded
in 

a single request; or

    (iii) The need for consultation,
which shall be conducted with all 

practicable speed,
with another agency having a substantial interest in 

the determination of the request or among two or more components of
the 

agency having substantial subject-matter interest
therein.

(5 U.S.C. 552(a)(6)(B))

                      
Availability of Information

Sec. 1515.10  What information is available, and how can
it be obtained?

    (a) When a request for information has been approved, in
whole or in 

part, you may make an appointment to
inspect or copy the materials 

requested during
regular business hours by writing or telephoning the 

Freedom of Information
Officer at the address or phone number given in 

Sec. 1515.3(f). You may be charged reasonable fees for copying

materials, as explained by Sec. 1515.15. The Council
on Environmental 

Quality will permit copying of any available material but
will reserve 

the right to limit the number of
copies

[[Page
497]]

made with the
Council's copying facilities.

    (b) In general, all records of
the Council are available to the 

public, as required
by the Freedom of Information Act. The Council 

claims
the right, where it is applicable, to withhold material under the 

provisions specified in the Freedom of Information Act as amended (5

U.S.C. 552(b)).

    (c) The legislative history of the establishment of the
Council 

states that the Congress intended the Council
to be a confidential 

advisor to the President on
matters of environmental policy. Therefore, 

members
of the public should presume that communications between the 

Council and the
President (and their staffs) are confidential and 

ordinarily will not be released; they will usually fall, at a minimum,

within Exemption 5 of the Act. The Freedom of
Information Officer shall 

review each request,
however, to determine whether the record is 

exclusively factual or may have factual portions which may be
reasonably 

segregated and made available to the
requester. Furthermore, on the 

recommendation of the
FOIA Officer or Appeals Officer, the Council will 

consider the release of an entire record, even if it comes within an

exemption or contains policy advice, if its
disclosure would not impair 

Executive policymaking processes or the Council's
participation in 

decisionmaking.

                                 
Costs

Sec. 1515.15  What fees may be charged, and how should
they be paid?

    (a) Following is the schedule of fees you may be charged
for the 

search and reproduction of information
available under the Freedom of 

Information Act, 5 U.S.C. 552, as
amended.

    (1) Search
for records. Five dollars per hour when the search is 

conducted by a clerical employee. Eight dollars per hour when the
search 

is conducted by a professional employee. There
will be no charge for 

searches of less than one
hour.

    (2) Duplication
of records. Records will be duplicated at a rate of 

$0.10
per page for copying of 10 pages or more. There will be no charge 

for duplicating 9 pages or less.

    (3) Other. When no specific fee has been established for a
service, 

or the request for a service does not fall
under categories (1) and (2), 

the Administrative
Officer is authorized to establish an appropriate fee 

based on ``direct costs'' as provided in the Freedom of Information
Act. 

Examples of services covered by this provision include searches

involving computer time or special travel,
transportation, or 

communication
costs.

    (b) If the
Council anticipates that the fees chargeable under this 

section will amount to more than $25, or the maximum amount specified
in 

your request, you shall be promptly notified of
the amount of the 

anticipated fee or the closest
estimate of the amount. In such instances 

you will be
advised of your option to consult with Council personnel in 

order to reformulate the request in a manner which will reduce the
fees, 

yet still meet your needs. A reformulated
request shall be considered a 

new request, thus
beginning a new 10 working day period for processing.

    (c) Fees must be paid in full prior
to issuance of the requested 

copies. In the event you
owe money for previous request, copies of 

records
will not be provided for any subsequent request until the debt 

has been paid in full.

    (d) Search costs are due and payable even if the record
which was 

requested cannot be located after all
reasonable efforts have been made, 

or if the FOI
Officer determines that a record which has been requested 

is exempt under the Freedom of Information Act as amended and is to be

withheld.

    (e) Payment shall be in the form either of a personal
check or bank 

draft drawn on a bank in the
United States, or a
postal money order. 

Checks shall be made payable to General Services
Administration. You 

should mail or deliver any
payment for services to the Administrative 

Office, Council
on Environmental Quality, 722 Jackson
Place NW.,

Washington, DC
20503.

    (f) A receipt for fees paid will be given upon request.
Refunds of 

fees paid for services actually rendered
will not be made.

    (g)
The Council may waive all or part of any fee provided for in 

this section when the Freedom of Information Officer (or designee)
deems it to be in 

either the Council's interest or in
the general public's interest.

PART 1516--PRIVACY
ACT IMPLEMENTATION--Table of Contents

Sec. 1516.1  Purpose and
scope.

    The purposes of these regulations are to:

    (a) Establish a procedure by which an
individual can determine if 

the Council on
Environmental Quality (hereafter known as the Council) 

maintains a system of records which includes a record pertaining to
the 

individual; and

    (b) Establish a procedure by which an
individual can gain access to 

a record pertaining to
him or her for the purpose of review, amendment 

and/or correction.

Sec. 1516.2 
Definitions.

    For the purpose of these
regulations:

    (a) The
term individual means a citizen of the United
States or an 

alien
lawfully admitted for permanent residence;

    (b) The term maintain means maintain, collect, use or
disseminate;

    (c) The
term record means any item or collection or grouping of 

information about an individual that is maintained by the Council

(including, but not limited to, his or her employment
history, payroll 

information, and financial
transactions), and that contains his or her 

name, or
an identifying number, symbol, or other identifying particular 

assigned to the individual such as a social security
number;

    (d) The term
system of records means a group of any records under 

the control of the Council from which information is retrieved by the

name of the individual or by some identifying number,
symbol, or other 

identifying particular assigned to
the individual; and

   
(e) The term routine use means with respect to the disclosure of a

record, the use of such record for a purpose which is
compatible with 

the purpose for which it was
collected.

Sec. 1516.3  Procedures for requests pertaining to
individual records in a record system.

    An individual shall submit a written
request to the Administrative 

Officer of the Council to determine if a system
of records named by the 

individual contains a record
pertaining to the individual. The 

individual shall
submit a written request to the Administrative Officer 

of the Council which states the individual's desire to review his or
her 

record. The Administrative Officer of the Council
is available to answer 

questions regarding these
regulations and to provide assistance in 

locating
records in the Council's system of records.

[42 FR
32537, June 27, 1977; 42 FR 35960,
July 13,
1977]

Sec. 1516.4  Times, places, and requirements for the
identification of the 

individual making a
request.

    An individual making a request to the Administrative
Officer of the 

Council pursuant to Sec. 1516.3 shall present the
request at the 

Council's office, 722 Jackson Place NW.,
Washington, DC
20503, on any 

business day between the hours of 9
a.m. and 5 p.m. and should be

prepared to identify himself by signature.
Requests will also be 

accepted in writing
if mailed to the Council's offices and signed by the 

requester.

Sec. 1516.5  Disclosure of requested information to the
individual.

    Upon verification of identity, the Council shall disclose
to the 

individual the information contained in the
record which pertains to 

that
individual.

    (a) The
individual may be accompanied for this purpose by a person 

of his choosing.

    (b) Upon request of the individual to whom the record
pertains, all 

information in the accounting of
disclosures will be made available.

[42 FR 35960,
July 13,
1977]

Sec. 1516.6  Request for correction or amendment to the
record.

    The individual may submit a request to the Administrative
Officer of 

the Council which states the individual's
desire to correct or to amend 

his or her record. This
request must be made in accordance with the 

procedures of Sec. 1516.4 and shall describe in detail the change
which 

is
requested.

[42 FR 32537, June 27, 1977. Redesignated at
42 FR 35960, July 13,
1977

Sec. 1516.7  Agency review of request for correction or
amendment of the record.

    Within ten working days of the receipt of a request to
correct or to 

amend a record, the Administrative
Officer of the Council will 

acknowledge in writing
such receipt and promptly either:

    (a) Make any correction or amendment of any portion
thereof which 

the individual believes is not
accurate, relevant, timely, or complete; 

or

   
(b) Inform the individual of his or her refusal to correct or amend

the record in accordance with the request, the reason
for the refusal, 

and the procedure established by the
Council for the individual to 

request a review of
that refusal.

Sec. 1516.8  Appeal of an initial adverse agency
determination on correction or amendment of the
record.

    An individual may appeal refusal by the Administrative
Officer of 

the Council to correct or to amend his or
her record by submitting a 

request for a review of
such refusal to the General Counsel, Council on 

Environmental Quality,
722 Jackson Place NW., Washington, DC 20503. The 

General Counsel shall, not
later than thirty working days from the date 

on which
the individual requests such a review, complete such review and 

make a final determination unless, for good cause shown, the General

Counsel extends such thirty day period. If, after his or her review, the

General Counsel also refuses to correct or to amend the record in

accordance with the request, the individual may file
with the Council a 

concise statement setting forth
the reasons for his or her disagreement 

with the
General Counsel's decision and may seek judicial relief under 5 

U.S.C. 552a(g)(1)(A).

Sec. 1516.9  Disclosure of a record to a person other
than the individual to whom the record
pertains.

    The Council will not disclose a record to any individual
other than 

to the individual to whom the record
pertains without receiving the 

prior written consent
of the individual to whom the record pertains, 

unless
the disclosure either has been listed as a ``routine use'' in the 

Council's
notices of its systems of records or falls within the special 

conditions of disclosure set forth in section 3 of the Privacy Act of

1974.

Sec. 1516.10 
Fees.

    If an individual requests copies of his or her record, he
or she 

shall be charged ten cents per page, excluding
the cost of any search 

for the record, in advance of
receipt of the pages.


  


  

  


   



   
      |  
Environmental Policies and News
   

  
      |  
  |  
FAIR Act 2004 Inventory
   

  
      |  
  |  
FAIR Appeals Doc
   

   
      |  
  |  
Agency Referral
   

   
      |  
  |  
Information Quality Guidelines
   

   
      |  
  |  
Energy Task Force Information
   


   
      |  
  |  
NEPA Task Force
   
   
   
      |  
  |  
Internship Program
   

   
      |  
  |  
EMS Memorandum
   


  |  
  |  
FOIA / Privacy Act Regulations


 
      |  
Annual FOIA Reports
      |  
2004
      |  
2003
      |  
2002
      |  
2001
      |  
2000
      |  
1999
      |  
1998
    


   
      |  
  |  
NEPAnet
   
Related Links   



   


  |  
Interagency Ocean Policy Group
   


   


  |  
Office of the Federal Environmental Executive
   




   


  |  
Department of the Interior
   







   
    
  |  
Department of Energy

    


   
     |  
Environmental Protection Agency

    


   
   
  |  
National Oceanic and Atmospheric
    Administration

    


   
        |  
Department of State

    


    
   
         |  
Department of Agriculture

    


   

  |  
Department of Justice
   


   

    Council on Environmental Quality
    722 Jackson Place, N.W.
    Washington, DC 20503
    tele. (202) 395-5750
    fax: (202) 456-6546