§ 9800.10 - Appeals.

§ 9800.10 Appeals.

(a) Requesters may appeal the denial of a request by writing directly to the CIGIE FOIA Officer through electronic mail, mail, delivery service, or facsimile. The electronic mail address is [e-mail]. For mail or delivery service, the mailing address is: FOIA Officer, Council of the Inspectors General on Integrity and Efficiency, 1717 H Street NW., Suite 825, Washington, DC 20006. The facsimile number is: [phone]. CIGIE's FOIA Reference Guide, which is available on CIGIE's Web site, http://www.ignet.gov, provides additional information regarding submitting an appeal.

(b) Appeals must be sent to official CIGIE FOIA mailboxes that are established for the purpose of receiving appeals. An appeal that is sent to an individual CIGIE employee's mailbox or directly to a CIGIE standing committee address - other than for IC records - will not be considered a perfected appeal. Mailbox addresses designated to receive appeals are identified in paragraph (a) of this section.

(c) CIGIE will not consider an improperly addressed appeal to have been received for purposes of the 20-day time limit of paragraph (h) of this section until it is actually received by CIGIE at one of the locations specified in paragraph (a) of this section.

(d) FOIA appeals must be in writing, and should contain the phrase “FOIA Appeal” on the front of the envelope or on the cover sheet of the facsimile transmittal.

(e) Appeals must include the requester's full name and a legible return address. Requesters may include other contact information as well, such as a telephone number and an electronic mail address.

(f) Requesters submitting an administrative appeal of a denial of a request for records must ensure that the appeal is received by CIGIE within 45 days of the date of the denial letter.

(g) CIGIE provides for review of appeals by an official different from the official or officials designated to make initial denials.

(h) Upon receipt of an appeal, CIGIE shall inform the requester of its determination concerning that appeal within 20 working days (excepting Saturdays, Sundays, and Federal holidays), plus any extension authorized by § 9800.14. If CIGIE grants the appeal, the agency will inform the requester of any conditions surrounding the granting of the request and the approximate date the response will be in effect. If CIGIE grants only a portion of the appeal, the agency will treat the portion not granted as a denial. If CIGIE denies the appeal in whole or in part, CIGIE will inform the requester of that decision and of the following:

(1) The reason for denial;

(2) The name and title or position of the person responsible for denial of the appeal; and

(3) The right to judicial review of the denial in accordance with 5 U.S.C. 552(a)(4).

(i) A requester may seek judicial review under 5 U.S.C. 552(a)(4) if the denial of his or her request for records was upheld in whole or in part or if a determination respecting an appeal has not been sent within the statutory time limit in paragraph (h) of this section.

(j) A determination by the designated FOIA appeals official pertaining to CIGIE records will be final agency action.