What is a FOIA request?

FOIA is the Freedom of Information Act. It provides everyone the right to to obtain access to federal agency records unless its a matter of national security or the other few exceptions. To file a request, you have to describe the information you want in as much detail as possible and the format you want it in. It has to be a written request that you send to the specific agency that relates to your request. The standard time to receive a response is one month, but it can take longer than that.