[Code of Federal Regulations]
[Title 11, Volume 1]
[Revised as of January 1, 2003]
From the U.S. Government Printing Office via GPO Access
[CITE: 11CFR4.9]
[Page 19-22]
TITLE 11--FEDERAL ELECTIONS
CHAPTER I--FEDERAL ELECTION COMMISSION
PART 4--PUBLIC RECORDS AND THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT--Table of Contents
Sec. 4.9 Fees.
(a) Exceptions to fee charges--(1) General. Except for a commercial
use requester, the Commission will not charge a fee to any requester for
the first two hours of search time and the first 100 pages of
duplication in response to any FOIA request.
(2) Free computer search time. For purposes of this paragraph, the
term search time is based on the concept of a manual search. To apply
this to a search conducted by a computer, the Commission will provide
the equivalent dollar value of two hours of professional staff time,
calculated according to paragraph (c)(4) of this section, in computer
search time. Computer search time is determined by adding the cost of
the computer connect time actually used for the search, calculated at
the rate of $25.00 per hour, to the
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cost of the operator's salary for the time spent conducting the computer
search, calculated at the professional staff time rate set forth at
paragraph (c)(4) of this section.
(3) Definition of pages. For purposes of this paragraph, the word
pages refers to paper copies of a standard agency size which will
normally be 8\1/2\ x 11 or
8\1/2\ x 14. Thus, while a
requester would not be entitled to 100 free computer disks, for example,
a requester would be entitled to 100 free pages of a computer printout.
(4) Minimum charge. The Commission will not charge a fee to any
requester when the allowable direct cost of that FOIA request is equal
to or less than the Commission's cost of routinely collecting and
processing a FOIA request fee.
(b) Fee reduction or waiver--(1) The Commission will consider
requests for the reduction or waiver of any fees assessed pursuant to
paragraph (c)(1) of this section if it determines, either as a result of
its own motion or in response to a written submission by the requester,
that disclosure of the information is in the public interest because it
is likely to contribute significantly to public understanding of the
operations or activities of the government and that disclosure of the
information is not primarily in the commercial interest of the
requester.
(2) A request for a reduction or waiver of fees shall be made in
writing by the FOIA requestor; shall accompany the relevant FOIA request
so as to be considered timely; and shall include a specific explanation
as to why the fee for that FOIA request should be reduced or waived,
applying the standard stated in paragraph (b)(1) of this section to the
facts of that particular request. In addition, the explanation shall
include: the requester's (and user's, if the requester and the user are
different persons or entities) identity, qualifications and expertise in
the subject area, and ability and intention to disseminate the
information to the public; and a discussion of any commercial or
personal benefit that the requestor (and user, if the requestor and user
are different persons or entities) expects as a result of disclosure,
including whether the information disclosed would be resold in any form
at a fee above actual cost.
(c) Fees to be charged. (1) The FOIA services provided by the
Commission in response to a FOIA request for which the requestor will be
charged will depend upon the category of the requestor. The categories
of FOIA requestors are as follows:
(i) Commercial use requestors. A requestor of documents for
commercial use will be assessed reasonable standard charges for the full
allowable direct costs of searching for, reviewing for release and
duplicating the records sought, according to the Commission's schedule
of fees for those services as set forth at paragraph (c)(4) of this
section. A commercial use requestor is not entitled to two hours of free
search time nor 100 free pages of duplication of documents.
(ii) Educational and non-commercial scientific institution
requestors. The Commission will provide documents to requestors in this
category for the cost of duplication of the records provided by the
Commission in response to the request, according to the Commission's
schedule of fees as set forth at paragraph (c)(4) of this section,
excluding charges for the first 100 pages of duplication. Requestors in
this category will not be charged for search time. To be eligible for
inclusion in this category, requestors must show that the request is
being made as authorized by and under the auspices of a qualifying
institution and that the records are not sought for a commercial use,
but are sought in furtherance of scholarly (if the request is from an
educational institution) or scientific (if the request is from a non-
commercial scientific institution) research.
(iii) Requestors who are representatives of the news media. The
Commission will provide documents to requestors in this category for the
cost of duplication of the records provided by the Commission in
response to the request, according to the Commission's schedule of fees
as set forth at paragraph (c)(4) of this section, excluding charges for
the first 100 pages of duplication. Requestors in this category will not
be charged for search time. To be eligible for inclusion in this
category, the requestor must meet the criteria listed
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at 11 CFR 4.1(n) and his or her request must not be made for a
commercial use. A request for records supporting the news dissemination
function of the requestor shall not be considered to be a request that
is for a commercial use.
(iv) All other requestors. The Commission will charge requestors who
do not fit into any of the categories listed in paragraph (c)(1)(i),
(ii) or (iii) of this section the full direct costs of searching for and
duplicating records in response to the request, according to the
Commission's schedule of fees as set forth at paragraph (c)(4) of this
section, excluding charges for the first two hours of search time and
the first 100 pages of duplication. Requests from record subjects for
records about themselves will continue to be treated under the fee
provisions of the Privacy Act of 1974 which permit fees only for
duplication.
(2) The Commission may assess fees for the full allowable direct
costs of searching for documents in response to a request even if the
Commission fails to locate any documents which are responsive to that
request and, in the case of commercial use requestors, of reviewing
documents located in response to a request which the Commission
determines are exempt from disclosure.
(3) If the Commission estimates that search or duplication charges
are likely to exceed $25.00, it will notify the requestor of the
estimated amount of the fee unless the requestor has indicated in
advance a willingness to pay a fee as high as that estimated by the
Commission. Through this notification, the Commission will offer the
requestor the opportunity to confer with Commission staff to reformulate
the original request in order to meet the requestor's needs at a lower
cost.
(4) The following is the schedule of the Commission's standard fees.
The cost of staff time will be added to all of the following fees,
generally at the Professional rate listed below, except for the cost of
Photocopying from photocopying machines which has been calculated to
include staff time.
Photocopying
Photocopying from photocopying machines--$.07 per page
Photocopying from microfilm reader-printer--$.15 per page
Paper copies from microfilm-paper print machine--$.05 per frame page
Reels of Microfilm
Daily film (partial or complete roll)--$2.85 per roll
Other film (partial or complete roll)--$5.00 per roll
Publications: (new or not from available stocks)
Cost of photocopying document--$.07 per page
Cost of binding document--$.30 per inch
Publications: (available stock)
If available from stock on hand, cost is based on previously calculated
cost as stated in the publication (based on actual cost per copy,
including reproduction and binding). Commission publications for which
fees will be charged include, but are not limited to, the following:
Advisory Opinion Index, Report on Financial Activity, Financial Control
and Compliance Manual, MUR Index, and Guideline for Presentation in Good
Order.
Computer Tapes
Cost to process the request at the rate of $25.00 per hour connect time
plus the cost of the computer tape ($25.00) and professional staff time
(see Staff Time).
Computer Indexes (including Name Searches)
Cost to process the request at the rate of $25.00 per hour connect time
plus the cost of professional staff time (see Staff Time).
Staff Time
Clerical: $4.50 per each half hour (agency average of staff below a GS-
11) for each request.
Professional: $12.40 per each half hour (agency average of staff at GS-
11 and above) for each request.
Other Charges
Certification of a Document: $7.35 per quarter hour.
Transcripts of Commission meetings not previously transcribed: $7.50 per
half hour (equivalent of a GS-11 executive secretary).
The Commission will not charge a fee for ordinary packaging and mailing
of records requested. When a request for special mailing or delivery
services is received the Commission will package the records requested.
The requestor will make all arrangements for pick-up and delivery of the
requested materials. The requestor shall
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pay all costs associated with special mailing or delivery services
directly to the courier or mail service.
(5) Upon receipt of any request for the production of computer tape
or microfilm, the Commission will advise the requestor of the identity
of the private contractor who will perform the duplication services. If
fees are charged for the production of computer tape or microfilm, they
shall be made payable to that private contractor and shall be forwarded
to the Commission.
(d) Interest charges. FOIA requestors should pay fees within 30 days
following the day on which the invoice for that request was sent to the
requestor. If the invoice is unpaid on the 31st day following the day on
which the invoice was sent, the Commission will begin assessing interest
charges, which will accrue from the date the invoice was mailed.
Interest will be charged at a rate that is equal to the average
investment rate for the Treasury tax and loan accounts for the 12-month
period ending on September 30 of each year, rounded to the nearest whole
percentage point, pursuant to 31 U.S.C. 3717. The accrual of interest
will be stayed by the Commission's receipt of the fee, even if the fee
has not yet been processed.
(e) Aggregating requests. A requestor may not file multiple
requests, each seeking portions of a document or documents, in order to
avoid payment of fees. When the Commission reasonably believes that a
FOIA requestor or group of requestors acting in concert is attempting to
break a request down into a series of requests for the purpose of
evading the assessment of fees, the Commission will aggregate any such
requests and charge the appropriate fees. In making this determination,
the Commission will consider the time period in which the requests have
occurred, the relationship of the requestors, and the subject matter of
the requests.
(f) Advance payments. The Commission will require a requestor to
make an advance payment, i.e., a payment before work is commenced or
continued on a request, when:
(1) The Commission estimates or determines that allowable charges
that a requestor may be required to pay are likely to exceed $250. In
such a case, the Commission will notify the requestor of the likely cost
and, where the requestor has a history of prompt payment of FOIA fees,
obtain satisfactory assurance of full payment, or in the case of a
requestor with no FOIA fee payment history, the Commission will require
an advance payment of an amount up to the full estimated charges; or
(2) A requestor has previously failed to pay a fee in a timely
fashion (i.e., within 30 days of the date of the billing). In such a
case, the Commission may require that the requestor pay the full amount
owed plus any applicable interest or demonstrate that the fee has been
paid and make an advance payment of the full amount of the estimated fee
before the Commission begins to process a new request or a pending
request from that requestor.
(3) If the provisions of paragraph (f) (1) or (2) of this section
apply, the administrative time limits prescribed in 11 CFR 4.7(c) will
begin only after the Commission has received the payments or the
requestor has made acceptable arrangements to make the payments required
by paragraph (f) (1) or (2) of this section.
[52 FR 39213, Oct. 21, 1987]