U.S. Department of Justice 
Office of Community Oriented Policing Services 

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www.cops.usdoj.gov

Fact Sheet 

The Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) 

The Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), 5 
U.S.C § 552, is a statute enacted by Congress 
to provide the public the right to request 
access to certain federal agency records or 
information. Under the FOIA, all agency 
records may be disclosed, unless the records 
are exempt or excluded from disclosure as 
explained below. 

There are nine statutory FOIA exemptions 
that permit the agency to withhold certain 
documents, or information contained in 
documents, from disclosure. There are two 
disclosure exemptions most frequently used 
for grants and related records. 

• Exemption 5 protects inter-agency or 
intra-agency communications that reflect 
deliberative process or privileged 
information. 

. Exemption 6 protects the personal privacy 
of a third party. 

Any person can make a request for agency 
records under FOIA. The request must be in 
writing and can be submitted in one of three 
ways: 

1) E-mail: cops.foia@usdoj.gov 

2) Fax: 202.514.3456 

3) Mail: U.S Department of Justice 
COPS Office Legal Division 
1100 Vermont Ave NW 
Washington, DC 20530 

Typically, it takes two to three weeks for the 
COPS Office to respond to a FOIA request, 
depending on the volume of requested 
records. 

There is no required format to make a written 
request. You must, however, provide a 
reasonable description of the record(s) that 
you are requesting. 

Most COPS records are provided at no 
charge. However, Department of Justice 
regulations state that, by submitting a FOIA 
request, you agree to incur a reproduction 
and/or search fee up to $25.00. Certain fees 
for the search, review, and duplication of 
records may apply depending on the type of 
requestor and volume of the request. 

To help expedite a large request, please 
advise us how much over the $25 FOIA 
processing fee you are willing to pay. If it is 
necessary to exceed the amount you specify 
in order to process the request, we will 
contact you to discuss the anticipated cost. If 
fees are required, all fees will be collected 
before the records are released. 

Please access our website, 
www.cops.usdoj.gov. Many records are 
readily available on-line, thus eliminating the 
need for a FOIA request. 

Congressional inquiries, please contact the 
Congressional Relations Division at: 
202.514.9079 

Press inquiries, please contact the 
Communications Division at: 202.616.1728 


Frequently asked FOIA Questions: 

1. How can I obtain a list of all COPS 
grants awarded in my city or state? 

Go to the COPS Homepage at: 
www.cops.usdoj.gov. Click on "FOIA" tab at the
top portion of the page. You are now in the 
"Electronic Reading Room.” COPS grants are 
listed individually by state under the 
“Frequently Requested Records” section. 

2. Can I request a copy of a COPS 
grantee's grant-related records? 

Yes. Your request should identify the 
department or city name, the name of the 
specific grant program, and the grant records 
requested (i.e., application, award document, 
budget, progress reports). 

Please be advised that some requested records 
or information within records may be 
withheld under the FOIA exemptions 
previously mentioned. If this is the case, we 
will explain the reasons for withholding 
documents in our response to you. 

3. Can I obtain a "customized" computer 
listing of COPS grants awarded? 

Yes, we can create a database query to meet 
specific criteria that you provide. Various 
formatting options are available and your 
specific requirements should be noted in your
request. The most common fields requested from 
the COPS database are: 

(1) agency name 
(2) full address 
(3) estimated award amount 
(4) award type 
(5) project start date 

Large queries can be quite expensive, so if 
possible, limit your request to only one state 
or one specific grant program. To help 
expedite your request, please state whether 
you are willing to pay processing fees, and if 
so, the amount you are willing to pay. If it is 
necessary for us to exceed your specified 
amount to complete your request, we will 
contact you. You must pay the fee before we 
will release the data. 

Customized computer listings may take as 
long as three to four weeks to process. We 
will make a reasonable effort to search for 
records in electronic form but we can deny a 
request if it would cause significant 
interference with the operation of the agency's 
automated information system. 

4. How do I obtain a copy of an Inspector 
General audit report of a COPS grantee? 

To request a copy of an Office of the Inspector 
General (OIG) audit report, please contact the 
OIG FOIA Office at 202.616.0646. The COPS 
FOIA Officer does not release OIG 
documents. 

5. If I submit a FOIA request, could my 
name ever be released as the requester? 

If a party submits a FOIA request asking for 
the identity of a requester, that information 
will be released. Making a FOIA request is 
not a confidential matter. 

6. How can I find out the grant award 
balance due to a specific COPS grantee, 
the amount of grant funding a grantee has 
already drawn down, and/or the dates that 
the grantee drew down funds? 

The Office of Justice Programs (OJP) 
maintains the actual amount of funds 
disbursed and the date of disbursement. To 
obtain "drawdown" information, you should 
submit a written FOIA request to OJP by fax 
at 202.307.1419. You should provide the 
complete name of the grantee and the name of 
the grant program. The phone number for the 
OJP FOIA Officer is 202.307.0790. 

Contact COPS 

If you have additional questions concerning 
COPS FOIA policy and procedures, please 
call the COPS Office Legal Division at 
202.353.9864 or visit the COPS website at: 
www.cops.usdoj.gov 

Updated April 11, 2009 
e09021707