Freedom of Information

The Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), known by its legal cite as 5 United States Code (U.S.C.) Section 552, along with Department of Defense (DoD) Publication 5400.7, can be found at Part 286 of Chapter 32 of the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR), which is available in most libraries or online from the U.S. Government Printing Office Access CFR website.

What is the FOIA?

The FOIA allows the general public including foreign citizens, military and civilian personnel acting as private citizens, to request records electronically or in writing from the Federal Government. Some records are released to the public under the FOIA, and may therefore reflect deletion of some information in accordance with the FOIA's nine statutory exemptions or two law enforcement record exclusions. A consolidated list of such records is on the DoD and Air Force FOIA sites. Currently the law allows 20 working days to process a FOIA request upon receipt of the request in the FOIA office.

Who can submit a request?

Members of the public, including foreign citizens, military and civilian personnel acting as private citizens, organizations and businesses, and individual members of the Congress for themselves or constituents, may request records in writing. It is important to remember that the Freedom of Information Act applies only to federal agencies. It does not create a right of access to records held by Congress, the courts, state or local government agencies, or by private businesses or individuals. Each state has its own public access laws that should be consulted for access to state and local records.

How to make a FOIA request

The ANG FOIA Program is now centralized and all requests for ANG records are now processed by one office. In your request, please indicate the state/Wing that you are seeking records from. We encourage requestors to make FOIA requests electronically through the AF FOIA website (https://www.efoia.af.mil/palMain.aspx) If you prefer not to use our automated system, you may also make your request to us at:

Office of Information and Privacy (NGB/JA-OIP)
Attn: ANG FOIA Requests
111 South George Mason Drive, AH2
Arlington VA 22204-1373
Phone: (571) 256-7838 or (703) 607-5901
Fax: 703-607-3684

To inquire on the status of your request, you may contact the ANG FOIA/Privacy Officer at (703) 607-5901 or (571) 256-7838 between 8:00am - 5:00pm EST or by e-mail at FOIA@ng.army.mil.

For more information about the FOIA program, please visit the NGB FOIA website (http://www.nationalguard.mil/Resources/FOIA.aspx).