Frequently Asked
Questions
- How do I submit
a FOIA request?
- What are the fees
associated with FOIA?
- How long will it take to respond my request?
- What are the nine FOIA
exemptions?
- How do I appeal
the denial of
records?
- How do I request records
about myself?
Before submitting FOIA requests,
individuals should ensure that the information they seek is not already in the
public domain or on our ITA Home Page. If the information is not in the public
domain, please follow the suggestions listed below:
- Identify the records requested (be as specific as
possible, i.e., describe the subject matter of the records, and, if known,
indicate the dates of the records, the places where they originated, and the
names of the originating persons or offices);
- State that the records are requested under the Freedom
of Information Act;
- Include daytime telephone numbers in case additional
information is needed before answering requests; and
- Forward all requests to the ITA FOIA Office by one of
the three methods listed below:
Mail--Mark the outside of the
envelope, "Freedom of Information Act Request" and mail to the following
address:
- International Trade Administration
- Freedom of Information
Officer
- Room 4001
- 14th and Constitution Avenue,
N.W.
- Washington, D.C.
20230
Fax--Fax all requests to Linda
Bell , FOIA Officer at (202) 482-1584 or E-mail--Forward all requests via e-mail
to Linda_Bell@ita.doc.gov
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A requestor can be charged for various
services performed by agency personnel who are responding to the request. An
estimate of these costs must be reported to the ITA FOIA officer before
beginning the search and review. There are three chargeable categories.
Chargeable costs vary depending on the type of requestor:
- Commercial Use Requestors (Corporations and Law
Firms) - All search, review, and duplication costs are chargeable.
- Educational Institutions. (Non-Profit Scientific
Groups or News Media Representatives) - Duplication costs are chargeable
(after the first 100 pages).
- All other Requestors - Search and duplication
costs are chargeable with no review cost. The first two hours of search time
and the first 100 pages of duplication are free of charge. Fees are charged to
the requester after the first two hours and 100 pages.
- To calculate the estimated amount of these
charges:
- Determine the hourly rate(s) of the person(s) doing the work.
- Hourly rate=annual salary/2080hours.
- Multiply the rate(s) times the hours of search/review time.
- Duplication costs cannot be calculated until the actual pages are counted
for release.
- A duplication cost of $.16 per page is added to the final fee letter to
the requester.
Note: Administrative fees cannot be charged. These include time spent by ITA
personnel (both professional and clerical) in preparing a FOI response (writing
and typing, obtaining clearances, or resolving general legal or policy issues
regarding the application of exemptions). All fees are waived (including search,
review, and duplication charges) when the amount is less than $20.00.
Effective October 1, 1997, FOIA authorizes
the government to take 20-working days to make a releasability determination
regarding your request. Saturdays, Sundays, and legal holidays are not counted
as work days. FOIA also authorizes the government to take an additional 10
working days under certain circumstances.
If your request is so complex or voluminous that it would be
unreasonable to expect the government to be able to respond within 30 days, the
FOIA requires that you be given an opportunity to reduce the scope of your
request or develop a reasonable compromise as to when the government must
respond.
It is the policy of the agency to
make records available to the public to the greatest extent possible, in keeping
with the spirit of the FOIA, while at the same time protecting sensitive
information. The following is a list of FOIA exemptions which apply to
Government information in accordance with 5 U.S.C. 552(b):
- EXEMPTION (b)(1) Classified secret matters or national defense or
foreign policy. This exemption protects from disclosure national security
information concerning the national defense or foreign policy, provided that
it has been properly classified in accordance with the substantive and
procedural requirements of an executive order.
- EXEMPTION (b)(2) Internal Personnel Rules and Practices. This
exempts from mandatory disclosure records "related solely to the internal
personnel rules and practices of an agency." Courts have interpreted the
exemption to encompass two distinct categories of information:
- (a) internal matters of a relatively trivial nature--sometimes referred to
as "low2" information; and
- (b) more substantial internal matters, the disclosure of which would risk
circumvention of a legal requirement--sometimes referred to as "high 2"
information.
- EXEMPTION (b)(3) Information Specifically Exempted by Other Status.
This exemption incorporates the disclosure prohibitions that are contained in
various other federal statutes. As originally enacted in 1966, Exemption 3 was
broadly phrased so as to simply cover information "specifically exempted from
disclosure by statute." The new (b)(3) statute prohibits agencies from
releasing under the FOIA any proposal "submitted by a contractor in response
to the requirements of a solicitation for a competitive proposals," unless
that proposal "is set forth or incorporated by reference in a contract entered
into between the agency and the contractor that submitted the proposal."
- EXEMPTION (b)(4) Trade Secrets, Commercial or Financial
Information. This exemption protects (1) trade secrets and (2) information
which is (a) commercial or financial, (b) obtained obtained from a person and
(c) privileged or confidential. This exemption applies only to information
submitted from outside the government. Information which has been voluntarily
submitted is confidential if it constitutes information which the submitter
would not customarily make available to the public. Information which has been
compelled to be submitted is confidential if disclosure is likely to: 1)
impair the government's ability to obtain necessary information in the future
or 2) cause substantial harm to the competitive position of the person from
whom the information was obtained.
- EXEMPTION (b)(5) Privileged Interagency or Intra-Agency Memoranda or
Letters. This exemption protects internal Federal government documents
which are both predecisional and deliberative. In addition, the attorney
work-product privilege and the attorney-client privilege have been
incorporated into this exemption.
- EXEMPTION (b)(6) Personal Information Affecting an Individual's
Privacy. This exemption permits the government to withhold all information
about individuals in "personnel and medical files and similar files" when the
disclosure of such information "would constitute a clearly unwarranted
invasion of personal privacy." This exemption cannot be invoked to withhold
from a requester information pertaining to the requester.
- EXEMPTION (b)(7) Investigatory Records Compiled for Law Enforcement
Purposes. As amended, this exemption protects from disclosure "records or
information compiled for law enforcement purposes."
FOIA requesters may appeal the denial of information
within 30 calendar days of the date of the response from the agency. Appeals
should state the following information:
- the reasons why the requested information should be released under the
Act; and why the denial may be in error.
FOIA requesters shall attach copies of their original requests and response
letters to all appeals, clearly mark the letter and the outside envelop, "FOIA
Appeal, " and mail appeals to the following address:
- U. S. Department of Commerce
- Assistant General Counsel for
Administration
- Room 5898C
- 14th. Street and Constitution Avenue, N.W.
- Washington, DC 20230
Consider submitting a Privacy Act request rather than a FOIA
request if you believe that the records you want are filed under your name,
Social Security Number (SSN), or other personal identifier. Privacy Act
requesters do not pay search fees but do pay $ .16 cents per page released.
Official Personnel Folders (OPFs) are the most frequently requested Privacy Act
Files.For detailed information on the Privacy Act (PA), 5 U.S.C. 552a, see the Department of
Justice Text on the Privacy Act.
To submit a Privacy Act request for records maintained by the
International Trade Administration, choose one of the following methods
:
Mail--Mark the outside of the envelope, "Privacy Act Request"
and mail to the following address:
- International Trade Administration
- Freedom of Information
Officer
- Room 4001
- 14th and Constitution Avenue,
N.W.
- Washington, D.C.
20230
Fax--Fax all requests to Linda Bell , FOIA Officer at (202) 482-1584 or
E-mail--Forward all requests via e-mail to Linda_Bell@ita.doc.gov
Privacy Statement • Disclaimer
Last Updated: 08/25/2005
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