1. Before submitting FOIA requests, we encourage you to review our USDA FOIA Regulations | PDF.
2. FSIS routinely posts records, so what you are looking for may be already publicly available. Please check the following:
   •  Records Frequently Requested/Of Interest
   •  FOIA Reading Room
   • Monthly Reports of Requests Submitted to FSIS
3. The FOIA does not require agencies to do research, answer written questions, or create agency records in order to respond to a request. Accordingly, please make sure your request is framed in a way to direct a search for specific agency records.
4. Please ensure any follow-up communication regarding your request includes the assigned internal tracking number. Doing so will help us to quickly retrieve the details of your requests.
5. If you cannot determine which USDA FOIA component is responsible for the records you want, address your FOIA request to our Freedom of Information Act Coordinator:
   • Telephone: (202) 720-2109
   • Fax: (202) 690-3023
   • E-mail: fsis.foia@usda.gov
      

Please be advised that our FOIA components are continuing to process requests to the best of their ability during the COVID-19 pandemic. However, during USDA’s maximized telework operating status, FOIA professionals will not have daily access to delivered mail and facsimile transmissions. Therefore, we strongly encourage you to submit your requests electronically.

1. Submit Online via USDA’s Public Access Link (PAL)
   You can access the USDA PAL web portal (USDA Public Access Link (PAL) that allows you to create, submit, and track the status of your FOIA request(s). You can also use PAL to download your responsive records. Prior to use, you must register and create a username and password.
2. Submit Online via FOIA.GOV (Department of Justice National FOIA Portal)
   FOIA requests can also be submitted via the Department of Justice National FOIA Portal (FOIA.GOV). From the FOIA.GOV main screen, click “Create a Request” to get started. You can search for a specific USDA component, or search for “Department of Agriculture” to see a list of all USDA FOIA components.

3. Submit via Email to FSIS.FOIA@usda.gov. Do not e-mail personal information to the FOIA Office. Please send via postal service or other commercial delivery to:

   Freedom of Information Act Officer 
   USDA, Food Safety and Inspection Service 
   Room 1175 South Building 
   1400 Independence Ave., SW 
   Washington, DC 20250

   By fax to: (202) 690-3023

   If you are seeking to amend or modify records under the Privacy Act, contact the Privacy Office at SM.OCIO.CIO.UsdaPrivacy@usda.gov for additional guidance. 

FEE CATEGORIES 

When making your request, you should specify the fee category in which you feel your request falls and the amount you are willing to pay. The FOIA divides requestors into four categories:

1. Commercial use requesters, may be charged fees for searching for documents, reviewing the documents, and duplication.
2. Educational or noncommercial scientific institutions may be charged only for duplication, minus the first 100 pages.
3. Representatives of the news media may be charged only for duplication, minus the first 100 pages.
4. All other requesters may be charged fees for searching for documents and duplication minus the first 2 hours of search time and the first 100 pages.

If you do not specify the amount that you are willing to pay, FSIS will assume by your making the request, that you are willing to pay up to $25.00. If FSIS anticipates that fees associated with processing your request will exceed $25.00, you will be notified. In cases where no documents are located, the Agency is entitled to charge the requester for any applicable search time involved.

FEE STRUCTURES

The FOIA provides for the collection of fees for:

• Searches: Time spent in looking for and retrieving material, either paper or electronic files, that may be responsive to the request, including personnel hours (clerical, professional or managerial).
• Reviews: Time spent to determine if the record is releasable under legal guidelines, excluding the resolution of legal or policy issues. This includes blacking out or redaction of text.
• Reproduction: Generating a copy of a requested record in the appropriate medium, for example paper or computer disk.

FOIA Fees are assessed based on the requester’s category.  Agencies are required to place requesters in one of the following categories:

CategorySearch CostReview CostReproduction Cost

Educational & Scientific News MediaNoneNoneFirst 100 pages are free. $.20 per page after that.

Commercial

Salary rate of the employee plus 16% of the employee’s basic pay; or

Clerical: $10.00 per hr.

Professional: $20.00 per hr.

Salary rate of the employee plus 16% of the employee’s basic pay; or

Clerical: $10.00 per hr.

Professional: $20.00 per hr.

$.20 per pageAll Others

Salary rate of the employee plus 16% of the employee’s basic pay; or

Clerical: $10.00 per hr.

 Professional: $20.00 per hr.

NoneFirst 100 pages are free. $.20 per page after that.

The costs associated with searching for and reviewing records responsive to a request are: the salary rate of the employee conducting the search and/or review, plus 16 percent of the employee’s basic pay; or where a homogeneous class of personnel is used exclusively, $10.00 per hour for clerical time and $20.00 per hour for supervisory or professional time. Duplication of pages 8 ½" x 14" or smaller is $0.20 per page. Duplication of pages larger than 8 ½" x 14" is $0.50 per page.

FEE WAIVERS 

Fee waivers may be granted when disclosure of the documents is in the public interest and is likely to contribute significantly to public understanding of the operations or activities of the Government and is not primarily in the commercial interest of the requester. When mailing a request for a fee waiver, consider the following:

1. Does the document concern the operations or activities of the government?
2. Is disclosure likely to contribute to the public understanding of these operations and activities? and
3. Will that contribution be significant?

Requests for fee waivers must be fully documented and justified by written explanation.

• Secretary Memo on FOIA Compliance (PDF, 177 KB)
• The Freedom of Information Act, 5 U.S.C. § 552 As Amended By Public Law No. 110-175, 121 Stat. 2524 (PDF, 79 KB)
• USDA FOIA Regulations | PDF.
• Digital FOIA Training
  • Training for Executives
  • Training for Federal Employees
  • Training for FOIA Professionals