News stories or other supporting materials will help the person processing the request to understand its context. If you are aware of common alternate spellings for names or other key words, you may consider including them to aid in the search. In other words, help agency employees by providing relevant pieces of information. Provide accurate titles and full names, and include any news stories discussing the subject of your request.This could lead to lengthy delays, and the agency could contact you to narrow the request. If you do not give a date range, the agency will search all of its records, which could generate hundreds or thousands of pages. Providing a date helps the agency narrow the scope of the request and find the documents you are most interested in. Provide a date range for records or a date of the event you are researching.Agencies are not required to process unreasonably broad requests or requests that require them to create documents. Make sure your request is reasonable in scope.Many agencies search for documents electronically so, if you know them, you should list the relevant keywords and phrases. Assume the FOIA officer is not familiar with your topic. Your FOIA request must reasonably describe the records you are asking for, which means that the text of your request must allow an agency employee to find the record(s) with a reasonable amount of effort. As we discussed before, there are lots of ways to describe what you want, but remember:.It will trigger a broader search by the agencies, and you may get more information. If you are asking for information about yourself, you also can mention the Privacy Act. ” Part of the reason for specifying this is that agencies get lots of requests, including mandatory declassification review requests and Privacy Act requests. The first sentence of your request letter should state, “Pursuant to the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), I hereby request the following.Second, your request should definitely include a few specifics: You cannot make a FOIA request over the phone. BTW, many agencies now have online submission forms with windows to fill in or online guides that set out the specific information that they want, so definitely look for those before you mail or fax your request.įirst of all, a FOIA request must be in writing and must be written in English. What else should you say in your letter to the agency? Today we are going to tell you the essential components of a FOIA Request Letter. Perhaps you’ve figured out how to phrase the subject of the request after reading FOIA Tip No. Records in book or pamphlet form shall be assessed based upon the cost of such materials incurred by the Village.Well, you have done your research and now know what you are going to ask for.Materials that require duplication to be outsourced, shall be charged based on the cost of such copying or reproduction.If the requester is a public body or a person acting in an official capacity as an officer of that public body, no charges shall be imposed.For further information, call (630) 368-5032.Ĭopies: 8.5 inch by 11 inch or 8.5 inch by 14 inch The five day period may be extended up to five (5) additional working days if needed (5 ILCS 140/3). Each request will be complied with or denied within five working days after it is received. Records and information will be made available for inspection and copying unless the requested documents are exempt under the Freedom of Information Act (5ILCS 140/7). View the Village of Oak Brook Rules and Regulations Implementing Illinois Freedom of Information Act (PDF). Submit all completed and signed forms concurrently.
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