Still Interested? Some Feds Hope You Will Give Up on FOIA Requests

Federal agencies sometimes wait months or years to respond to Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests — and then add insult to injury by writing requesters to ask if they are still interested in receiving the requested information.

The law, of course, requires agencies to respond within 20 working days. Good luck with that. Now the Justice Department's Office of Information Policy (OIP) has issued an official "guidance" that frowns slightly on overuse of the "still interested?" practice.

• "OIP Issues Guidance on Agencies' 'Still Interested' FOIA Letters," OpenTheGovernment.org, July 7, 2015.
• "OIP Guidance: Limitations on Use of 'Still-Interested' Inquiries," Office of Information Policy, U.S. Department of Justice, updated July 20, 2015.