§ 200.6 - Information available; inspection, copying, and charges.

§ 200.6 Information available; inspection, copying, and charges.

(a) In accordance with 5 U.S.C. 552(a) and 7 CFR 1.2, the Forest Service shall make available for public inspection and copying all published or unpublished directives, forms, records, and final opinions, including concurring or dissenting opinions and orders made in the adjudication of cases. Charges for information requested from the Forest Service are set out in paragraph (d) of this section and vary according to the type of information requested.

(b) Information made available pursuant to paragraph (a) of this section may be obtained at the Office of the Chief, or the office of any Regional Forester, Research Station Director, Area Director, Institute Director, Forest Supervisor, or District Ranger. The addresses of these offices are set forth in §§ 200.1 and 200.2. Forest Service personnel at these offices will assist members of the public seeking Forest Service records. However, Research Station and Institute Directors and District Rangers may not have all volumes of the Forest Service Manual and Handbooks. When the information requested is not available at a given location, the personnel where the request is received will direct the requester to another office where the information may be obtained.

(c) Inspection and copying availability is as follows:

(1) Facilities for inspection and copying are available at the offices listed in §§ 200.1 and 200.2, during established office hours for the particular location, usually 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday. Copying facilities may not be available at all Forest Service offices.

(2) Requesters for information may make copies of available information without charge if they elect to bring their own copy equipment to the appropriate offices listed in §§ 200.1 and 200.2.

(3) Requesters should make prior arrangements for using agency copying facilities or for bringing in copying equipment and, in the later case, should get advance approval from the office.

(d) Any request for information pursuant to the provisions of the Freedom of Information Act must be submitted in accordance with §§ 200.7 and 200.8. The Forest Service charges a fee for copies of records not generally made available to the public but released pursuant to a FOIA request in accordance with a schedule of fees established by the Department of Agriculture at 7 CFR Part 1, Subpart A, Appendix A. These fees do not apply to information that is generally and routinely made available to the public upon request, such as recreational brochures, pamphlets, maps, and technical guides as well as agency directive issuances. Separate charges for such general information are established in the agency's Directive System (§ 200.4). For example, some pamphlets and small segments of the Forest Service Manual and Handbook may be provided at no cost, but maps of the National Forest System and larger sections of the Manual and Handbook are available for a charge. Current charges are explained at the time the request is made.

[62 FR 13540, Mar. 21, 1997]