Electronic Reading Room
The Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requires agencies to make various types of records available for public inspection in both paper and electronic form. These records consist of: (1) "final opinions [and] . . . orders" rendered in the adjudication of administrative cases; (2) specific agency policy statements; (3) certain administrative staff manuals; and, (4) as of March 31, 1997, records disclosed in response to a FOIA request that "the agency determines have become or are likely to become the subject of subsequent requests for substantially the same records."
The policy directives and procedural guidelines of the U.S. Department of State are published in the Foreign Affairs Manual (FAM) and its supplemental Foreign Affairs Handbook (FAH). Various policy statements, guidelines, and manuals may also be located on the web sites of the offices and bureaus within the Department (see the Organizational List of Bureaus and Offices). Records that have become or are likely to become the subject of subsequent requests can be found under Declassified/Released Document Collections and in the Department of State Publications page. This information is also available by visiting the Department's Conventional Reading Room. Click to view the Department of State's Reading Room Certification.
Final Opinions and Administrative Rulings
Foreign Service Grievance Board (FSGB)
Directorate of Defense Trade Controls/Bureau of Political Military Affairs
Policies and Procedures
Foreign Affairs Handbook (FAH)
Declassified/Released Document Collections
Declassified/Released Document Collections
Other Records Available Without Making a FOIA Request
American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Recovery Act)
Department of State Publications
Organizational List of Bureaus and Offices
Office of the Historian
Foreign Relations of the
State Department Records in the National Archives (
Improving FOIA Administration Under E.O. 13392
Department of State FOIA Backlog Reduction Plan
Department of State Report and Plan under EO 13392
Department of State Backlog Reduction Goals
Electronic Archives
Department of State Foreign Affairs Network (DOSFAN)
Press Releases/Ceremonies
Secretary Powell's Remarks at State/NARA Ceremony
Reporting International Agreements to Congress under Case Act
See the Treaty Affairs Webpage for recent International Agreements
1982 - 2006
FOIA Annual Reports
FOIA Annual Reports for 1998 - 2008
Reading Room Certification
The Office of Electronic Information, Bureau of Public Affairs, manages this site as a portal for information from the U.S. State Department. External links to other Internet sites should not be construed as an endorsement of the views or privacy policies contained therein.