The Freedom of Information Act establishes a legal presumption of openness for federal executive branch records. Any person — citizen or non-citizen, individual or organization — can request documents from any federal agency. The agency must respond within 20 business days and either produce the records or cite one of nine statutory exemptions, which cover national security, internal agency rules, law enforcement investigations, personal privacy, and trade secrets, among others.
Congress enacted FOIA in 1966 after a 12-year campaign by House member John Moss, who argued that the public had a right to know what its government was doing. The law has since enabled landmark investigative journalism: reporters used FOIA to expose FBI COINTELPRO surveillance abuses, Pentagon contracting fraud, and agency conflicts of interest. When executive agencies instruct local government partners not to respond to FOIA requests without federal approval — as ICE did with 287(g) agencies in 2026 — they test whether the federal default of disclosure can be blocked by executive directive rather than statutory exemption.
FOIA applies only to the federal executive branch. Congress and the courts are not covered. State agencies are governed by separate state sunshine laws, which vary widely in strength and scope. Florida enacted a functionally similar open-records law in 1909, predating FOIA by 57 years.
Citizens can use FOIA to compel disclosure of government records that agencies would prefer to keep private. It is a legal right, not a courtesy the government can waive based on political convenience.
People often think FOIA only applies to journalists or lawyers. In practice, any person can file a FOIA request, and many agencies have free online portals. The main limit is that FOIA covers the federal executive branch only — for state and local government records, you need your state's sunshine law.
Citizens can use FOIA to compel disclosure of government records that agencies would prefer to keep private. It is a legal right, not a courtesy the government can waive based on political convenience.
People often think FOIA only applies to journalists or lawyers. In practice, any person can file a FOIA request, and many agencies have free online portals. The main limit is that FOIA covers the federal executive branch only — for state and local government records, you need your state's sunshine law.