Summary
THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT FOIA
FOIA, 5 U.S.C. § 552, provides the public with a right to access federal agency information,
subject to enumerated exemptions and exclusions.
ACCESS TO GOVERNMENT INFORMATION UNDER FOIA
EXEMPTIONS
KEY TERMS
EXCLUSIONS JUDICIAL REVIEW
Information prepared by Daniel J. Sheffner, Legislative Attorney, American Law Division; and Jamie L. Hutchinson, Visual Information
Specialist. For more information see CRS Report R46238, The Freedom of Information Act (FOIA): A Legal Overview, by Daniel J. Sheffner,
and CRS In Focus 11450, The Freedom of Information Act: An Introduction, by Daniel J. Sheffner.
FOIA sets forth a three-part system for disclosing government information under which agencies must
FOIA contains 9 exemptions from its disclosure requirements that permit, but do not require, agencies to withhold information or
records that are otherwise subject to release.
FOIA authorizes requesters to seek review of
an agency's withholding decision in federal
district court. The agency has the burden of
proving that it properly withheld information
under a FOIA exemption.
CONGRESSIONAL MATERIALS
properly classified national security matters
matters related solely to internal agency
personnel rules and practices
matters exempted by specific types of statutes
trade secrets and certain sensitive commercial
or _financial information
inter- and intra-agency materials that would
normally be privileged in civil discovery
certain personal information contained in
personnel, medical, or similar _les
various categories of law enforcement records
specified financial institution reports
geological and geophysical information
and data concerning wells
Note: Once an agency receives a proper FOIA request, it normally has 20
business days to determine whether to comply with the request.
FOIA also excludes three particular categories
of law enforcement records from its disclosure
requirements. These exclusions allow an agency,
in response to a request for such records, to treat
the records as not subject to FOIA.
Congress is not subject to FOIA. Whether a document that Congress transmits to an agency or that an agency creates to respond
to a congressional request is subject to FOIA depends on whether Congress clearly expressed its intention to retain control over it.
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AGENCY RECORDS
Materials that an agency has
created or obtained and that it
controls when a FOIA request for
such materials is made.
ANY PERSON
Includes individuals (U.S.
citizens and noncitizens), as
well as corporations and
certain other entities.
Includes executive departments,
military departments, and other
establishments within the executive
branch, including certain entities
within the Executive Office of the
President, and independent regulatory
agencies of the federal government.
AGENCY
promptly release
covered records after
receiving a request that
reasonably describes the
requested records and complies
with relevant agency rules.
electronically disclose
other information
—including final agency
adjudicative opinions and certain
previously released records—unless
the information has been promptly
published and copies have been
made available for sale; and
publish certain
government
information, such as
"substantive rules of general
applicability," in the Federal
Register;
The meanings of three terms used by FOIA – "agency," "agency records," and "any person" – effectively determine which
entities are subject to FOIA, what materials those entities must disclose, and to whom FOIA grants the right to request and receive records.