[Code of Federal Regulations]
[Title 15, Volume 1]
[Revised as of January 1, 2002]
From the U.S. Government Printing Office via GPO Access
[CITE: 15CFR4.5]

[Page 32]
 
                  TITLE 15--COMMERCE AND FOREIGN TRADE
 
PART 4--DISCLOSURE OF GOVERNMENT INFORMATION--Table of Contents
 
                  Subpart A--Freedom of Information Act
 
Sec. 4.5  Responsibility for responding to requests.

    (a) In general. Except as stated in paragraph (b) of this section, 
the proper component of the Department to respond to a request for 
records is the component that first receives the request and has 
responsive records, or the component to which the Departmental Freedom 
of Information Officer assigns lead responsibility for responding to the 
request. Records responsive to a request shall include only those 
records within the Department's possession and control as of the date 
the proper component receives the request.
    (b) Consultations and referrals. If a component receives a request 
for a record in its possession in which another Federal agency subject 
to the FOIA has the primary interest, the component shall refer the 
record to that agency for direct response to the requester. Ordinarily, 
the agency that originated a record will be presumed to have the primary 
interest in it. A component shall consult with another Federal agency 
before responding to a requester if the component receives a request for 
a record in which another Federal agency subject to the FOIA has a 
significant interest, but not the primary interest; or another Federal 
agency not subject to the FOIA has the primary interest or a significant 
interest (see Sec. 4.8 for additional information about referrals of 
classified information).
    (c) Notice of referral. Whenever a component refers a document to 
another Federal agency for direct response to the requester, it 
ordinarily shall notify the requester in writing of the referral and 
inform the requester of the name of the agency to which the document was 
referred.
    (d) Timing of responses to consultations and referrals. All 
consultations and referrals shall be handled in chronological order, 
based on when the FOIA request was received by the first Federal agency.
    (e) Agreements regarding consultations and referrals. Components may 
make agreements with other Federal agencies to eliminate the need for 
consultations or referrals for particular types of records.