1. ADMINISTRATIVE FOI APPEAL - an independent review of the initial determination made in response to a FOI request. Requesting parties who are dissatisfied with the response made on their initial request have a right to appeal that initial determination to an office within the agency, which will then conduct an independent review.
2. ANNUAL FOI REPORT - a report to be filed each year with the Presidential Communications Operations Office (PCOO) by all government agencies detailing the administration of the FOI. Annual FOI Reports contain detailed statistics on the number of FOI requests and appeals received, processed, and pending at each government office.
3. CENTRAL APPEALS AND REVIEW COMMITTEE – a committee in the NFA central office created to review and analyze an appeal to grant the request for information.
4. data.gov.ph - The Open Data website that serves as the government’s comprehensive portal for all public government data that is searchable, understandable, and accessible.
5. eFOI.gov.ph - The website that serves as the government’s comprehensive FOI website for all information on the FOI. Among many other features, eFOI.gov.ph provides a central resource for the public to understand the FOI, to locate records that are already available online, and to learn how to make a request for information that is not yet publicly available. eFOI.gov.ph also promotes agency accountability for the administration of the FOI by graphically displaying the detailed statistics contained in Annual FOI Reports, so that they can be compared by agency and over time.
6. EXCEPTIONS - information that should not be released and disclosed in response to a FOI request, because they are protected by the Constitution, laws or jurisprudence.
7. FOR DECISION MAKER (fdm) – the official in the NFA central / field office who will authorize the grant or denial of the request.
8. FOI RECEIVING OFFICER (FRO) – an employee in the NFA central /field office who will receive the request for information.
9. FOI REQUEST - a written request submitted to a government office personally or by email asking for records on any topic. A FOI request can generally be made by any Filipino to any government office.
10. FREEDOM OF INFORMATION (FOI) - the Executive Branch recognizes the right of the people to information on matters of public concern, and adopts and implements a policy of full public disclosure of all its transactions involving public interest, subject to the procedures and limitations provided in Executive Order No. 2. This right is indispensable to the exercise of the right of the people and their organizations to effective and reasonable participation at all levels of social, political and economic decision-making.
11. INFORMATION - shall mean any records, documents, papers, reports, letters, contracts, minutes and transcripts of official meetings, maps, books, photographs, data, research materials, films, sound and video recording, magnetic or other tapes, electronic data, computer stored data, any other like or similar data or materials recorded, stored or archived in whatever format, whether offline or online, which are made, received, or kept in or under the control and custody of any government office pursuant to law, executive order, and rules and regulations or in connection with the performance or transaction of official business by any government office.
12. PERSONAL INFORMATION - shall refer to any information, whether recorded in a material form or not, from which the identify of an individual is apparent or can be reasonably and directly ascertained by the entity holding the information, or when put together with other information, would directly and certainly identify an individual.
13. SENSITIVE PERSONAL INFORMATION - as defined in the Data Privacy Act of 2012, shall refer to personal information:
a. About an individual race, ethnic origin, marital status, age, color, and religious philosophical or political affiliations;
b. About an individual health, education, genetic or sexual life of a person, or to any proceedings for any offense committed or alleged to have committed by such person, the disposal of such proceedings or the sentence of any court in such proceedings;
c. Issued by government agencies peculiar to an individual which includes, but not limited to, social security numbers, previous or current health records, licenses or its denials, suspension or revocation, and tax returns; and
d. Specifically established by an executive order or an act of Congress to be kept classified.
14. PARTIAL GRANT/PARTIAL DENIAL - when a government office is able to disclose portions of the records in response to a FOI request, but must deny other portions of the request.
Should the requested information need further details to identify or locate, then the running of the 15 working days period shall be interrupted and will commence only on the day after it receives the required clarification from the requesting party.
B. EVALUATION
C. Approval to Grant Request / Denial
1. Upon receipt of the request, the FDM shall review / evaluate further the FRO’s recommendation and if necessary, discuss further the necessary action to be taken. The FDM should be able to approve the FRO’s recommendation within the day it was received by the FRO.
2. In case the FDM for NFA central office (Assistant Administrator for Finance and Administration) is on official travel or on leave of absence, the Assistant Administrator for Marketing Operations shall perform the FOI function.
In case the FDM for regional or provincial office (Regional Director or Provincial Manager) is on official travel or on leave of absence, the next lower in rank shall perform the FOI function.
3. The FRO shall record in the DTS the date and time the request was forwarded to (with corresponding signed receipt) and approved by the FDM.
4. Upon FDM’s approval to grant the request, the FRO shall forward such request to the concerned office /s, ensure that it is well coordinated and monitor its compliance. The FRO shall also clear with these offices that they will only provide the specific information that relates to their offices.
5. In case of denial of the request wholly or partially, the FRO shall, within the prescribed period, notify the requesting party of the denial through a letter transmittal to be signed by the NFA Administrator (for central office) / Regional Director (for R.O.) / Provincial Manager (for P.O.) informing the requesting party accordingly of the denial of the request and reason for such denial.
D. PROCESSING OF REQUESTED INFORMATION
1. Upon FDM’s approval to grant the request, the FRO shall endorse the request to the office that has custody of the information, for processing. The FRO shall record in the DTS the date and time the request was received by the concerned office.
2. The concerned office shall make all necessary steps to locate and retrieve the information requested. They shall take into consideration if the requested information is / are included in the list of exemption or classified as restricted or confidential information otherwise they shall ensure that the complete information requested be submitted to the FDM/FRO on or before the deadline indicated in the DTS.
3. If the concerned office need further details to identify or locate the information, they shall seek clarification from the requesting party through the FRO. The clarification shall stop the running of the 15 working day period and will commence the day after it receives the required clarification from the requesting party.
4. If the concerned office determines that a record contains information of interest to another office, they shall consult with the said agency before making any final determination.
5. The FRO shall monitor the date and time of receipt of information from the concerned office and report to the FDM in case the submission has gone beyond the set deadline.
E. TRANSMITTING THE INFORMATION TO THE REQUESTING PARTY
Upon receipt of the requested information from the concerned office, the FDM/FRO shall ensure that the information is complete and had been checked for possible exemptions, prior to actual release. FRO shall attach a cover/transmittal letter signed by the NFA Administrator (for central office) / Regional Director (for R.O.) / Provincial Office (for P.O.). The FRO shall inform the requesting party through the fastest means that the information being requested is ready. The FRO shall enter in the DTS the date and time when he informed the requesting party that the information requested is ready. FRO shall ensure the transmittal of such to the requesting party within 15 working days upon receipt of the request for information.
F. REQUEST FOR AN EXTENSION OF TIME
1. If the information requested requires extensive search of the NFA records facilities, examination of voluminous records, data need to be retrieved from the field offices, the occurrence of fortuitous events or other analogous cases, the concerned office should inform the FRO/FDM to ask for an extension from the requesting party setting forth the reasons for such extension.
2. In no case shall the extension exceed twenty (20) working days on top of the mandated fifteen (15) working days to act on the request, unless exceptional circumstances warrant a longer period.
G. REMEDIES IN CASE OF DENIAL OF REQUEST