The Freedom of Information Act is one of the most effective tools citizens have to obtain information about their government. Learning how to use the Act is a fun and easy way to get involved. Below you will instructions and a sample FOIA form. If you have any questions about FOIA or need assistance writing a request, contact Brian Costin at bcostin@illinoispolicy.org.

How To File a FOIA Request:

1. Find the Right People To Contact

Finding the right person to contact with your FOIA request is very important, because the right people can simplify the process and help you avoid wasting unnecessary time or energy. All government agencies in Illinois are required to have a designated FOIA officer who specifically handles with FOIA requests, and can serve as a point of contact for citizens. If the agency has a website, it is required to display that officer and their contact information. Usually, this is listed on the “Staff” page of the agency’s website. If no officer is listed, there should be an email or physical address that you can send your request to. Try tying “FOIA” or “Freedom of Information” into the website’s search box if you cannot find any contact information. If you need help, contact the Illinois Policy Institute, and we will find the FOIA information for you.

2. Identifying Information to Request

Although FOIA requests can be used to access a wide range of information, their are certain limitations on what FIOA requests can do. They cannot be used to…

• Further a commercial enterprise,
• obtain personal or private information about government employees
• or  disrupt the day-to-day workings of a government office

As long as the information you are requesting does not fall into these three categories, you’re all set to start creating a request.

3. Creating the FOIA Document

You can create your own request, our use our template here. Take a look at our template and model your request on it. Be sure to include the name of the FOIA officer, the address at which that they can be reached, and list of the records, files, documents or information you want. Finally, conclude with your contact information.

3. Receiving a Response

Illinois law requires that agencies respond to FOIA requests within 5 days. If you do not receive a response, try contacting the FOIA officer to see if they recieved your request. If they did not, try sending it again.

You can receive a variety of different responses to a FOIA request. Here are the most common-

• The agency delivers the materials you want quickly and without incident.
• The agency asks for an extension of your request. This means that the information you want is difficult to find, hard to process, ect, and they need more than the 5 days to prepare everything.
• You could be charged for the materials. Sometimes FOIA requests take cost the agency money to complete, so they cancharge you 15 cents per page to print the materials. If they have the information stored electronically, they are required to send it electronically before changing you for physical copies.
• The agency can reject your request for being “unduly burdensome”, meaning that completing the request would disrupt the day-to-day operations of the office. If you wish to repeal the rejection, the agency is required to explain the appeals process.

Hopefully, your interaction with FOIA will be quick and easy. However, if you need any help, please contact the Illinois Policy Institute. We are here to assist in any way we can.