Page updated Aug 20 2009 5:12 p.m.

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Requesting Public Records from the City of Alexandria

As part of our commitment to open and accountable government, the City of Alexandria wants you to understand how we handle requests for public records under the Virginia Freedom of Information Act (FOIA).

Generally speaking, FOIA gives you the right to review or receive a copy of any documents, files, or other records we have that relate to public business.  Sometimes FOIA gives us the discretion to withhold a certain type of record, and sometimes another federal or state law prohibits us from releasing a certain type of record.
 
How to Request a Record

• You may request a record by any means, although it is usually helpful to put your request in writing.  We have created a FOIA Request Form that we ask you to voluntarily complete.  This creates a record of your request, and reduces misunderstanding about what you are requesting.
   
• Your request must be reasonably specific, so that we can identify and locate the records that you are seeking.
   
• Although we will do our best to assist you, FOIA does not require that we create records that do not already exist, or answer general questions.
   
• You may choose to receive a record in any format we normally use, such as on paper, by e-mail, or as an electronic spreadsheet file.
   
• We may ask for your name and address, but you are not required to provide any other information or explain why you want the record.  Since we want to help you find what you're looking for, we may ask you some questions so that we can better understand your request.  In some cases, we may be able to suggest a different record that would do a better job meeting your need.

You may request a record, or ask questions about how to request records, by contacting:

Rose Williams Boyd, FOIA Officer Office of Citizen Assistance, Alexandria City Hall 301 King Street, Room 1900 Alexandria, VA  22314 Phone: 703-746-4800 Fax: 703-838-6426 E-mail:  rose.boyd@alexandriava.gov

Mailing Address: Rose Williams Boyd, FOIA Officer City of Alexandria P.O. Box 178 Alexandria, VA  22313

What Happens When We Receive Your Request

Within five days of receiving your request (not including weekends or City holidays), we will either provide you with the records you requested, or give you one of the following responses in writing:

• If we are withholding some or all of the records that you have requested (either because we are prohibited by law from releasing them, or because the law gives us the discretion to withhold the records and we are exercising that discretion), we must tell you the specific section of law that requires or permits us to withhold the records.
   
• If the records you requested could not be found or do not exist, we will let you know.  If we know that another government agency has the records, we will suggest that you contact that agency.
   
• If it is practically impossible for us to respond to your request within five working days, we will tell you why.  This will allow us seven additional working days to respond to your request, for a total of 12 working days.

If we reach an agreement with you on a different timeframe in which to provide you with the records, we will follow that timeframe instead.

Costs Related to Your Request

For More Information

• Alexandria Citizens Academy
• Boards & Commissions
• Channel 70
• Consumer Affairs

• Filing a Complaint
• Frequently Used Services
• Requesting Public Records (FOIA)