[Code of Federal Regulations]
[Title 24, Volume 5]
[Revised as of April 1, 2003]
From the U.S. Government Printing Office via GPO Access
[CITE: 24CFR2002.15]

[Page 92]
 
                 TITLE 24--HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT
 
  CHAPTER XII--OFFICE OF INSPECTOR GENERAL, DEPARTMENT OF HOUSING AND 
                            URBAN DEVELOPMENT
 
PART 2002--AVAILABILITY OF INFORMATION TO THE PUBLIC--Table of Contents
 
Sec. 2002.15  Advance payments.

    (a) HUD may not require a requester to make an advance payment, 
i.e., payment before work is commenced or continued on a request, 
unless:
    (1) HUD estimates or determines that allowable charges that a 
requester may be required to pay are likely to exceed $250. Then, HUD 
will notify the requester of the likely cost and obtain satisfactory 
assurance of full payment where the requester has a history of prompt 
payment of FOIA fees, or require an advance payment of an amount up to 
the full estimated charges in the case of requesters with no history of 
payment; or
    (2) Where a requester has previously failed to pay a fee charged in 
a timely fashion (i.e., within 30 days of the date of the billing), HUD 
may require the requester to pay the full amount owed plus any 
applicable interest as provided by Sec. 2002.13(a) or demonstrate that 
he has, in fact, paid the fees, and to make an advance payment of the 
full amount of the estimated fee before HUD begins to process a new 
request or a pending request from that requester.
    (b) When HUD acts under paragraph (a)(1) or (a)(2) of this section, 
the administrative time limits prescribed in subsection (a)(6) of the 
FOIA (i.e., 20 working days from receipt of initial requests and 20 
working days from receipt of appeals from initial denial, plus 
permissible extensions of these time limits) will begin only after HUD 
has received fee payments described in paragraph (a) of this section.
    (c) Where it is anticipated that either the duplication fee 
individually, the search fee individually, or a combination of the two 
exceeds $25.00 over and above the free search time and duplication 
costs, where applicable, and the requesting party has not indicated in 
advance a willingness to pay so high a fee, the requesting party shall 
be promptly informed of the amount of the anticipated fee or such 
portion thereof as can readily be estimated. The notification shall 
offer the requesting party the opportunity to confer with agency 
representatives for the purpose of reformulating the request so as to 
meet that party's needs at a reduced cost.

[53 FR 37552, Sept. 27, 1988, as amended at 67 FR 47217, July 17, 2002]