§ 1703.5 - Policy with respect to request for particular kinds of documents.

This section is intended to amplify the policy set out in § 1703.3(a) as applied to specific categories of documents:

(a) All materials which are distributed to the membership of the Commission (Docket Book) for consideration at a plenary session will upon distribution be available to the public in accordance with § 1703.2(d) of these regulations.

(b) Consultant and staff reports which are otherwise exempt from disclosure under the Freedom of Information Act as interagency or intra-agency correspondence will, absent special circumstances, be made available if the reports are in substantially completed form and have been distributed widely for comment within or outside the Government. Tentative reports and working drafts which have received only limited circulation will ordinarily not be made available.

(c) Agency comments on a report or proposed legislative recommendation, even if exempt from disclosure under the Freedom of Information Act, will nevertheless ordinarily be made available unless the agency indicates to the Commission that its comment is confidential. Comment of an individual Commission member, writing in his personal capacity, will not be made available without the consent of the member.

(d) The following categories of documents are declared to be available to the public, notwithstanding any applicable exemption in section 552(b) of the Freedom of Information Act:

(1) Agency reports on the implementation of Commission recommendations;

(2) Correspondence from the Office of the Chairman of the Commission or the Executive Director to committees of Congress, commenting on pending legislation;

(3) Minutes of meetings of the standing committees of the Commission.

(4) Transcripts or minutes of Commission meetings.