ARTICLE 7

INFORMATION REQUESTS

1. STATUTORY REQUIREMENTS. The Employer recognizes that the obligation to bargain in good faith includes the obligation to furnish to authorized representatives of the Union, upon request and, to the extent not prohibited by law, data which:
   
   1. is normally maintained by the Employer in the regular course of business;
      
   2. is reasonably available and necessary for full and proper discussion, understanding, and negotiation of subjects within the scope of collective bargaining; and
      
   3. does not constitute guidance, advice, counsel, or training provided for management officials or supervisors related to collective bargaining.
      
2. PROCEDURES. The Parties agree that the following procedures will be used for requesting information, responding to such requests, and informally resolving disputes regarding information requests.
   
   1. UNION REQUESTS FOR INFORMATION. The Union agrees to provide requests for information using the "Union Request for Information Under Section 7114(b)(4) of the Statute" form. The Employer agrees to accept the request if:

      (1) All items on the form are completed. (The form may be reproduced electronically and may contain only the "headers" such as "Union contact", "particularized need", etc. to indicate the item being answered.)

      (2) All other procedures in this Article are followed, as apply.

   2. EMPLOYER RESPONSE TO INFORMATION REQUESTS. The Employer will review the information request form for completeness and will:

      (1) Accept the request and respond with the "Employer Response to a Union Request for Information Under Section 7114(b)(4) of the Statute" form.

      (a) All applicable items on the forms will be completed for all information which is not being released.

      (b) All information being released will normally be provided in the official response, however, in those instances when some items are determined to be releasable and immediately available, those items will be provided prior to the completion of the official response.

      (c) The Employer will release any information determined to be releasable under the Freedom of Information Act regulations, as soon as it is available.

      (d) The Employer will normally respond to the Union’s requests for information within ten (10) workdays. However, it may be necessary to provide a partial response due to the availability of the information requested. The Employer will include in the response the date on which the missing information will be provided.

      (2) Reject the request, and respond in writing within ten (10) workdays of the date of the request as to the reason the request is being rejected.

   3. JOINT INFORMAL RESOLUTION OF DISPUTES. The Parties agree to meet within five (5) workdays after the receipt of notification from the Employer that a request for information has been rejected, or a response from the Employer where all of the information requested was not provided, to attempt informal resolution of the dispute.

      (1) The "Issue Analysis to Be Jointly Completed by the Requesting Union and the Agency" form will be completed during the meeting as a means of facilitating the discussion and resolving the issues.

      (2) The Parties agree to employ interest-based techniques and approach to the informal resolution meeting. The Parties further agree to rely on the guidance of the General Counsel, FLRA regarding information requests when analyzing the issues.

      (3) The Parties agree that if informal resolution is unsuccessful, the Union may file an Unfair Labor Practice charge with the FLRA. The Parties agree this will be the only avenue of redress for resolution of disputes about information requests.

   4. The Union agrees to use the procedures under this Article only to obtain information to which it does not otherwise have access. Information available on the Internet, Intranet, or under other provisions of this Agreement will, therefore, not be requested.