§171.4. Requests for information—types and how made. — Inbound Citations

(a) The Department will, to the extent practicable, communicate with requesters having access to the internet using electronic means, such as email or a web portal.

(1) When the Department determines or estimates that the fees to be assessed in accordance with this section will exceed $25.00, the Department must notify the requester of the actual or estimated amount of the fees, including a breakdown of the fees for search, review, or duplication, unless the requester has indicated a willingness to pay fees as high as those anticipated. If only a portion of the fee can be estimated readily, the Department will advise the requester accordingly. If the request is not for commercial use, the notice will specify that the requester is entitled to the statutory entitlement of 100 pages of duplication at no charge and, if the requester is charged search fees, two hours of search time at no charge, and will advise the requester whether those entitlements have been provided.

(2) In cases in which the Department has notified the requester that the actual or estimated fees are in excess of $25.00, the request will not be considered received and further work will not be completed until the requester commits in writing to pay the actual or estimated total fee, or designates an amount of fees the requester is willing to pay, or in the case of a noncommercial use requester who has not yet been provided with the requester's statutory entitlements, designates that the requester seeks only that which can be provided by the statutory entitlements. The requester must provide the commitment or designation in writing, and must, when applicable, designate an exact dollar amount the requester is willing to pay. The Department is not required to accept payments in installments.

(3) If the requester has indicated a willingness to pay some designated amount of fees, but the Department estimates that the total fee will exceed that amount, the Department will toll the processing of the request when it notifies the requester of the estimated fees in excess of the amount the requester has indicated a willingness to pay. The Department will inquire whether the requester wishes to revise the amount of fees the requester is willing to pay or modify the request. Once the requester responds, the time to respond will resume from where it was at the date of the notification.

(4) The Department must make available its FOIA Public Liaison or other FOIA professional to assist any requester in reformulating a request to meet the requester's needs at a lower cost.

(a) Requests for access to records under the PA must be made in writing and sent to the Office of Information Programs and Services, the Law Enforcement Liaison Division of the Passport Services directorate within the Bureau of Consular Affairs, or the Office of Inspector General at the addresses given in § 171.4. The Director of the Office of Information Programs and Services (A/GIS/IPS) is responsible for acting on all PA requests for Department records except for requests received directly by the Office of Inspector General, which processes its own requests for information, and the Law Enforcement Liaison Division of the Passport Services directorate within the Bureau of Consular Affairs, which receives directly and processes its own PA requests for information as described in PA System of Record Notice STATE-26. All processing of PA requests coming under the jurisdiction of the Directorates for Visa Services and Overseas Citizens Services in the Bureau of Consular Affairs, the Bureau of Diplomatic Security, the Bureau of Global Talent Management, the Bureau of Medical Services, and the Foreign Service Grievance Board (FSGB) are handled by those bureaus or offices.

(b) Requests to amend records must be in writing and mailed or delivered to A/GIS/IPS or OIG at the address given in § 171.4, with ATTENTION: PRIVACY ACT AMENDMENT REQUEST written on the envelope. A/GIS/IPS or OIG will coordinate the review of the request with the appropriate offices under its purview. The Department will require verification of personal identity as provided in § 171.22(c) before it will initiate action to amend a record. Amendment requests should contain, at a minimum, identifying information needed to locate the record in question, a description of the specific correction requested, and an explanation of why the existing record is not accurate, relevant, timely, or complete. The request must be signed, and the requester's signature must be either notarized or made under penalty of perjury pursuant to 28 U.S.C. 1746. The requester should submit as much pertinent documentation, other information, and explanation as possible to support the request for amendment.

(a) Except where accountings of disclosures are not required to be kept, as set forth in paragraph (b) of this section, or where accountings of disclosures do not need to be provided to a requesting individual pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 552a(c)(3), an individual has a right to request an accounting of any disclosure that the Department has made to another person, organization, or agency of any record about such individual, provided that the disclosed records are maintained in a system of records. This accounting shall contain the date, nature, and purpose of each disclosure as well as the name and address of the recipient of the disclosure. Any request for accounting should identify each particular record in question and may be made by writing directly to A/GIS/IPS at the address given in § 171.4.

(a) If the Department denies a request for amendment of such records, the requester shall be informed of the reason for the denial and of the right to appeal the denial within 90 working days of the date of the Department's denial letter.

(1) The Office of Information Programs and Services (A/GIS/IPS) is responsible for initial action on all FOIA requests for Department records, with two exceptions: requests seeking records under the purview of the Office of Inspector General (OIG), which receives and processes requests for OIG records (see § 171.4 (a)(3)); and requests seeking records under the purview of the Law Enforcement Liaison Division of the Passport Services directorate of the Bureau of Consular Affairs (CA), which receives and processes requests for certain consular records (see § 171.4 (a)(2)).

(1) The Office of Information Programs and Services (A/GIS/IPS) is responsible for initial action on all FOIA requests for Department records, with two exceptions: requests seeking records under the purview of the Office of Inspector General (OIG), which receives and processes requests for OIG records (see § 171.4 (a)(3)); and requests seeking records under the purview of the Law Enforcement Liaison Division of the Passport Services directorate of the Bureau of Consular Affairs (CA), which receives and processes requests for certain consular records (see § 171.4 (a)(2)).

(1) The Office of Information Programs and Services (A/GIS/IPS) is responsible for initial action on all FOIA requests for Department records, with two exceptions: requests seeking records under the purview of the Office of Inspector General (OIG), which receives and processes requests for OIG records (see § 171.4 (a)(3)); and requests seeking records under the purview of the Law Enforcement Liaison Division of the Passport Services directorate of the Bureau of Consular Affairs (CA), which receives and processes requests for certain consular records (see § 171.4 (a)(2)).