IMPORTANT NOTICES
FOIAonline: Effective Friday July 31, 2020 at 3:00 pm EST, all Department of the Interior Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) offices will be transitioning to FOIAonline, a secure, web-based tracking and case-management system run by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. FOIAonline has multiple features that increase efficiency in FOIA processing and permits requesters to:• Search for previously released records;
• Generate reports;
• Receive records electronically;
• Track progress on all your requests submitted through FOIAonline via a personal dashboard;
• Communicate directly with the agency at all points in the process;
• Have your contact information pre-populated in future requests; and
• Receive notification when the status of your request has changed.
We expect this transition to be completed by August 12th, 2020. Please note that communications regarding requests submitted during the transition period may be delayed. This notice will remain in place until the transition is complete.
IMPORTANT NOTICE
The Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) offices in the bureaus/offices of the Department of the Interior are continuing to process FOIA requests to the best of their ability during the COVID-19 pandemic.
To keep employees healthy and safe, the Department is maximizing telework flexibility and employing social distancing protocols. As a result of these precautions, most employees are working remotely and unable to collect hard copy records located in government facilities at this time. If your request is for hard copy records, the response to your request will very likely be delayed.
In addition, employees may not receive FOIA requests that are sent by U.S. mail, overnight mail services, or facsimile in a timely manner. We recommend, therefore, that requesters submit requests through the government-wide portal at https://www.foia.gov.
How to Submit a Request
You should know that a request to the Service or a Service component (for example, a request seeking documents from a regional or field office) will be presumed to seek only records from that region or component. A request will not be forwarded to another bureau unless it is clear on the face of your request that it was misdirected. For example, if you address your request to an appropriate FOIA contact in the National Park Service and ask for records concerning a specific park, but your request is delivered to the Fish and Wildlife Service, your request was clearly misdirected. In such a case, the Service FOIA office will route the request to a FOIA contact in the proper bureau. If you need assistance determining where to send a request, you may seek assistance from the bureau's designated FOIA contact or FOIA Requester Center (see https://www.doi.gov/foia/foiacenters).
If you are seeking records located at a specific Region or component of the Service (see Regional Map below), specify in your request which Region or component you seek records from. The request will be assigned to the appropriate FOIA Coordinator (See below).
If you seek records from an unspecified component of the Service or you are unsure which component of the Service is likely to have the records you seek, indicate such in your request. The FOIA Officer or staff member will forward it to the Service component(s) that he or she believes has or are likely to have responsive records.
Requests may be submitted electronically by using the DOI FOIA Request Form at https://www.doi.gov/foia/foia-request-form or by using FOIA.gov at https://www.foia.gov/ The DOI FOIA request Form and FOIA.gov are the only acceptable ways to electronically submit a FOIA request to the Service. We do not accept requests submitted via email. Note: The DOI FOIA Request Form does not allow an attachment to be added to a FOIA request. Please use FOIA.gov if you wish to add an attachment to your request.
You may also submit a request by fax to (703) 358-2251 or by mail to 5275 Leesburg Pike, MS: IRTM, Falls Church, VA 22041
Service FOIA Contact Information
| Region | Coverage | FWS Office Location | FOIA Coordinator | Contact Information |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Headquarters | All Headquarters Programs (Washington, D.C.) | Falls Church, VA | FOIA Officer and FOIA Headquarters Staff | 5275 Leesburg Pike MS: IRTM Falls Church, VA 22041 Phone: (720) 425-5173 |
| Interior Region 1 | Connecticut, Delaware, Kentucky, Massachusetts, Maryland, Maine, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Virginia, Vermont, West Virginia | Hadley, MA | Eleanor Mcvey | 5275 Leesburg Pike MS: IRTM Falls Church, VA 22041 Phone: (413) 253-8629 |
| Interior Region 2 | Alabama, Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, Puerto Rico, South Carolina, Tennessee, US Virgin Islands | Atlanta, GA | Mcclurkin, Tiffany G | 5275 Leesburg Pike MS: IRTM Falls Church, VA 22041 Phone: (404) 679-4104 |
| Interior Region 3 | Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio, Wisconsin | Bloomington, MN | Eleanor Mcvey | 5275 Leesburg Pike MS: IRTM Falls Church, VA 22041 Phone: (413) 253-8629 |
| Interior Region 4 | Arkansas, Iowa, M Missouri, Mississippi, Louisiana | Atlanta, GA | Mcclurkin, Tiffany G | 5275 Leesburg Pike MS: IRTM Falls Church, VA 22041 Phone: (404) 679-4104 |
| Interior Region 5 | Kansas, most of Montana, North Dakota, Nebraska, South Dakota | Lakewood, CO | John DeClerck | 5275 Leesburg Pike MS: IRTM Falls Church, VA 22041 Phone: (503)-231-2072 |
| Interior Region 6 | Oklahoma, Texas, New Mexico | Albuquerque, NM | David Tischer | 5275 Leesburg Pike MS: IRTM Falls Church, VA 22041 |
| Interior Region 7 | Colorado, Utah, Wyoming | Lakewood, CO | John DeClerck | 5275 Leesburg Pike MS: IRTM Falls Church, VA 22041 Phone: (503)-231-2072 |
| Interior Region 8 | Arizona, Southern California, Southern Nevada | Albuquerque, NM | John DeClerck (Southern Nevada and Southern California) David Tischer (Arizona) |
5275 Leesburg Pike MS: IRTM Falls Church, VA 22041 Phone: (503)-231-2072 |
| Interior Region 9 | Idaho, Most of Oregon, Washington, NW Montana | Portland, OR | John DeClerck | 5275 Leesburg Pike MS: IRTM Falls Church, VA 22041 Phone: (503)-231-2072 |
| Interior Region 10 | Most of California, Most of Nevada, Klamath County Oregon | Sacramento, CA | John DeClerck | 5275 Leesburg Pike MS: IRTM Falls Church, VA 22041 Phone: (503)-231-2072 |
| Interior Region 11 | Alaska | Anchorage, AK | FOIA Headquarters Staff | 5275 Leesburg Pike MS: IRTM Falls Church, VA 22041 Phone: (720) 425-5173 |
| Interior Region 12 | American Samoa, Guam, Hawaii, Northern Marianas | Portland, OR | John DeClerck | 5275 Leesburg Pike MS: IRTM Falls Church, VA 22041 Phone: (503)-231-2072 |
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