Statistics is an essential element of comparison in the public service delivery. It creates the avenue to pit one service against the other in a bid to understand the effectiveness of different services within a particular work environment or department. As a result, one can know the details about provision of services to the public and the level of efficiency. Accessing data from the federal government about the operation and services of government departments is important in helping concerned citizens understand the speed with which services are rendered. The report focuses on the Department of Justice to examine various types of information available for public consumption. The US Parole Commission handles mainly cases in which offenders are given correctional release before their actual terms come to an end (Cole, Smith & DeJong, 2015). The report takes a specific interest in the appeals within the Department of Justice under different offices. The report seeks to unravel the information in the Office of Information Policy and the United States Parole Commission. The report is a graphical representation of data and a comparison of the two offices within the Department of Justice. Office of the Information Policy offers technical advice on the administration and implementation of Freedom of Information Act (Herberman & Bonczar, 2014). The data is provided by the federal government as part of the fulfillment of freedom of information access that has been accorded to the people of the nation by the Constitution. It is evident from the data that some appeals were filed in the fiscal year 2015 within the various departments. The statistics offer an appeal comparison between the Parole Commission and the Office of Information Policy. Over the course of the fiscal year 2015, there were more appeals in the Office of Information Policy compared to the Parole Commission. The disparities in the figures are easy to understand taking into consideration the duties and responsibilities of each office. It is clear that there are few cases of parole whereas appeals against OIP are common. Report screenshot from the https://www.foia.gov/data.html
The surprising thing is the difference in the number of appeals between the offices. For instance, the appeals at the beginning of the fiscal year 2015, there was only one appeal in USPC as compared to 702 appeals in the OIP. Additionally, more appeals were received for the fiscal year, 3923 in OIP whereas there were only 3 in the USPC. Moreover, the number processed during the year stood at the Office of Information Policy at 4107 in comparison to the USPC. It is clear that there is much more effective in the OIP than USPC. Despite the high number of appeals received, it still managed to process several of them. On the other hand, it is important to note that throughout the fiscal year 2015, USPC only managed to process two appeals. While it might be harsh to judge department based on the appeals processed due to their varied nature, it is crucial to make rational decisions based on available information (Kaeble et al., 2015). At the end of the fiscal year, OIP had many cases pending than USP. It can be explained by the high number of received appeals which might require accurate analogy to comprehend.
In the fiscal year 2014, there were low number of appeals compared to 2015 except the pending appeals at the beginning of the year of which there were many pending appeals. Both OIP and USPC recorded low numbers compared to the succeeding year. The most notable thing about the appeals for 2014 is the fact that at the end of the fiscal year, there were no pending appeals. That notwithstanding, the appeals at the USPC in 2014 remained higher than 2015. The data indicate a particular pattern that offers conformity to natural changes. It shows that there were fewer cases in 2014 than 2015. The data thus appear predictable as it reflects the standard curve and natural change of situations.
References
Cole, G. F., Smith, C. E., & DeJong, C. (2015). The American system of criminal justice. Nelson Education.
Herberman, E. J., & Bonczar, T. P. (2014). Probation and parole in the United States, 2013. Washington, DC: US Department of Justice Bureau of Justice Statistics, NCJ248029..
Kaeble, D., Glaze, L., Tsoutis, A., & Minton, T. (2015). Correctional populations in the United States, 2014. Washington, DC.
