HTTP/2 200 date: Mon, 06 Oct 2025 03:40:28 GMT content-type: application/rss+xml; charset=utf-8 content-encoding: gzip cross-origin-opener-policy: same-origin-allow-popups nel: {"report_to":"heroku-nel","response_headers":["Via"],"max_age":3600,"success_fraction":0.01,"failure_fraction":0.1} referrer-policy: same-origin report-to: {"group":"heroku-nel","endpoints":[{"url":"https://nel.heroku.com/reports?s=rzKDioQ4cDXoShF%2BKOC7ApR1PHIC3kQSylqTec7UEHE%3D\u0026sid=c46efe9b-d3d2-4a0c-8c76-bfafa16c5add\u0026ts=1759722028"}],"max_age":3600} reporting-endpoints: heroku-nel="https://nel.heroku.com/reports?s=rzKDioQ4cDXoShF%2BKOC7ApR1PHIC3kQSylqTec7UEHE%3D&sid=c46efe9b-d3d2-4a0c-8c76-bfafa16c5add&ts=1759722028" server: cloudflare strict-transport-security: max-age=31536000; includeSubDomains vary: Accept-Encoding vary: Cookie via: 2.0 heroku-router x-content-type-options: nosniff x-frame-options: SAMEORIGIN cf-cache-status: DYNAMIC cf-ray: 98a2232f9e7e8839-BLR https://www.muckrock.com/questions/Latest community questions about FOI topics on MuckRocken-usMon, 06 Oct 2025 03:40:28 +0000https://www.muckrock.com/questions/is-it-possible-to-do-a-foia-request-for-a-specific-fbi-agent-1190/<p>I was wondering if its possible to do a FOIA request on an FBI agent, and how to go anout submitting one.</p>https://www.muckrock.com/questions/is-it-possible-to-do-a-foia-request-for-a-specific-fbi-agent-1190/https://www.muckrock.com/questions/need-help-deciphering-a-foia-i-received-1189/<p>I made a request to the DOJ, FBI, ATF, and other law enforcement agencies about whether they were planning or had already declared antifa as a terrorist organization. I got a response from them, but there is a lot blurred out and I’m having trouble understanding what’s been said. If anyone could give me a hand in figuring this out, I would appreciate it.</p> <p>Thanks,</p> <p>Jon</p> <p>https://www.muckrock.com/foi/united-states-of-america-10/requesting-information-on-antifa-as-a-terrorist-organization-department-of-homeland-security-95779/?#file-923691</p>https://www.muckrock.com/questions/need-help-deciphering-a-foia-i-received-1189/https://www.muckrock.com/questions/adding-an-agency-that-is-not-in-the-muck-rock-database-1188/<p>When I search the Muck Rock database for agencies my my local Sheriff’s Department and other agencies and facilities are not listed. How can I add them to the database so i can send a FIOA request?</p>https://www.muckrock.com/questions/adding-an-agency-that-is-not-in-the-muck-rock-database-1188/https://www.muckrock.com/questions/months-later-ive-realized-the-foia-response-was-quotinganswering-a-request-that-was-not-mine-1187/<p>I submitted to the IL. governors office a FOIA that read</p> <p>“Report for each clinical trial or study used by the governor for mandating/requiring/enforcing face masks/coverings as a preventative or protective measure to Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19)(SARS-CoV-2 ). Including the &quot;latest data and science&quot; as stated often by Governor Pritzker when addressing the public on mask mandates and guidelines.”.</p> <p> Their response was poor, offering power points and pdf&#x27;s that had nothing to do with masks. Annoyed but not surprised i brushed it off as a dishonest governors office trying to pass off anything as relevant data. Cut to months later looking it over again i realized in the cover letter from the governors office’s response they are quoting my request and it is not my request. they claim they are responding to:</p> <p>“Any and all documents, research, reports, transcripts and/or studies and white papers used in the classification of sports as low, medium or high risk of Covid 19 transmission.”</p> <p>Which was not my request. This letter says i only have 60days to submit a request for review and its been a number of months. Are there steps i can take to appeal/request a review if they had mistaken my request with someone else’s or failed to correctly address my request?</p>https://www.muckrock.com/questions/months-later-ive-realized-the-foia-response-was-quotinganswering-a-request-that-was-not-mine-1187/https://www.muckrock.com/questions/how-to-view-rbn-securities-and-exchange-commission-foia-1186/<p>I want to view the recently released files on this. They require an Accelion login. The file access expires in two days. Any ideas? Thanks! </p> <p>\<br>16-00342-APPS, 17-00001-APPS, 16-00032-FIFO</p> <p>16-00342-APPS, 17-00001-APPS</p>https://www.muckrock.com/questions/how-to-view-rbn-securities-and-exchange-commission-foia-1186/https://www.muckrock.com/questions/any-suggestions-on-dealing-with-an-uncooperative-agency-1185/<p>Does anyone have any suggestions on dealing with an uncooperative agency/agent when making record requests?</p>https://www.muckrock.com/questions/any-suggestions-on-dealing-with-an-uncooperative-agency-1185/https://www.muckrock.com/questions/can-you-request-foia-request-logs-for-state-agencies-or-does-it-apply-only-to-federal-agencies-1184/<p>Can you request &quot;FOIA Request Logs&quot; for State agencies or does it apply only to Federal agencies?</p>https://www.muckrock.com/questions/can-you-request-foia-request-logs-for-state-agencies-or-does-it-apply-only-to-federal-agencies-1184/https://www.muckrock.com/questions/how-long-does-it-take-muckrock-to-upload-documents-once-they-are-received-1183/<p>Hi Everyone,</p> <p>I was wondering if anyone knows how long it takes for MuckRock to upload documents after receiving them in the mail.</p> <p>Thanks for your help!</p>https://www.muckrock.com/questions/how-long-does-it-take-muckrock-to-upload-documents-once-they-are-received-1183/https://www.muckrock.com/questions/need-a-lawyer-to-sign-a-foia-request-1182/<p>So, I sent off a request to the USPIS for my personal records. I got back a request from them saying it needed to be notarized (which I got done) and it says it needs the signature of an “ATTORNEY OR AOTHER DESIGNEE (Name, address and phone number).</p> <p>Do I really need to find a lawyer to sign a FOIA request? Or am I misunderstanding what they want from me? I’m not sure what they mean by “another designee”.</p> <p>Any help is appreciated!</p> <p>Jon</p>https://www.muckrock.com/questions/need-a-lawyer-to-sign-a-foia-request-1182/https://www.muckrock.com/questions/how-long-does-it-take-for-muckrock-to-go-through-the-mail-1181/<p>The city of Flower Mound claims they sent a response in the mail on August 6th. That means MuckRock should have gotten it a few days ago. I just wanted to know when I should start bothering the city again as perhaps they sent it to the wrong address.</p>https://www.muckrock.com/questions/how-long-does-it-take-for-muckrock-to-go-through-the-mail-1181/https://www.muckrock.com/questions/question-about-muckrock-1148/<p>Hi There,</p> <p>I have seen on many of the requests that I submit on MuckRock, that after the agency name, it says “SL Office”.</p> <p>Does anyone know what “SL” stands for?</p> <p>Just Interested in Knowing what it means.</p> <p>Thanks for your help!</p>https://www.muckrock.com/questions/question-about-muckrock-1148/https://www.muckrock.com/questions/fix-required-1147/<p>How do I respond to fix required</p>https://www.muckrock.com/questions/fix-required-1147/https://www.muckrock.com/questions/911-calls-1146/<p>Can you ask for 911 call taken by police department on certain day or days?</p>https://www.muckrock.com/questions/911-calls-1146/https://www.muckrock.com/questions/a-person-who-cannot-write-and-is-the-only-witness-to-a-murder-mk-ultra-case-1145/<p>when Tiffany Jenks was killed in Oregon she left my home telling me she will be killed and was. the fact I cannot write well has been my biggest issue to fight for justice in the case,. it allows the cult the power to dismiss my words and Police just do not provide the items., i found this site helpful for ADHD and ADA and now if i find writers to help Tiffanys case known killers will be off the streets and the 8 police who lie will be off the job... Oregon is corrupt..</p>https://www.muckrock.com/questions/a-person-who-cannot-write-and-is-the-only-witness-to-a-murder-mk-ultra-case-1145/https://www.muckrock.com/questions/question-regarding-payment-1144/<p>Hi MuckRock,</p> <p>\</p> <p>I made payment for request #97692 (Receipt Attached). I then emailed the agency to let them know to expect payment after I made the payment.</p> <p>\</p> <p>Right after I made the payment, the request status went to &quot;Processing&quot;. However, once I emailed the agency (right after I made payment), the status went back to &quot;Awaiting Response&quot;.</p> <p>\</p> <p>Could you please confirm that you received my payment and are mailing a check to the agency?</p> <p>\</p> <p>Thanks so much for your help!</p>https://www.muckrock.com/questions/question-regarding-payment-1144/https://www.muckrock.com/questions/local-pd-claiming-they-cant-search-entire-database-1143/<p>I’ve been sending OPRA (our NJ state FOI law) requests to local police departments to see what they’re emailing and texting each other about the local congressional candidates.</p> <p>One of the local PDs says that they “can&#x27;t search the entire e-mail database for these subjects.” See the following: https://www.muckrock.com/foi/raw_email/908011/</p> <p>Does this sound plausible? I can’t see why they wouldn’t be able to. What would be a good response—either to narrow it down or to remind them of their legal obligations?</p>https://www.muckrock.com/questions/local-pd-claiming-they-cant-search-entire-database-1143/https://www.muckrock.com/questions/does-anyone-know-if-the-fbi-rids-section-chief-david-h-hardy-has-retired-there-appears-to-be-new-fbi-acting-rids-section-chief-michael-g-seidel-1142/<p>Has anybody heard anything about the new FBI RIDS acting Section Chief, Michael G. Seidel. I’m wondering if David H. Hardy retired.</p> <p>This is the first FBI FOIA response I have received signed by Seidel.</p> <p>https://www.muckrock.com/foi/united-states-of-america-10/any-fbi-documents-that-would-identify-any-federal-agency-in-dc-required-to-investigate-andor-prosecute-violations-of-the-federal-criminal-conspiracy-statutes-see-attachment-93212/#file-865923</p>https://www.muckrock.com/questions/does-anyone-know-if-the-fbi-rids-section-chief-david-h-hardy-has-retired-there-appears-to-be-new-fbi-acting-rids-section-chief-michael-g-seidel-1142/https://www.muckrock.com/questions/foia-request-release-of-information-form-1141/<p>Hello,</p> <p>I have submitted a FOIA request, here it is: https://www.muckrock.com/foi/united-states-of-america-10/foia-request-for-all-records-pertaining-to-daniel-cullen-92975/</p> <p>I have been instructed to return DHS Form 590 and also narrow the scope of what I am searching for. I am not sure who to fill out in the Representative Informatiomn form, and also am not clear as to if this is the correct way to proceed. Is this going to allow all of my information to be posted publicly? </p> <p>TIA</p>https://www.muckrock.com/questions/foia-request-release-of-information-form-1141/https://www.muckrock.com/questions/help-with-mil-fee-waiver-1140/<p>\[I’m trying to request a bunch of military contracts to get them in the open\](https://www.muckrock.com/foi/united-states-of-america-10/sierra-nevada-l-3-technologies-spyplane-contracts-93717/?#file-859721). I’m expecting it’s going to be expensive. Can anyone help with a strong fee waiver argument? Certainly being categorized “commerical” is the worst, but in any case it’s going to probably be much more than I want to pay and I think it’s worthwhile getting these out.</p>https://www.muckrock.com/questions/help-with-mil-fee-waiver-1140/https://www.muckrock.com/questions/collection-of-poll-tape-image-in-video-format-1107/<p>When polls close on election night, a “poll tape” is printed and attached to the precinct door/window. This poll tape shows that the vote counter was at zero at the beginning of the day and shows vote totals for the precinct. In order to ensure that totals were reported accurately, members of the public would need to be there and take images (preferably a video scan) of the poll tape so verification with the board of elections could be done. Any post-election night public records request for this tape may not reflect the actual tape that was printed. How can people load a video scan into a project?</p>https://www.muckrock.com/questions/collection-of-poll-tape-image-in-video-format-1107/https://www.muckrock.com/questions/how-long-does-it-take-muckrock-to-upload-documents-once-they-are-received-1106/<p>I manually followed up with the agency I submitted a request to and they informed me that my requested documents were mailed on April 24th, nearly 2 weeks ago. I have followed up with Muckrock twice to see if the documents were received and if they will be uploaded soon, and have not heard back. I’m starting to get frustrated - things would have gone a lot faster if I just did the records request on my own. Does anyone know how long it typically takes for them to upload documents once received?</p>https://www.muckrock.com/questions/how-long-does-it-take-muckrock-to-upload-documents-once-they-are-received-1106/https://www.muckrock.com/questions/foia-request-for-the-complaint-filed-by-tara-reade-1105/<p>As you may have heard, there are new accusations coming out recently, that Joe Biden sexually assaulted a staffer named Tara Reade back in the 90s. The New York Times daily podcast has an episode about the accusations, and their work on trying to determine how credible those accusations are.</p> <p>[https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/14/podcasts/the-daily/joe-biden-sexual-assault-allegation.html](https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/14/podcasts/the-daily/joe-biden-sexual-assault-allegation.html)</p> <p>(that link contains the audio as well as a full transcript)</p> <p>This is the one of the parts that really got my attention. For context, she says she didn’t file a police report at the time, but she did file a formal complaint at a Senate office. The reporter working on this story says:</p> <p>&gt; So amid all this confusion, I remember that there’s one thing that really could cut through all this and clarify exactly what did or did not happen. And that’s this complaint that Tara had told me she filed in 1993 with the Senate office and that someone had written down. So we start trying to track down that complaint. And we call the Federal Office of Personnel Management, and they tell us to file a Freedom of Information request, which would take months, if not years. And anyhow, we don’t really know exactly what we’re asking for, because she doesn’t remember the name of the office where she filed this complaint. We call over to the Senate and we’re able to get some employment records, but not this complaint. So we basically look for this document and come up empty. It’s unfindable in the end.</p> <p>Sounds like a challenge to me! Even if the FOIA request would take months or years, it’s still worth making the request in my opinion.</p> <p>Has anyone attempted to find this complaint? Do you know exactly what office within the Senate you would send the FOIA request to? I have a little bit of experience with public records requests, but only at the state/city level, I haven’t tried a federal one yet. I thought I’d ask here if someone has taken any steps already on trying to find this complaint.</p>https://www.muckrock.com/questions/foia-request-for-the-complaint-filed-by-tara-reade-1105/https://www.muckrock.com/questions/michigan-egle-new-lockdown-foia-procedures-1104/<p>Anyone have advice how to deal with the new EGLE FOIA enforcement? </p> <p>Have had two very recent FOIA requests come back with invoices of $181 and $103 for search of records and then further scanning for sensitive information/redaction.</p> <p>Both involved seeking basic information about PFAS contamination site and potential site.</p> <p>EGLE Staff privately advises they are no longer able to answer simple question outside this procedure.</p> <p>Some of the problem is the request to inspect files. I am looking for basic reports that may or may not include actual testing for the hazardous chemicals.</p> <p>Believe may be influenced by Members of State Legislature who have concealed, and avoided testing at sites over time.</p> <p>Also, as retiree——not about to pay for access to documents I am already taxed to maintain.</p> <p>Anyone else having problems with EGLE? Any suggestions how this new barrier can be overcome?</p> <p>Thanks!</p> <p>Bob P</p>https://www.muckrock.com/questions/michigan-egle-new-lockdown-foia-procedures-1104/https://www.muckrock.com/questions/agency-sent-a-link-via-email-to-a-cloud-service-containing-responsive-records-does-muckrock-download-the-installment-from-the-link-1103/<p>Agency sent a link to responsive records rather than sending the records via email due to size... as the requester - what if anything do I need to do to retrieve these records? </p> <p>[https://www.muckrock.com/foi/washington-54/emails-records-writing-documents-washington-school-personnel-association-and-office-of-superintendent-of-public-instruction-2016-2020-87246/](https://www.muckrock.com/foi/washington-54/emails-records-writing-documents-washington-school-personnel-association-and-office-of-superintendent-of-public-instruction-2016-2020-87246/)</p> <p>“We have responsive records ready for disclosure for your request under Public Records Request No. 20-053. Due to the size of the records, we will be sending you a separate email with a link to documents on &quot;Box&quot; (a cloud storage site) where you can view and download the records.</p> <p>To access the records on the Box, once you receive the separate email, click the &quot;View Folder&quot; icon and follow the prompts to set up a login. Once logged in you should have direct access to the responsive records. You can download or save the records by following the prompts. Once opened, the link will be available for a year after today&#x27;s date for you to view and/or download the file(s).</p> <p>If you do not receive the link within a few minutes after receiving this email, please check your junk folders. If you have any issues or do not receive the link, please let us know.</p> <p>Please note, in accordance with WAC 392-105-070(8)(e), if you do not open the link to inspect the installment within 10 business days, we will stop searching for the remaining responsive records and close your request.”</p>https://www.muckrock.com/questions/agency-sent-a-link-via-email-to-a-cloud-service-containing-responsive-records-does-muckrock-download-the-installment-from-the-link-1103/https://www.muckrock.com/questions/name-associated-with-foia-request-1102/<p>My local agency is pushing for my name and signature for them to process a FOIA (CORA) request. Is this required?</p>https://www.muckrock.com/questions/name-associated-with-foia-request-1102/