Freedom of Information Act

The clock

20 business days

20 business days from perfection to determination; 10-day extension for unusual circumstances. Expedited processing determination within 10 calendar days.

Statutory 20 business days routinely exceeded; median 30-400+ days depending on agency/complexity. Simple/track queue vs complex.

If they refuse

Appeal deadline

90 days — calendar days from adverse determination (agency-specific; 90 days standard since 2016 amendments)

Appeal route

Not specified

Litigation

Exhaustion of administrative appeal; then federal district court. Constructive exhaustion after 20 business days with no determination.

Fees and expedition

Fee-waiver standard

Disclosure is in the public interest because it is likely to contribute significantly to public understanding of government operations and is not primarily in the commercial interest of the requester.

Aletheca argues this on every request it files here. A service that publishes every page it receives, free, to a public archive has an unusually strong showing — considerably stronger than a private requester’s.

Expedited processing

• Imminent threat to life or physical safety
• Urgency to inform the public by news media requester

Exemptions it allows

• b(1) National security
• b(2) Internal personnel rules
• b(3) Statutory
• b(4) Trade secrets
• b(5) Privileges
• b(6) Privacy
• b(7) Law enforcement (A-F)
• b(8) Financial institutions
• b(9) Wells

Requests Aletheca has filed under it