EPA Part 2 Section 102

TITLE 40--PROTECTION OF ENVIRONMENT

CHAPTER I--ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

PART 2--PUBLIC INFORMATION--Table of Contents

Subpart A--Procedures for Disclosure of Records Under the Freedom
of Information Act


Sec.  2.102  Procedures for making requests.

    (a) How made and addressed. You may make a request for EPA records 
that are not publicly available under Sec.  2.201(a)-(b) by writing 
directly to the appropriate FOI Officer, as listed in Sec.  2.101(a). 
Only written requests for records will be accepted for processing under 
this subpart. For records located at EPA Headquarters, or in those 
instances when you cannot determine where to send your request, you may 
send it to the Records, FOIA, and Privacy Branch, Office of 
Environmental Information, Environmental Protection Agency, 1200 
Pennsylvania Avenue, NW., Washington, DC 20460; e-mail: 
hq.foia@epa.gov. That office will forward your request to the regional 
FOI Office it believes most likely to have the records that you want. 
Your request will be considered received as of the date it is received 
by the correct FOI Office. Misdirected requests will not be considered 
received by EPA until the appropriate FOI Office receives the request. 
For proper handling, you should mark both your request letter and its 
envelope or e-mail subject line ``Freedom of Information Act Request.'' 
You should also include your name, mailing address, and daytime 
telephone number in the event we need to contact you.
    (b) EPA employees may attempt in good faith to comply with oral 
requests for inspection or disclosure of EPA records publicly available 
under Sec.  2.201(a)-(b) , but such requests are not subject to the 
FOIA or the regulations in this part.
    (c) Description of records sought. Your request should reasonably 
describe the records you are seeking in a way that will permit EPA 
employees to identify and locate them. Whenever possible, your request 
should include specific information about each record sought, such as 
the date, title or name, author, recipient, and subject matter. If 
known, you should include any file designations or descriptions for the 
records that you want. The more specific you are about the records or 
type of records that you want, the more likely EPA will be able to 
identify and locate records responsive to your request. If EPA 
determines that your request does not reasonably describe the records, 
it will tell you either what additional information you need to provide 
or why your request is otherwise insufficient. EPA will also give you 
an opportunity to discuss and modify your request to meet the 
requirements of this section. Should it be necessary for you to provide 
a revised description of the records you are seeking, the time 
necessary to do so will be excluded from the statutory 20 working day 
period (or any authorized extension of time) that EPA has to respond to 
your request as discussed in Sec.  2.104.
    (d) Agreement to pay fees. If you make a FOIA request, EPA will 
consider your request to be an agreement that you will pay all 
applicable fees charged under Sec.  2.107, up to $25.00, unless you 
seek a waiver of fees. The EPA office responsible for responding to 
your request ordinarily will confirm this agreement in writing. When 
making a request, you may specify a willingness to pay a greater or 
lesser amount. Should it be necessary for you to provide a written 
agreement to pay additional fees, the time necessary to do so will be 
excluded from the statutory 20 working day period (or any authorized 
extension of time).
EPA Part 2 Section 102

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