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APHIS Freedom of Information (FOIA)

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The FOIA is found in Title 5 of the United States Code, Section 552. FOIA was enacted in 1966 and gives any person the right to request access to almost any federal agency record, except those protected from disclosure by legal exemptions and exclusions

Under FOIA, certain records may be withheld in whole or in part from the requestor if they fall within one of nine FOIA exemptions. Six of these exemptions most often form the basis for the withholding of information by APHIS:

  • Exemption 2: Protects certain records related solely to APHIS's internal rules and practices.

  • Exemption 3: Protects information that is prohibited from disclosure by other laws.

  • Exemption 4: Protects trade secrets and confidential commercial or financial information.

  • Exemption 5: Protects certain interagency and intra-agency communications.

  • Exemption 6: Protects information about individuals in personnel, medical, and similar files when disclosure would constitute a clearly unwarranted invasion of privacy.

  • Exemption 7: Protects records or information compiled for law enforcement purposes when disclosure (A) could reasonably be expected to interfere with enforcement proceedings; (B) would deprive a person of a right to a fair trial or an impartial adjudication; (C) could reasonably be expected to constitute an unwarranted invasion of personal privacy; (D) could reasonably be expected to disclose the identity of a confidential source; (E) would disclose techniques and procedures for law enforcement investigations or prosecutions, or would disclose guidelines for law enforcement investigations or prosecutions, if such disclosure could reasonably be expected to risk circumvention of the law; or (F) could reasonably be expected to endanger the life or physical safety of an individual.

FOIA Reading Room

USDA Freedom of Information Act regulations were revised and published in the Federal Register on July 28, 2000. The regulations were revised as a result of the Electronic Freedom of Information Act Amendments of 1996 (E-FOIA). E-FOIA makes it possible for individuals to have electronic access to certain USDA information without making a formal FOIA request.

 

Last Modified: February 28, 2008