Public Record Laws: FOIA Requests, Fees, Delays, and Appeals

To file a FOIA request, identify the federal agency that holds the records you want, then submit a written request — through the agency’s own website, by email, through the central portal at FOIA.gov, or by mail — that reasonably describes the records and states how much you’re willing to pay in fees. The Freedom of Information Act gives any person the right to ask for federal executive branch records, and the agency generally has 20 business days to give you an initial response.¹ You don’t have to be a citizen, a journalist, or a lawyer, and you don’t have to explain why you want the information.²

First, Confirm FOIA Is the Right Law

FOIA reaches federal executive branch agencies only. That covers cabinet departments, independent agencies like the EPA, and government corporations. It does not cover Congress, the federal courts, or any state, county, or city government.³ If you want records from a school board, a police department, a sheriff’s office, or a state health agency, you need your state’s public records law instead. Those laws vary significantly: response deadlines range from a few days to 30, some states just say “promptly,” and fees and exemptions don’t match the federal rules.

Figure Out Which Agency Has the Records

FOIA is decentralized. Every federal agency runs its own FOIA operation, so your request has to go to the specific agency that holds what you want.⁴ Immigration files sit with the Department of Homeland Security. Environmental inspection reports go to the EPA. Investigative files about a person may be with the FBI. FOIA.gov keeps a directory of every covered agency with contact information and submission instructions, and it’s the fastest way to identify the right office.

Records you can ask for go well beyond paper. Emails between officials about policy decisions, spreadsheets tracking contract bids, body camera footage, internal memos, maps, architectural plans, and data pulled from agency databases all qualify. Format doesn’t matter. If the agency created, obtained, or controls it in the course of doing its work, you can request it, subject to the exemptions below.

Write a Request the Agency Can Actually Process

The statute requires your request to “reasonably describe” the records you want, and that phrase does real work.² “All documents related to immigration” is too broad and can be rejected outright. A request that’s too narrow risks missing what you actually need. Aim for specific and actionable: name the program, project, individual, contract, or incident. Include case numbers or docket numbers if you have them. Set a date range. List the officials likely involved. Keywords help agency staff run useful searches.

Most agencies now accept requests through a web form, by email, or through the FOIA.gov portal.⁴ You can also mail one. Certified mail with return receipt is worth the extra cost if you think timing could become disputed later.

Say how you want records delivered. Digital copies by email are usually free or cheap and easier to work with; paper copies cost per page. State a maximum dollar amount you’re willing to pay in the initial request. If the agency’s estimate would exceed your cap, it has to contact you before running up the bill.

What It Costs, and How to Pay Less

Fees depend on who’s asking and why. Federal agencies sort requesters into four categories:⁵

Commercial requesters pay for search time, document review, and duplication. This is the most expensive category.
Educational and scientific institutions pay only for duplication, with the first 100 pages free.
News media representatives get the same deal as educational: duplication only, first 100 pages free.
Everyone else pays for search time and duplication, but the first two hours of search and the first 100 pages of duplication are free.

For most people filing a one-off request, the “everyone else” rules apply, and those free allowances mean many routine requests cost nothing. Agencies also can’t charge you if the total comes to $20 or less. The per-page rate for standard photocopies is commonly under $0.10 at the federal level, though it varies.

If your request will run into real money, ask for a fee waiver. The statute requires agencies to waive or reduce fees when disclosure is “likely to contribute significantly to public understanding of the operations or activities of the government” and is “not primarily in the commercial interest of the requester.”² Include the request itself with a short waiver argument: what the records concern, how they connect to specific government operations, how you plan to share what you learn with a broader audience, and why the information isn’t already public. A journalist digging into a federal contract has a strong case. A private business researching a competitor does not.

How Long the Agency Has to Respond

Agencies generally have 20 business days — roughly four calendar weeks — to give you an initial response.¹ That response might be the records, a notice that the agency needs more time due to unusual circumstances, or a partial or full denial. The agency can extend the deadline by another 10 business days for a large volume of records or a required consultation with another agency.

In practice, complex requests routinely take much longer. Big requests sit in processing queues for months. You’ll get a tracking number, and steady follow-up with the FOIA office keeps your request visible.

Asking for Expedited Processing

If waiting is not workable, ask for expedited processing. Agencies must grant it when a delay could pose an imminent threat to someone’s life or physical safety, or when there’s an urgent need to inform the public about federal government activity — the second basis is limited to people whose main job is getting information out to the public, such as working journalists.⁶ Include a statement laying out your basis and certifying that it’s true. The agency has 10 calendar days to decide.

What Agencies Are Allowed to Withhold

FOIA lists nine exemptions that let an agency withhold information. “Let,” not “require”: agencies are supposed to release material unless disclosure would cause foreseeable harm. When part of a document is exempt, the rest still has to come out with the protected portions redacted, and the agency has to tell you which exemption justified each blackout.² The nine categories cover classified national security information; purely internal personnel rules; records another statute specifically bars from release; trade secrets and confidential business data; privileged internal deliberations like draft memos and pre-decisional recommendations; personnel, medical, and similar files where release would be a clearly unwarranted invasion of privacy; certain law enforcement records; bank examination reports; and geological data about wells.

The law enforcement exemption is narrower than it sounds. It applies only when disclosure would interfere with proceedings, endanger someone’s safety, reveal a confidential source, or compromise investigative techniques. A general “it’s a law enforcement file” is not enough.

If the Agency Denies You or Never Responds

A denial letter must say in writing which exemption the agency relied on and tell you how to appeal.³ Read it closely. Agencies sometimes cite exemptions that don’t obviously fit the records, define the search too narrowly, or withhold more than the exemption actually permits.

File an administrative appeal with the same agency. Deadlines vary but are commonly 90 calendar days from the date of denial. The appeal goes to a higher-level official for a fresh look. Put it in writing, label it clearly as a FOIA appeal, cite your tracking number, and explain specifically why the denial was wrong: the exemption doesn’t apply, the search was inadequate, or reasonably segregable portions weren’t released.

If the agency simply blows past the 20-business-day deadline without any response at all, courts have recognized what’s called constructive exhaustion, and you can go straight to federal court without a formal appeal. But if the agency issues a late response before you actually file suit, you generally have to go back through the appeal process first.³ Document every interaction with dates.

Free Mediation Through OGIS

Before suing, consider the Office of Government Information Services at the National Archives. Congress created OGIS to mediate between requesters and agencies, and the service is free. Try to work the problem with the agency first, contact the agency’s FOIA Public Liaison, and ideally file your administrative appeal. OGIS is not a substitute for the appeal. When you do reach out, send a brief description of the problem, copies of your request and the agency’s response, your tracking number, and a signed privacy consent form. Contact is by email at ogis@nara.gov or by mail.⁷

Going to Court

If the appeal fails and mediation doesn’t move things, you can sue in federal district court. You get a choice of venue: where you live, where your principal place of business is, where the records are located, or the District of Columbia.² The court reviews the agency’s decision from scratch rather than deferring to it, and the government carries the burden of justifying any withholding. If you substantially prevail, the court can award reasonable attorney fees and litigation costs, though the award is discretionary and turns on factors including public interest and whether the agency’s position had a reasonable basis.

1
eCFR. 29 CFR 70.25 – Time Limits and Order in Which Requests and Appeals Must Be Processed
2
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 5 USC 552 – Public Information; Agency Rules, Opinions, Orders, Records, and Proceedings
3
FOIA.gov. Freedom of Information Act: Frequently Asked Questions
4
FOIA.gov. Freedom of Information Act: How to Make a FOIA Request
5
eCFR. 15 CFR 4.11 – Fees for FOIA Requests
6
eCFR. 45 CFR 5.27 – How Do I Request Expedited Processing
7
National Archives. Request OGIS Assistance