Submitting a FOIA request
FCA will disclose any records that are not protected by one of the nine FOIA exemptions or one of the three FOIA exclusions. If an exempt record contains nonexempt portions that can be separated from the whole with reasonable effort, FCA will release those portions.
FCA may charge a fee for document search, review, and reproduction. The total fee depends on the identity of the requester and purpose of the request. For more information, see our fees for FOIA requests.
Important: Before submitting a FOIA request, please see the documents available through Reports and publications. Also see the FOIA reading room panel on the Freedom of Information Act page. It is possible that you do not have to submit a FOIA request to obtain the information you want.
Instructions for submitting a FOIA request
To submit a FOIA request by electronic form, go to FOIA.gov and complete the form. If you would like to submit your request by mail, fax, or email, please follow the steps below.
- Make sure that your submission clearly states “FOIA Request.”
- Provide a detailed description of the records you are requesting. Include specific dates, titles, and subject-matter descriptions.
- Indicate the most you are willing to pay in fees for the records.
- Submit the request to us in one of three ways:
- Send through the mail to
Freedom of Information Act Officer
Farm Credit Administration
1501 Farm Credit Drive
McLean, VA 22102-5090 - Submit your request by fax to (703) 790-0052.
- Submit your request by email to [email protected].
- Send through the mail to
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Exemptions
The nine FOIA exemptions authorize federal agencies to withhold information covering the following:
- Classified national defense and foreign relations information
- Internal agency rules and practices
- Information that is prohibited from disclosure by another federal law
- Trade secrets and other confidential business information
- Inter-agency or intra-agency communications that are protected by legal privileges
- Information involving matters of personal privacy
- Records or information compiled for law enforcement purposes, to the extent that the production of those records
- could reasonably be expected to interfere with enforcement proceedings,
- would deprive a person of a right to a fair trial or an impartial adjudication,
- could reasonably be expected to constitute an unwarranted invasion of personal privacy,
- could reasonably be expected to disclose the identity of a confidential source,
- would disclose techniques and procedures for law enforcement investigations or prosecutions, or would disclose guidelines for law enforcement investigations or prosecutions, or
- could reasonably be expected to endanger the life or physical safety of any individual
- Information relating to the supervision of financial institutions
- Geological information on wells.
See the text of the FOIA for more specific information about these exemptions.
Exclusions
Congress also provided special protection in the FOIA for three narrow categories of law enforcement and national security records. The provisions protecting those records are known as “exclusions.”
- The first exclusion protects the existence of an ongoing criminal law enforcement investigation when the subject of the investigation is unaware that it is pending and disclosure could reasonably be expected to interfere with enforcement proceedings.
- The second exclusion is limited to criminal law enforcement agencies and protects the existence of informant records when the informant’s status has not been officially confirmed.
- The third exclusion is limited to the FBI and protects the existence of foreign intelligence or counterintelligence, or international terrorism records when the existence of such records is classified.
Records falling within an exclusion are not subject to the requirements of the FOIA. So when FCA responds to FOIA requests, it will limit its response to those records that are subject to the FOIA.
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Both FOIA and FCA regulations (at 12 C.F.R. § 602.12) authorize FCA to recover the direct costs of providing information to a FOIA requester. The total fee depends on the identity of the requester, the purpose of the request, and the services required to respond to the request. Requests are classified as follows:
Commercial use request: A request for information to further the commercial, trade, or profit interests of the requester. To determine whether a request is properly classified as commercial use, FCA will determine the purpose for the documents requested.
Educational institution request: A request for information from a preschool, a public or private elementary or secondary school, an institution of undergraduate or graduate higher education, an institution of professional education, or an institution of vocational education that runs a program of scholarly research.
Noncommercial scientific institution request: A request for information from an institution that conducts scientific research that is not intended to promote any particular product or industry.
News media request: A request for information from any person actively gathering news for an entity that publishes or broadcasts news to the public. Examples of news media include television or radio stations and periodical publishers that sell their products.
Other: A request from anyone not in the above categories. These requesters are charged the direct cost of search and reproduction, except that the first two hours of search time and the first 100 pages of duplication are free. After the first two hours of search time, we will charge for search costs even if no records are disclosed.
Type of Requester Search Time Charges for Review Time Reproduction Commercial users*
All direct costs
All direct costs
$0.15 per page
Educational institutions
Noncommercial scientific institutions
News media
No charge
No charge
First 100 pages free, $0.15 per page after that
Others*
First 2 hours free, all direct costs after that
No charge
First 100 pages free, $0.15 per page after that
* You are responsible for fees even if we do not disclose any records.
Service Fee Manual search and review Prorated salary costs Computer search Direct costs Photocopy $0.15 per page Other document reproduction Direct costs Elective Direct costs Fee waiver
If you are seeking information to advance public understanding of the federal government’s operations or activities and the information mostly will not be used in your own commercial interest, we may waive or reduce fees. You will not be required to pay when total fees are less than $15.
Fee payment
When we estimate that fees will be more than $25 and you have told us that you will pay fees up to a certain amount, we will process the request so that the fees do not exceed the agreed-upon amount. If you did not tell us in advance that you will pay estimated fees, we will tell you the amount of the estimated fees and ask that you agree to pay. We will begin processing your FOIA request when we receive your agreement to pay.
If estimated fees exceed $250 and you have a history of paying fees, we may respond to your request based on your agreement to pay. However, if the estimated fees exceed $250 and you have no history of paying fees, we may require you to pay in advance.
If you previously failed to pay fees for information requests or if you paid them late, you must pay any fees still owed plus interest (or show that they were paid) before we will respond to a new or pending request. If fees were unpaid or paid late, you may be required to pay in advance the estimated fees for the new request, as well as interest on the unpaid fees.
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Generally, we will process a FOIA request and provide a response in 20 business days. If you have a question about the status of your FOIA request or the FCA’s response to your FOIA request, please contact
FOIA Requester Service Center
1501 Farm Credit Drive
Room 4405
McLean, VA 22102-5090
Tel: 703-883-4020
E-mail: [email protected]or
David Grahn
FCA FOIA Public Liaison
Tel: 703-883-4145
E-mail: [email protected]If we deny your initial FOIA request for records, either in whole or in part, or if we deny your fee waiver, you may appeal the denial within 30 calendar days of the date of the denial letter.
Submit your appeal in one of two ways:- Send a letter clearly marked “FOIA Appeal” through the mail to
Director of the Office of Agency Services
Farm Credit Administration
1501 Farm Credit Drive
McLean, VA 22102-5090 - Send an e-mail to [email protected].
Generally, the Director of the Office of Agency Services will act upon an appeal within 20 business days of receiving an appeal and will tell you
- whether the appeal is granted or denied,
- the exemption(s) claimed for the denial, and
- that you have the right to judicial review.
- Send a letter clearly marked “FOIA Appeal” through the mail to
