Freedom of Information Act (FOIA)

ANC 1A is committed to transparency and open government. Residents have the right to request access to public records held by the Commission under DC’s Freedom of Information Act.

WHAT IS DC FOIA

The District of Columbia Freedom of Information Act, or “DC FOIA” (DC Official Code §§ 2-531 et seq.), provides that any person has the right to request access to public records maintained by District of Columbia government bodies, including Advisory Neighborhood Commissions. All public bodies of the District government are required to disclose public records, except for those records, or portions of records, that are protected from disclosure by the exemptions found at D.C. Official Code § 2-534.

ANC 1A serves the Columbia Heights neighborhood. As a public body, the Commission maintains records of its public meetings (including committees), finances, correspondence, and official actions — all of which may be subject to disclosure under FOIA.

Pursuant to the Commission’s Bylaws (Art. IV, Sec. 13), the Commission Secretary, as the custodian of records, is the principal point of contact for Advisory Neighborhood Commission 1A for advice and policy guidance on FOIA administration. All requests are handled professionally and expeditiously.

WHAT RECORDS CAN YOU REQUEST?

A FOIA request may be made for any public record. This does not, however, mean that the public body will disclose every record sought. Statutory exemptions authorize the withholding of certain public records. When the public body withholds records or portions of records, it must specify which FOIA exemption permits the withholding. FOIA does not require agencies (or public bodies) to conduct research, analyze data, answer written questions, or create records to respond to a request.

The following types of ANC 1A records are generally available for public inspection:

Meeting agendas & minutes
Financial statements & budgets
Official resolutions & votes
Grant applications & awards
Correspondence with DC agencies
Commissioner contact information
Contracts & service agreements
Audio/video of public meetings

Many ANC 1A records — including agendas, minutes, and financial reports — are already published on this website. Please check the Meetings Minutes and Documents pages before submitting a formal request.

HOW TO MAKE A REQUEST

Anyone may submit a FOIA request. There is no central FOIA office in the District government. Each public body, including Advisory Neighborhood Commission 1A, responds to requests for its own records. To submit a request, you should determine which public body is likely to maintain the records you are seeking and submit a request to the FOIA Officer of that public body. A component of the District government is not required to forward a FOIA request to another agency or component of the District government. A FOIA should be in writing and may be mailed, faxed, or e-mailed.

FOIA requests may be oral or in writing. If the request is written, the envelope shall be prominently marked “FOIA Request.” The FOIA Officer may request that an oral request be reduced to writing if the requested records are not customarily made available by the Commission. FOIA requests shall be directed to the Commission’s FOIA Officer, listed below.

When submitting your request, please mark the outside of the envelope or the subject line of the fax or email: “Freedom of Information Act Request” or “FOIA Request.”
Please include a daytime telephone number, email address, or mailing address in your request letter so that the FOIA Officer may contact you if necessary.
Describe the record(s) you are seeking as clearly and precisely as possible. In your description, please be as specific as possible about names, dates, places, events, subjects, and other pertinent details to help the public body identify the records. The more specific you are about the records you are seeking, the more likely the public body is to locate them. If your request is vague or too broad, we may ask you to be more specific, which may delay processing.

RESPONSE TIME

All public bodies are required to respond to an FOIA request within 15 working days (excluding Saturdays, Sundays, and legal public holidays). The response period begins on the date the FOIA Officer of the public body that maintains the records you are requesting actually receives the request. Public bodies may extend the time for a response by an additional 10 working days (again, excluding Saturdays, Sundays, and legal public holidays) for unusual circumstances, as defined by D.C. Official Code § 2-532(d).

EXEMPTIONS

The FOIA statute provides that certain categories of documents may be withheld from disclosure. Included among these are documents that relate to law-enforcement activities, documents subject to recognized legal privileges such as the attorney-client and work-product privileges, documents required to be withheld by other laws (federal or District), documents that reflect the internal deliberative processes of the government, and documents the disclosure of which would result in a clearly unwarranted intrusion on personal privacy. For a complete list of the exemptions, please see D.C. Official Code § 2-534.

FEES AND FEE WAIVERS

There is no initial fee for submitting an FOIA request. However, a public body may charge fees for searching, reviewing, and reproducing records. You may include a specific statement in your request letter limiting the amount of fees you are willing to pay. Please be aware that you may have to pay search and/or review fees even if the search does not locate any responsive records or if records are located but are withheld as exempt.

You may request a waiver or reduction of fees in your request letter. You must include a statement describing how the requested records will be used to benefit the general public. Pursuant to D.C. Official Code § 2-532(b), if the public body determines that a waiver or fee reduction is in the public interest, i.e., furnishing the records primarily benefits the general public, a waiver or reduction may be granted.

JUDICIAL REVIEW OF DENIALS

You may seek judicial review if you are dissatisfied with the Commission’s response to your request. If you believe records were improperly withheld, you may appeal by filing suit with the D.C. Superior Court. The court can review the request and order the production of records if it finds that the exemptions don’t apply or that not all documents and information were disclosed.

The information contained herein is provided as a helpful summary of the DC FOIA. Please refer to the FOIA statute in the D.C. Official Code § 2-531 et seq., and the FOIA regulations at 1 DCMR §§ 400-417 for additional information. For assistance with filing a FOIA request, or if you have questions about one, contact the Office of Open Government at opengovoffice@dc.gov or call 202-481-3411. More information is available here: https://www.open-dc.gov/freedom-information-act.