[Code of Federal Regulations]

[Title 45, Volume 4]

[Revised as of October 1, 2005]

From the U.S. Government Printing Office via GPO Access

[CITE: 45CFR1602.8]



[Page 370-372]

 

                        TITLE 45--PUBLIC WELFARE

 

                 CHAPTER XVI--LEGAL SERVICES CORPORATION

 

PART 1602_PROCEDURES FOR DISCLOSURE OF INFORMATION UNDER THE FREEDOM 

OF INFORMATION ACT--Table of Contents

 

Sec. 1602.8  Requests for records.



    (a) Except for records required by the FOIA to be published in the 

Federal Register (Sec. 1602.4) or to be made available in the public 

reading room (Sec. 1602.5), Corporation records will be made promptly 

available, upon request, to any person in accordance with this section, 

unless it is determined that such records should be withheld and are 

exempt from mandatory disclosure under the FOIA and Sec. 1602.9.

    (b) Requests. Requests for records under this section shall be made 

in writing, with the envelope and the letter or e-mail request clearly 

marked Freedom of Information Request. All such requests shall be 

addressed to the Corporation's Office of Legal Affairs. Requests by 

letter shall use the address given in Sec. 1602.5(a). E-mail requests 

shall be addressed to info@smtp.lsc.gov. Any request not marked and 

addressed as specified in this paragraph will be so marked by 

Corporation personnel as soon as it is properly identified, and will be 

forwarded immediately to the Office of Legal Affairs. A request 

improperly addressed will not be deemed to have been received for 

purposes of the time period set forth in paragraph (i) of this section 

until it has been received by the Office of Legal Affairs. Upon receipt 

of an improperly addressed request, the General Counsel or designee 

shall notify the requester of the date on which the time period began.

    (c) A request must reasonably describe the records requested so that 

employees of the Corporation who are familiar with the subject area of 

the request are able, with a reasonable amount of effort, to determine 

which particular records are within the scope



[[Page 371]]



of the request. If it is determined that a request does not reasonably 

describe the records sought, the requester shall be so informed and 

provided an opportunity to confer with Corporation personnel in order to 

attempt to reformulate the request in a manner that will meet the needs 

of the requester and the requirements of this paragraph.

    (d) To facilitate the location of records by the Corporation, a 

requester should try to provide the following kinds of information, if 

known:

    (1) The specific event or action to which the record refers;

    (2) The unit or program of the Corporation which may be responsible 

for or may have produced the record;

    (3) The date of the record or the date or period to which it refers 

or relates;

    (4) The type of record, such as an application, a grant, a contract, 

or a report;

    (5) Personnel of the Corporation who may have prepared or have 

knowledge of the record;

    (6) Citations to newspapers or publications which have referred to 

the record.

    (e) The Corporation is not required to create a record or to perform 

research to satisfy a request.

    (f) Estimated fees. The Corporation shall advise the requester of 

any estimated fees as promptly as possible. The Corporation may require 

that fees be paid in advance, in accordance with Sec. 1602.13(i), and 

the Corporation will advise a requester as promptly as possible if the 

fees are estimated to exceed $25 or any limit indicated by the 

requester.

    (g) Any request for a waiver or reduction of fees should be included 

in the FOIA request, and any such request should indicate the grounds 

for a waiver or reduction of fees, as set out in Sec. 1602.13(f). The 

Corporation shall respond to such request as promptly as possible.

    (h) Format. The Corporation will provide records in the form or 

format indicated by the requester to the extent such records are readily 

reproducible in the requested form or format.

    (i)(1) The General Counsel or designee, upon request for any records 

made in accordance with this section, except in the case of a request 

for Office of Inspector General records, shall make an initial 

determination of whether to comply with or deny such request and 

dispatch such determination to the requester within 20 days (excepting 

Saturdays, Sundays, and legal public holidays) after receipt of such 

request, except for unusual circumstances, in which case the time limit 

may be extended for up to 10 working days by written notice to the 

requester setting forth the reasons for such extension and the date on 

which a determination is expected to be dispatched.

    (2) Initial response/delays. If the General Counsel or designee 

determines that a request or portion thereof is for Office of Inspector 

General records, the General Counsel or designee shall promptly refer 

the request or portion thereof to the Office of Inspector General and 

send notice of such referral to the requester. In such case, the Counsel 

to the Inspector General or designee shall make an initial determination 

of whether to comply with or deny such request and dispatch such 

determination to the requester within 20 working days after receipt of 

such request, except for unusual circumstances, in which case the time 

limit may be extended for up to 10 working days by written notice to the 

requester setting forth the reasons for such extension and the date on 

which a determination is expected to be dispatched.

    (3) Unusual circumstances. As used in this part, ``unusual 

circumstances'' are limited to the following, but only to the extent 

reasonably necessary for the proper processing of the particular 

request:

    (i) The need to search for and collect the requested records from 

establishments that are separate from the office processing the request;

    (ii) The need to search for, collect, and appropriately examine a 

voluminous amount of separate and distinct records which are demanded in 

a single request; or

    (iii) The need for consultation, which shall be conducted with all 

practicable speed, with another agency or organization, such as a 

recipient, having a substantial interest in the determination of the 

request or among two or more components of the Corporation



[[Page 372]]



having substantial subject matter interest therein.

    (j) If a request is particularly broad or complex so that it cannot 

be completed within the time periods stated in paragraph (i) of this 

section, the Corporation may ask the requester to narrow the request or 

agree to an additional delay.

    (k) When no determination can be dispatched within the applicable 

time limit, the General Counsel or designee or the Counsel to the 

Inspector General or designee shall inform the requester of the reason 

for the delay, the date on which a determination may be expected to be 

dispatched, and the requester's right to treat the delay as a denial and 

to appeal to the Corporation's President or Inspector General, in 

accordance with Sec. 1602.12. If no determination has been dispatched 

by the end of the 20-day period, or the last extension thereof, the 

requester may deem the request denied, and exercise a right of appeal in 

accordance with Sec. 1602.12. The General Counsel or designee or the 

Counsel to the Inspector General or designee may ask the requester to 

forego appeal until a determination is made.

    (l) After it has been determined that a request will be granted, the 

Corporation will act with due diligence in providing a substantive 

response.

    (m)(1) Expedited treatment. Requests and appeals will be taken out 

of order and given expedited treatment whenever the requester 

demonstrates a compelling need. A compelling need means:

    (i) Circumstances in which the lack of expedited treatment could 

reasonably be expected to pose an imminent threat to the life or 

physical safety of an individual;

    (ii) An urgency to inform the public about an actual or alleged 

Corporation or Federal government activity and the request is made by a 

person primarily engaged in disseminating information;

    (iii) The loss of substantial due process rights; or

    (iv) A matter of widespread and exceptional media interest in which 

there exist possible questions about the Corporation's or the Federal 

government's integrity which affect public confidence.

    (2) A request for expedited processing may be made at the time of 

the initial request for records or at any later time. For a prompt 

determination, a request for expedited processing must be properly 

addressed and marked and received by the Corporation pursuant to 

paragraphs (b) of this section.

    (3) A requester who seeks expedited processing must submit a 

statement demonstrating a compelling need that is certified by the 

requester to be true and correct to the best of that person's knowledge 

and belief, explaining in detail the basis for requesting expedited 

processing.

    (4) Within ten calendar days of its receipt of a request for 

expedited processing, the General Counsel or designee or the Inspector 

General or designee shall decide whether to grant the request and shall 

notify the requester of the decision. If a request for expedited 

treatment is granted, the request shall be given priority and shall be 

processed as soon as practicable. If a request for expedited processing 

is denied, any appeal of that decision shall be acted on expeditiously 

by the Corporation.



[63 FR 41196, Aug. 3, 1998, as amended by 68 FR 7437, Feb. 14, 2003]