H.R. 1211 would amend the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA). FOIA generally allows any person to obtain federal agency records. Specifically, the legislation would require the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to establish a single FOIA website for making requests and checking on the status of those requests; establish a Chief FOIA Officers Council to review compliance with the act and to recommend improvements; and require additional reports from the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) and other agencies.
CBO estimates that implementing H.R. 1211 would cost $20 million over the 2014-2018 period, assuming appropriation of the necessary amounts. The legislation also could affect direct spending by agencies not funded through annual appropriations (such as the Tennessee Valley Authority). Therefore, pay-as-you-go procedures apply. CBO estimates, however, that any net increase in spending by those agencies would not be significant. Enacting the bill would not affect revenues.
H.R. 1211 contains no intergovernmental or private-sector mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act (UMRA) and would not affect the budgets of state, local, or tribal governments.
