Welcome to MuckRock's Freedom of Information Act appeal guide!
Each entry provides background and context about an exemption to the public records laws in all fifty states, as well as federal FOIA. Read more about United States of America's public records law or explore all our expert FOIA guides. Have a public records appeal or information on an exemption we should include? Consider sharing your knowledge with everyone by donating your FOIA appeal language.
Constructive Denial
Also known as No response within allotted time.
Thank you to Michael Morisy for contributing to this entry. This guide is for informational purposes only, is general in nature, and is not legal opinion nor legal advice regarding any specific issue or factual circumstance.
In these cases, no basis is provided. A rejection of this sort occurs when no response is received from the agency in the statutorily-allotted amount of time or if the response received does not include “the agency’s determination of whether or not to comply with the request [and] the reasons for its decision.”
Example Appeals
A sample appeal for requests that have not been acknowledged after the 20 working day limit.
To Whom It May Concern,
On [Date Here], I submitted the below request under the Freedom of Information Act.
Despite my correspondence (also included below), I have received no acknowledgement of my request and it has not been given a final determination nor have I been furnished an estimated completion date.
As twenty working days have elapsed without a substantive determination, I am appealing the constructive denial of my request, and asking for a determination that the agency must respond to my request, providing the documents or outlining reasons that they are exempt.
Best,
A sample appeal for requests that have been acknowledged but the agency has not completed nor provided an estimated completion date after the 20 working day limit.
To Whom It May Concern,
On [Date Here], I submitted the below request under the Freedom of Information Act.
The agency acknowledged receipt of this request and assigned it [ Request No. #### ] on [Date Here]. As of this writing, the request has not been given a final determination nor have I been furnished an estimated completion date for this request.
As twenty working days have elapsed without a substantive determination, I am appealing the constructive denial of my request, and asking for a determination that the agency must respond to my request, providing the documents or outlining reasons that they are exempt.
Best,
Improper Use
It is never proper for an agency to ignore your request for longer than the statutorily-determined length of time in which they have to respond.
Key Citations
Oglesby v U. S. Dep’t of Army, 920 F.2d 57