Q&A: Penalties for violating FOIA

Q.  What are the potential penalties for violations of FOIA, for example: (1) refusing to release FOIA eligible documents, (2) intentionally failing to record FOIA documents, (3) intentionally deleting massive numbers of FOIA documents, and
(4) excessively slow to release FOIA documents.  Have any federal employees been convicted of violating the FOIA? Who is the highest ranking federal employee to be convicted?

A.  The FOIA itself provides for the possibility of sanctions against an individual agency employee under limited circumstances.  Specifically, if a district court assesses attorney fees against the federal government and finds that the agency acted "arbitrarily or capriciously" in improperly withholding records, the U.S. Office of Special Counsel must "initiate a proceeding to determine whether disciplinary action is warranted against the officer or employee who was primarily responsible for the withholding."  5 U.S.C. § 552(a)(4)(F).  The agency must then implement whatever "corrective action" that the U.S. Office of Special Counsel recommends.  Id.     

Further, federal employees may be subject to criminal penalties for the willful and unlawful destruction, removal, or private use of federal records, See 18 U.S.C. § 2071.   

The U.S. Office of Special Counsel has not initiated any proceedings under 5 U.S.C. § 552(a)(4)(F) between 2008 and 2015, according to annual reports submitted by the U.S. Department of Justice to Congress.  I am not aware of any FOIA-related criminal convictions or prosecutions.  

Q&A: O Mother, Where Art Thou?

Q.  I am trying to locate my mother [name redacted], whose last known address is in Clemson, New Jersey.  

A.  Government agencies typically do not release personal contact information.  Perhaps you can find her by using one of the following resources listed here:  https://familysearch.org/wiki/en/Finding_Living_People_in_the_United_States. Best of luck.  

Q&A: Wait, wait, wait for the Terrapin

Q.   I am submitting a request to a local agency in Carroll County, Maryland about a land development project being proposed for my neighborhood.  How long does it have to reply to my request?

A.   The short answer is 30 days.  If the agency needs more than 10 business days, however, it must notify the requester in writing or by email.  The notice must tell the requester how much time it will take to produce the record, the reason for the delay, and an estimate of the range of fees that might be involved in producing the record.  For additional information, see this guidance from the Maryland Attorney General.

Q&A: Take it to the limit

Q.  How many times can someone use FOIA to get information about another person from the same agency?  

A.  The federal FOIA does not limit the number of requests that an individual may submit.  Nor am I aware of any quotas on the state level.  

Q&A: It's log, log, log

Q.  Is it possible to submit a FOIA request for all FOIA that were submitted for the year 2015 to a local body of government [in Illinois]?  

A.  Not only is it possible, I've seen it done.  Note that various smaller-sized agencies in Illinois proactively publish their FOIA logs, e.g., Lake Bluff Elementary School District, City of Monticello.

Q&A: Show me the money

Q.   Can I find out the wages of employees working in a local government agency through the freedom of information act?

A.  Government agencies typically release the salaries of most government employees in response to public record requests.  You are not likely to obtain a government employee's pay stub, however, because it contains or reflects information deemed too personal (e.g., insurance elections, tax exemptions, etc.).

Q&A: Paranoia strikes deep . . . into your life it will creep

Q.  How can someone obtain all information that the government has on them?

A.  There is no central repository of federal records from which you can obtain all records about yourself.  Rather, federal records are maintained by individual agencies.  Here is a list of federal agencies and instructions about how to submit requests for records.  

Q&A: Taxman!

Q.  Am I allowed to obtain copy of anyone's U.S. federal income tax return?

A.  No.  As a general rule, such information is considered confidential under section 6103 of the Internal Revenue Code. 

Q&A: If they build it . . .

Q.  Can I request a copy of the construction plans and specifications for a project that is currently underway on federal land even though they were prepared by a private firm?

A.  If the construction project is a nuclear power plant or a prison, probably not.  In addition to security issues that might prevent release, the records you seek might contain sensitive business information whose release could harm the competitive interests of the private firm.  If so, the federal agency that possesses the records would need to notify the private firm of your request and to provide it with an opportunity to object to disclosure.  This so-called "submitter notice" process is set forth in a Presidential Executive Order that was issued in 1987.    

Q&A: Better Call NARA

Q.  Can I request employment records and/or the reason an employee was terminated for an employee that worked 20-25 years ago for the U.S. Department of Energy in New Mexico?

A.  The personnel records of former federal civilian employees are maintained at the National Personnel Records Center (NPRC), which is a component of the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA).  Here are the instructions for making a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request for such records.  Keep in mind that NARA may withhold information if it falls within one of nine FOIA exemptions, notably Exemption 6, which pertains to personal privacy (e.g., date of birth SSN, medical & insurance information, etc.).  The reason for an employee's separation might also be protected by Exemption 6, depending upon the circumstances.