Q. I sent a FOIA request to an agency in Illinois and it is has completely ignored the request. What can be done? Can I get any relief and/or financial compensation?
A. If you believe that an agency has violated the Illinois FOIA, you might consider asking the Attorney General's Public Access Counselor to review your request. The instructions for submitting such a request are available here. There are three ways that the PAC may resolve a request for review:
(1) Decide that no further review is necessary. If the PAC decides that the alleged violations of FOIA are unfounded, the PAC will advise the requester and the public body of that decision. The PAC will not conduct any further review.
(2) Work to resolve the FOIA dispute with the public body. (5 ILCS 140/9.5(f)) The PAC may choose to mediate the dispute or resolve the matter by means other than the issuance of a binding opinion. The PAC’s decision to refuse to issue a binding opinion is not reviewable.
(3) Issue a binding opinion. The PAC will review any information needed to analyze the FOIA dispute and any additional information that the requester or the public body provides. If the PAC decides to issue a binding opinion, the PAC must issue that opinion within 60 calendar days after receiving the Request for Review. The PAC may extend the 60-day time period by 21 business days by sending a written notice to the requester and the public body, and must include the reasons for the extension
For more information about this review process, see pages 5-8 of the following guidance.
I do not believe that the Illinois FOIA allows requesters to recover damages for an agency's failure to produce documents. The federal FOIA, upon which the most state public records laws are modeled, does not. You should, however, consult with an attorney licensed in Illinois if you are interested in obtaining legal advice about the state statute.