Enabling FOIA Request Clustering Capability in the Document Review Platform (Density Based Algorithm alongside Term Frequency – Inverse Document Frequency (TF-IDF))

Overview

Development stage

DeployedSource: c) Deployed – The use case is being actively authorized or utilized to support the functions or mission of an agency.

High-impact designation

Not high-impactSource: c) Not high-impact

Impact justification

Not reported

Start date

2023-08-01 (day precision)Source: 8/1/2023

Withheld from public reporting

NoSource: a) No

Mission

Topic area

Other

Operational functions

Document processing and extraction, FOIA and records management Derived by keyword rules; see methodology

Problem the AI is intended to solve

Identifying Contextually Similar FOIA Requests. Developed in house is selected because while the document review platform is used it is not an out of the box functionality.

Expected benefits

This tool assists in identifying contextually similar FOIA requests but has some limitations such as editing stop words. While we still use this tool sometimes, we primarily use our in-house built tool.

System outputs

Grouped requests into clusters based on TF-IDF weighted vocabulary. Documents with distinctive overlapping terms form conceptual groups. This provides a visualization of requests that are conceptually similar. The clusters assist in identifying emerging topics of public interest, opportunities where proactive disclosure may fulfill multiple requests, and opportunities for collaboration on responses across multiple bureaus. While we primarily use our own in-house built tool for this capability, there are times when we still leverage this version.

Technology

AI classification

Natural language processingSource: Natural Language Processing: AI that processes, interprets, and shares information in human language.

System name(s)

Not reported

Custom-developed code

Yes

Public source code

Not reported

Sourcing

How it was built

Developed in-houseSource: b) Developed in-house

Vendor (as reported)

Not reported

Vendors (standardized)

None on the standard list

A vendor is the supplier named by the agency. It does not identify the underlying model or AI technology.

Data and privacy

Involves PII

No

Privacy Impact Assessment

Not reported

Authorization to Operate

No

Demographic features

k) None of the above

Training and evaluation data

FOIA requests

Federal Data Catalog

Not reported

Governance

0 of 8 minimum-practice questions answered. A blank answer means the agency reported nothing; it does not mean the practice is absent.

Potential impacts and how they were identified

Not reported