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Your Right to Federal Records GSA Federal Citizen Information Center Your R ight To Federal Records Questions and Answers on the Freedom of Information Act and Privacy Act Ta b le o f Contents Introduction ..........................................................i The Freedom of Information Act What the Freedom of Information Act is and How to Use it ........................................................1 The Privacy Act What the Privacy Act is and How to Use it ................8 A Comparison of the Freedom of Information Act and the Privacy Act Relationship between the Two Laws and Deciding Which to Use ........................................12 Other Sources of Information ..............................13 Text of the Freedom of Information Act ................16 Introduction he Freedom of Information Act permanent resident aliens. The FOIA, on T(FOIA), enacted in 1966, provides the other hand, covers all records in the that any person has the right to request possession and control of federal execu- access to federal agency records or tive branch agencies. information. Federal agencies are required to disclose records upon This brochure provides basic guidance receiving a written request for them, about the FOIA and the Privacy Act to except for those records that are assist citizens in exercising their rights. protected from disclosure by any of the It uses a question-and-answer format to nine exemptions or three exclusions of present information about these laws in the FOIA. This right of access is a clear, simple manner. The brochure is enforceable in court. not intended to be a comprehensive treatment of the complex issues associ- In 1996, Congress revised the Freedom ated with the FOIA and the Privacy Act. of Information Act (FOIA) by passing the Electronic Freedom of Information The questions answered here are those Act Amendments (EFOIA). The EFOIA frequently asked by persons who con- amendments provide for public access tact the Federal Citizen Information to information in an electronic format Center (FCIC) of the U.S. General and for the establishment of electronic Services Administration for information FOIA reading rooms through agency on the FOIA and the Privacy Act. The FOIA sites on the Internet. The primary answers were compiled by the FCIC, source of FOIA-related information on along with the Justice Department—the the Internet is the Justice Department’s agency responsible for coordinating the FOIA website (www.usdoj.gov/foia), administration of the FOIA and encour- which contains links to the FOIA web- aging agency compliance with it. The sites of other federal agencies. Office of Management and Budget (OMB), which has a similar responsibili- The Privacy Act of 1974 is another feder- ty for the Privacy Act, reviewed the al law regarding federal government answers to questions on that law. records or information about individuals. The Privacy Act establishes certain con- trols over how the executive branch agencies of the federal government gather, maintain, and disseminate per- sonal information. The Privacy Act also can be used to obtain access to infor- mation, but it pertains only to records that federal agencies keep about individ- ual U.S. citizens and lawfully admitted i The Freedom of Information Act What information is administrative discretion when it is not available under the FOIA? prohibited by any law and would not cause any foreseeable harm. The full The FOIA provides access to all federal text of the FOIA is printed beginning agency records (or portions of those on page 17 of this publication. records), except for those records that are protected from disclosure by any of The FOIA does not apply to Congress, nine exemptions or three exclusions the courts, or the central offices of the (reasons for which an agency may with- White House, nor does it apply to hold records from a requester). records of state or local governments. However, nearly all state governments The exemptions cover: have their own FOIA-type statutes. You may request information about a (1) classified national defense and state’s records access law by writing foreign relations information, to the office of the attorney general of (2) internal agency rules and prac- that state. tices, (3) information that is prohibited The FOIA does not require a private from disclosure by another law, organization or business to release any (4) trade secrets and other confi- information directly to the public, dential business information, whether it has been submitted to the (5) inter-agency or intra-agency federal government or not. However, communications that are pro- information submitted to the federal tected by legal privileges, government by such organizations or (6) information involving matters of companies can be available through a personal privacy, FOIA request if it is not protected by a (7) certain information compiled for FOIA exemption, such as the one cov- law enforcement purposes, ering trade secrets and confidential (8) information relating to the business information. supervision of financial institu- tions, and Under the FOIA, you may request and (9) geological information on wells. receive by mail a copy of any record The three exclusions, which are rarely that is in an agency’s files and is not used, pertain to especially sensitive covered by one of the exemptions or law enforcement and national security exclusions. For example, suppose you matters. have heard that a certain toy has been recalled as a safety hazard and you Even if information is exempt from dis- want to know the details. The closure under the FOIA, the agency Consumer Product Safety Commission still may disclose it as a matter of could help you by providing copies of 1 The Freedom of Information Act the recall documents. Perhaps you certain records available in their elec- want to read the latest inspection tronic FOIA reading rooms on the report on conditions at a nursing home Internet. For example, you may find cer- certified for Medicare. Your local Social tain agency opinions, staff manuals, Security office keeps such records on policy statements, and records fre- file. Or you might want to know quently requested under the FOIA that whether the Department of Veterans were created by the agency after Affairs has a file that mentions you. In November 1, 1996. If you prefer to see all of these examples, you could use these records in paper form, you can the FOIA to request information from visit an agency’s conventional FOIA the appropriate federal agency. reading room. You can find links to the FOIA sites of federal agencies on the When you make a FOIA request, you Internet by going to the Justice must describe the records that you Department’s website as described on want as clearly and specifically as pos- the next page. sible. If the agency cannot identify and locate records that you have requested Whom do I contact in the with a reasonable amount of effort, it federal government with my will not be able to assist you. While request? How do I get the agencies strive to handle all FOIA right address? requests in a customer-friendly fash- ion, the FOIA does not require them to There is no one office of the federal do research for you, analyze data, government that handles all FOIA answer written questions, or in any requests. Each FOIA request must be other way create records in order to made to the particular agency that has respond to a request. the records that you want. For example, if you want to know about an investiga- Can I find agency records on tion of motor vehicle defects, write to the Internet? the Department of Transportation. If you want information about a Ye s, a nd a s a general rule, it is useful to work-related accident at a nearby look at the information that an agency manufacturing plant, write to the makes available on the Internet before Department of Labor (at its office in making a FOIA request. Agencies place the region where the accident a wide variety of information on their occurred). Most of the larger federal websites that is very useful to the gen- agencies have several FOIA offices. eral public and describes their various Some have one for each major bureau programs and activities. Additionally, or component; others have one for under the EFOIA amendments, the each region of the country. FOIA now requires that agencies make 2 The Freedom of Information Act You m a y have to do a little research to How do I request find the proper agency office to handle information under the FOIA? your FOIA request, but you will save time in the long run if you send your request In order to make a FOIA request, simply directly to the most appropriate office. write a letter to the appropriate agency. For assistance, you can contact the For the quickest possible handling, mark Federal Citizen Information Center both your letter and the envelope (FCIC) of the U.S. General Services “Freedom of Information Act Request.” Administration. The FCIC is specially pre- Although you do not have to give a pared to help you find the right agency, record’s title, you should identify the the right office, and the right address. records that you want as specifically as See page 13 for information on how to possible to increase the likelihood that contact the FCIC. On the Internet, you the agency will be able to locate them. can find addresses of the FOIA offices of Any facts you can furnish about the most federal agencies by going to the time, place, authors, events, subjects, Justice Department’s website at and other details of the records will be www.usdoj.gov/foia (click on “Other helpful to the agency in deciding where Agencies,” and select “Principal FOIA to search and in determining which Contacts at Other Federal Agencies”).
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