Rights & Responsibilities

The Rights of Requesters and the Responsibilities of the Department of General Services:

The Virginia Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), located § 2.2-3700 et. seq. of the Code of Virginia, guarantees citizens of the Commonwealth and representatives of the media access to public records held by public bodies, public officials, and public employees. A public record is any writing or recording -- regardless of whether it is a paper record, an electronic file, an audio or video recording, or any other format -- that is prepared or owned by, or in the possession of a public body or its officers, employees or agents in the transaction of public business. All public records are presumed to be open, and may only be withheld if a specific, statutory exemption applies.

The policy of FOIA states the purpose of FOIA is to promote an increased awareness by all persons of governmental activities. In furthering this policy, FOIA requires the law be interpreted liberally, in favor of access, and any exemption allowing public records to be withheld must be interpreted narrowly.

FOIA Rights:

A citizen may request to inspect or to receive copies of public records, or both. A citizen may ask any charges for the requested records be estimated in advance. If a citizen believes their FOIA rights have been violated, they may file a petition in district or circuit court to compel compliance with FOIA

Requesting records from the Department of General Services:

Records may be requested by U.S. Mail, fax, e-mail, in person, or over the phone. FOIA does not require requests be in writing. The requester does not have to specifically refer to FOIA in order to request documents. From a practical perspective, the Department of General Services may ask the request be put in writing to ensure there is a clear statement of the type of records being requested and to reduce the potential for misunderstanding the request.
The request must identify the records the citizen is seeking with "reasonable specificity." This is a common-sense standard. It does not refer to or limit the volume or number of records. The request must be specific enough for the records to be identified and located.
Requests must ask for existing records or documents. FOIA allows existing records to be inspected or copied. If a record does not exist, under FOIA, the Department of General Services is not required to create a ‘new’ record. FOIA does not apply when asking general questions about the work of the Department of General Services.
The requester may choose to receive electronic records in any format used in regular course of business by the Department of General Services. For example, a request for records maintained in an Excel database, the requester may elect to receive those records electronically, such as via e-mail or diskette, or receive a printed copy.
General Services may need to clarify the information being requested. Please include appropriate contact information in case the request for information needs clarification is extensive in the amount of documents being requested, and/or to coordinate delivery of the documents.

To request records from the Department of General Services, direct requests to:
Susan Pollard, APR
Director of Communications
Department of General Services
209 North Ninth Street, Suite 206
Richmond, Virginia 23219
or by e-mail at: Susan.Pollard@dgs.virginia.gov
or by phone at: 804.786.3313.

The Freedom of Information Advisory Council is available to answer any questions you may have about FOIA. The Council may be contacted:
by e-mail at: foiacouncil@leg.state.va.us,
or by phone at: 804-225-3056 or [toll free]: 1-866-448-4100.

Department of General Services Responsibilities in Responding to Requests:

The Department of General Services must respond to your request within five working days of receipt. "Day One" is the day after the request is received. The five-day period does not include weekends or holidays.

The Department of General Services in accordance with the Code of Virginia § 2.2-3704 subsection A can request the requester’s legal name and legal address.

The Department of General Services response to requests may be one of the following:

Provide, in their entirety, the records requested
Withhold all records requested because they are subject to a specific statutory exemption. The response from the Department of General Services will cite the specific section of the Code of Virginia explaining the exemption.
Provide some of the records requested, but withhold other records. An entire record will not be withheld if only a portion is subject to exemption. The record may be redacted and only a portion withheld. The response from the Department of General Services will cite the specific section of the Code of Virginia explaining the exemption.
If the request is for a large number of records and it is not practically possible for the Department of General Services to respond to the request within the five work days, FOIA provides for an additional seven days to respond to the request, providing a total of 12 working days. The Department of General Services will contact the requester if additional time is needed. If the request is extremely extensive and the records cannot be provided within 12 days without disrupting organizational responsibilities the Department will contact the requester to agree on a reasonable time period to produce the records.

Costs:

To search, prepare, and copy records utilizes department resources. Therefore, in accordance with the Code of Virginia § 2.2-3704 the department may charge for the actual costs incurred in responding to a FOIA request. This includes staff time spent searching for the requested records, copying costs, or any other costs directly related to supplying the requested records and does not include general overhead costs. If a request is estimated to cost more than $200, in accordance with the Code of Virginia § 2.2-3704 a deposit may be required before proceeding with the request. The five days to respond to the request does not include the time between asking for a deposit and the requester’s response.

A citizen may request in advance an estimate of the charges. If a citizen owes the Department of General Services for a previous FOIA request and it has remained unpaid for more than 30 days the Department of General Services may require payment of the past-due bill before responding to the new FOIA request.

Common FOIA Exemptions:

The Code of Virginia allows any public body to withhold certain records from public disclosure. The Department of General Services exemptions may include, but are not limited to:

Personnel records (§ 2.2-3705.1 (1) of the Code of Virginia)
Records subject to attorney-client privilege (§ 2.2-3705.1 (2)) or attorney work product (§ 2.2-3705.1 (3))
Vendor proprietary information (§ 2.2-3705.1 (6))
Records relating to the negotiation and award of a contract, prior to a contract being awarded (§ 2.2-3705.1 (12))

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