WHAT IS THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT?
Public Law 5 U.S.C. 552 enacted the Freedom of Information Act. It established statutory rights of access to government information. It generally provides that any person has a right, enforceable in court, of access to federal agency records, except to the extent that such records (or portions thereof) are protected from disclosure by one of nine exemptions or one of two law enforcement record exclusions. A consolidated list of these records is on the Air Force FOIA homepage. See DoD 5400.7-R_AFMAN33-302, DoD Freedom of Information Act Program, the prescribing directive for more information.
WHO CAN SUBMIT A REQUEST?
Members of the public, including foreign citizens, military and civilian personnel acting as private citizens, organizations and businesses, and individual members of Congress for themselves or constituents, may request records in writing under the Freedom of Information Act. Government employees submitting requests should not use government equipment, supplies, stationery, postage, telephones, or official mail channels to make FOIA requests. It is important to remember that the Freedom of Information Act applies only to federal agencies. It does not create a right of access to records held by Congress, the courts, state or local government agencies, or by private businesses or individuals. Each state has its own public access laws that should by consulted for access to state and local records.
WHAT ARE THE FEES FOR PROCESSING A FOIA REQUEST?
Fees are assessed depending on which group the request falls into:
Category 1: Commercial. Requesters pay all search, review, and duplication.
Category 2: Educational or Noncommercial Scientific Institution or News Media. Requesters get the first 100 copies free and pay for additional copies.
Category 3: Others. Requesters get the first two hours of search and the first 100 copies free.
AF FOIA LIBRARY
Some records are released to the public under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), and may therefore reflect deletion of some information in accordance with the FOIA's nine statutory exemptions. A consolidated list of such records is available in the Air Force FOIA Library
HOW AND WHERE TO MAKE A FOIA REQUEST
FOIA requests must be submitted in writing and include a title or reasonable description of the desired records and a statement on willingness to pay fees for search, review, and reproduction. Submit requests via US mail, fax, email, or hand carry to the following address:
22CS/SCOKR FOIA
53064 Hutchinson Street, Room 107
McConnell AFB KS 67221 3504
Phone: (316) 759-2097 DSN: 743-2097
FAX: (316) 759-4258
To submit a Freedom of Information Act request on line to our Requester Service Centers (RSC) on the AF eFOIA Pulic Access Link (PAL): https://efoia.milcloud.mil/App/Home.aspx
22CS.SCOKR.22CSFOIA@us.af.mil
If dissatisfied with the response received from the Requester Service Center, you may contact the Air Force FOIA Public Liaison Office.
AF FOIA Public Liaison Office contact information:
DAF FOIA Public Liaison Office
1800 Air Force Pentagon
Washington, DC 20330-1800
Phone: (703) 614-8500 Email: DAF.FOIA@us.af.mil
MANDATORY DECLASSIFICATION
Mandatory Declassification Review: Executive Order 12958 allows you to request declassification of classified records. If you are only seeking a copy of a record or records that are currently classified, and would like the record reviewed for appropriate declassification and release, you should file a Mandatory Declassification Review is a provision of Presidential Executive Order 13526 that allows members of the public to request a mandatory declassification review of a classified document in order to obtain a releasable version of the document.
The desired document requested must be specified in sufficient detail that it can be readily located. The record in question may not be the subject of litigation. The mandatory declassification review process can be a very timely and in-depth, due to the classification of materials being reviewed by internal and outside agencies. MDR decisions can be administratively appealed to the Headquarters Air Force/AAll (Mandatory Declassification Review) or Interagency Security Classification Appeals Panel (ISCAP). Requests for review and release of classified records under the MDR process can be made to:
Headquarters Air Force/AAll (Mandatory Declassification Review
1000 Air Force Pentagon
Washington, DC 20330-1000
Email: usaf.pentagon.saf-aa.mbx.mdr-workflow@mail.mil
Telephone: (703) 695-2226
FOIA RESOURCES AND LINKS
Air Force FOIA Website
DoD FOIA Website
DoD Freedom of Information Handbook