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Federal Advisory Committee Act
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Federal Advisory Committee Act
The Federal Advisory Committee Act (FACA) (Pub. L. 92–463, 86 Stat. 770, enacted October 6, 1972), is a United States federal law which governs the behavior of federal advisory committees. In particular, it has special emphasis on open meetings, chartering, public involvement, and reporting.
The U.S. General Services Administration (GSA) oversees the process.[not verified in body]
The Federal Advisory Committee Act defines advisory committee as "any committee, board, commission, council, conference, panel, task force, or other similar group" that dispenses "advice or recommendations" to the President of the United States, and excludes bodies that also exercise operational functions. They are provisional bodies and have the advantage of being able to circumvent bureaucracy and collect a range of opinions.
Committees composed of full-time officers or employees of the federal government do not count as advisory committees under FACA. Furthermore, the following organizations are also not governed by FACA: the Advisory Commission on Intergovernmental Relations, the Commission on Government Procurement, the National Academy of Sciences, the Central Intelligence Agency, the Federal Reserve, and the National Academy of Public Administration.
In drafting FACA, legislators wanted to ensure that advice by the various advisory committees is "objective and accessible to the public" by formalizing the process for "establishing, operating, overseeing, and terminating" the committees.[citation needed] The Committee Management Secretariat at the GSA is charged with monitoring compliance.[citation needed]
In particular the Act restricts the formation of such committees to only those which are deemed essential, limits their powers to provision of advice to officers and agencies in the executive branch of the Federal Government, and limits the length of term during which any such committee may operate. Further, FACA was an attempt by Congress to curtail the rampant "locker-room discussion" that had become prevalent in administrative decisions. These "locker-room discussion" are masked under titles like "task force", "subcommittee", and "working group" meetings, which are less than full FACA meetings and so they do not have to be open to the public. FACA declared that all administrative procedures and hearings were to be public knowledge.
A committee must provide public notice in the Federal Register 15 days prior to holding a meeting. It must publish all information regarding the meeting, including committee name, the time, place, and purpose of the meeting, and a summary of the agenda. Additionally, if any part of the meeting is closed to the public, the notice must include the committee name; the time, place and purpose of the meeting; a summary of the agenda; and if any portion of the meeting is closed, the reason and exemption(s) in the Government in the Sunshine Act that apply. An advisory committee meeting can be closed to the public if the president or an agency head determines that any of the 10 exemptions to the Sunshine Act apply (see below). The committee must provide access to materials provided to it, including reports, transcripts, minutes, working papers, agendas or other documents unless any of the nine FOIA exemptions would apply. The committees must also keep minutes of their meetings.[citation needed]
In March 2012 the Government Accountability Office issued a report on FACA groups in DOT and DOE. In this report, they state:
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Federal Advisory Committee Act
The Federal Advisory Committee Act (FACA) (Pub. L. 92–463, 86 Stat. 770, enacted October 6, 1972), is a United States federal law which governs the behavior of federal advisory committees. In particular, it has special emphasis on open meetings, chartering, public involvement, and reporting.
The U.S. General Services Administration (GSA) oversees the process.[not verified in body]
The Federal Advisory Committee Act defines advisory committee as "any committee, board, commission, council, conference, panel, task force, or other similar group" that dispenses "advice or recommendations" to the President of the United States, and excludes bodies that also exercise operational functions. They are provisional bodies and have the advantage of being able to circumvent bureaucracy and collect a range of opinions.
Committees composed of full-time officers or employees of the federal government do not count as advisory committees under FACA. Furthermore, the following organizations are also not governed by FACA: the Advisory Commission on Intergovernmental Relations, the Commission on Government Procurement, the National Academy of Sciences, the Central Intelligence Agency, the Federal Reserve, and the National Academy of Public Administration.
In drafting FACA, legislators wanted to ensure that advice by the various advisory committees is "objective and accessible to the public" by formalizing the process for "establishing, operating, overseeing, and terminating" the committees.[citation needed] The Committee Management Secretariat at the GSA is charged with monitoring compliance.[citation needed]
In particular the Act restricts the formation of such committees to only those which are deemed essential, limits their powers to provision of advice to officers and agencies in the executive branch of the Federal Government, and limits the length of term during which any such committee may operate. Further, FACA was an attempt by Congress to curtail the rampant "locker-room discussion" that had become prevalent in administrative decisions. These "locker-room discussion" are masked under titles like "task force", "subcommittee", and "working group" meetings, which are less than full FACA meetings and so they do not have to be open to the public. FACA declared that all administrative procedures and hearings were to be public knowledge.
A committee must provide public notice in the Federal Register 15 days prior to holding a meeting. It must publish all information regarding the meeting, including committee name, the time, place, and purpose of the meeting, and a summary of the agenda. Additionally, if any part of the meeting is closed to the public, the notice must include the committee name; the time, place and purpose of the meeting; a summary of the agenda; and if any portion of the meeting is closed, the reason and exemption(s) in the Government in the Sunshine Act that apply. An advisory committee meeting can be closed to the public if the president or an agency head determines that any of the 10 exemptions to the Sunshine Act apply (see below). The committee must provide access to materials provided to it, including reports, transcripts, minutes, working papers, agendas or other documents unless any of the nine FOIA exemptions would apply. The committees must also keep minutes of their meetings.[citation needed]
In March 2012 the Government Accountability Office issued a report on FACA groups in DOT and DOE. In this report, they state: