Open Records Laws in United States

Response Timeline

Business days. Extension allowed for unusual circumstances: need to search multiple offices, voluminous records, or consultation with other agencies.

Any person can make a FOIA request, including foreign nationals and organizations. No citizenship or residency requirement.

How to Submit a Request

Accepted Methods

• Email
• Mail
• Portal
• Fax

Most agencies have online FOIA portals. Some accept email requests. FOIAonline.gov handles requests for multiple agencies.

Required Elements

• Description — Reasonably describe the records sought with enough detail for agency to locate them
• Fee category — Indicate whether request is commercial, educational, news media, or other
• Fee waiver request — If seeking fee waiver, explain how disclosure is in the public interest

Optional Elements

• Preferred format — Specify if you want electronic copies
• Expedited processing — If urgent, explain compelling need
• Fee limit — State maximum amount willing to pay

Fees

Agencies must provide cost estimates before processing if fees will be significant. You can limit fees by narrowing your request or setting a fee cap.

Fee Waivers

• Disclosure is in the public interest because it is likely to contribute significantly to public understanding of government operations and is not primarily in the commercial interest of the requester
• Representative of the news media - entity organized and operated to publish or broadcast news to the public
• Preschool, elementary, secondary, or higher education institution, or noncommercial scientific institution
• Some agencies waive fees for requesters who demonstrate inability to pay

Fee waiver requests must be made at time of initial request. Partial fee waivers are possible. Appeal fee waiver denials through agency's FOIA appeal process.

Exemptions

• National Security (b)(1)
  Classified information concerning national defense or foreign policy
• Internal Personnel Rules (b)(2)
  Internal personnel rules and practices of an agency
• Statutory Exemptions (b)(3)
  Information specifically exempted by other statutes
• Trade Secrets/Commercial (b)(4)
  Trade secrets and commercial or financial information that is privileged or confidential
• Deliberative Process (b)(5)
  Inter-agency or intra-agency memoranda that would not be available in litigation
• Personal Privacy (b)(6)
  Personnel, medical, and similar files where disclosure would constitute a clearly unwarranted invasion of personal privacy
• Law Enforcement (b)(7)
  Law enforcement records or information
• Financial Institutions (b)(8)
  Information related to examination, operating, or condition reports of financial institutions
• Geological Information (b)(9)
  Geological and geophysical information concerning wells

Agencies must release reasonably segregable non-exempt portions. Exemptions are discretionary unless disclosure is prohibited by law. FOIA Improvement Act of 2016 requires foreseeable harm standard - agencies must reasonably foresee harm from disclosure.

Appeal Process

Administrative appeals are mandatory before court action. Keep copies of all correspondence. OGIS can help resolve disputes informally at any stage.

Request Templates

Records Retention

44 U.S.C. Chapter 33 (Disposal of Records); 44 U.S.C. Chapter 31 (Records Management by Federal Agencies); 36 CFR Chapter XII, Subchapter B

View retention law →

Retention schedule catalog →

NARA issues General Records Schedules (GRS) providing disposition authority for records common to multiple federal agencies, and approves agency-specific schedules via SF 115 requests. All federal records must be covered by a NARA-approved disposition authority before destruction.

Sources & References

• Full text of law →
• Primary source →
• FOIA.gov →
• DOJ Office of Information Policy →
• RCFP Federal FOIA Guide →
• OGIS — Office of Government Information Services →