The request must reasonably describe the records sought. That requirement helps the agency identify files without forcing it to conduct unlimited research. Agencies may charge authorized search, duplication, or review fees, with different rules and possible waivers depending on the requester and public interest. These administrative details do not change the central presumption: an agency record is disclosed unless a statute permits withholding.

FOIA is a disclosure law, not a question-answer service. It does not require an agency to create a new analysis, resolve a policy complaint, or surrender every record. Congress created nine exemptions protecting interests such as classified information, specified privileges, personal privacy, confidential commercial information, and certain law-enforcement needs. Agencies must also consider whether nonexempt portions can reasonably be separated and released.

An exemption is not a magic word. Under the statute's foreseeable-harm rule, an agency generally withholds exempt information only when it reasonably foresees harm to an interest protected by the exemption or another law prohibits disclosure. The agency must take reasonable steps to segregate and release nonexempt material. Some records are legally prohibited from disclosure, but FOIA's overall structure favors justified, reviewable decisions rather than unexplained secrecy.

An exemption must be matched to the information, not merely named. A document can contain both protected and releasable passages, which is why segregation matters. Privacy interests can also require balancing or careful redaction rather than release of every personal detail. FOIA does not decide whether the agency's underlying policy is wise; it gives requesters records that may allow journalists, researchers, businesses, or citizens to evaluate that policy themselves.

FOIA ordinarily reaches executive-branch agency records, not records held by Congress, federal courts, state governments, or private organizations. That scope matters in a scenario. A request for a federal agency's inspection reports raises FOIA; a request for a state police file depends on state law; a demand that Congress explain a vote is not converted into FOIA by calling it a records request.

Worked application. A journalist requests an agency memorandum and its underlying inspection tables. The agency cannot reject the request merely because the journalist may criticize it. It may identify a specific exemption for protected portions, but it should release reasonably segregable nonexempt material. The correct analysis identifies the record holder, the requested record, the exemption, and the review path.

Do not confuse FOIA with open-meeting laws, discovery in a lawsuit, or the First Amendment. Each can provide access in a different setting. A CLEP stem that emphasizes any person's request for an existing federal agency record points most directly to FOIA.

Video lesson: Controlling Bureaucracies: Crash Course Government and Politics #17