Public Records (FOIA) Requests

Requesting Records

If you are a citizen of Virginia or a member of the media broadcasting or having circulation within Virginia:

• You may request to inspect and/or receive copies of public records.
• You may request that any charges for requested records be estimated in advance.
• If a public body is not complying with FOIA, you may file a petition in general district or circuit court to compel the public body to comply with FOIA. 
  
  Alternatively, you may contact the Commonwealth of Virginia’s FOIA Council for a nonbinding advisory opinion.

Public records may be requested in the following ways to any representative of the public body:

• in-person,
• email, 
• phone, 
• mail, or 
• fax. 

FOIA does not require requesters to state that they are requesting records under FOIA, nor requires requests be made in writing. However, written record through the county’s online FOIA request form ensures both parties have documentation of the request and allows the county clear direction on the records requested. 

FOIA requests must identify records with “reasonable specificity.” This is a common-sense standard. It does not refer to or limit the volume or number of records that may be requested; instead, it requires requests to be specific enough to identify and locate the requested records. The county may need clarification to ensure understanding of the records requested. Requesters are asked to cooperate with county staff to reach FOIA compliance. The county does not require requesters to disclose the reasoning behind requests for public records. The county can require requesters to provide your legal name and address.

FOIA only applies to existing records and does not require the public body to create a record that does not exist nor does it apply to answering general questions about the county, its work, public officers, officials, and employees.

Requesters may elect to receive electronic records in any format used by the county in its regular course of business. For example, a requester may elect to receive records maintained in an Excel database, electronically, via e-mail or on a storage device, or to receive a printed copy of those records.

Costs

Pursuant to Code of Virginia § 2.2-3704.1, a public body may make reasonable charges not to exceed its actual cost incurred in accessing, duplicating, supplying, or searching for requested records and shall make all reasonable efforts to supply the requested records at the lowest possible cost. No public body shall impose any extraneous, intermediary, or surplus fees or expenses to recoup the general costs associated with creating or maintaining records or transacting the general business of the public body. Any duplicating fee charged by a public body shall not exceed the actual cost of duplication.

After receipt of a request, the FOIA Officer will notify the requester that they may request a cost estimate and direct the request to the appropriate county department(s), board member(s), or other public official(s). 

If total time expended exceeds 30 minutes, the cost shall be totaled by the applicable hourly rate of each individual performing work multiplied by the number of hours (rounded to the nearest quarter of an hour).

If it is anticipated that the response cost will exceed $200 or the requester asks for a cost estimate, then the requester will receive a cost estimate, outlining the estimated number of records, review time, and hourly rate of the qualified staff member(s) fulfilling the request. 

In the event that a cost estimate exceeds $200, the response time is paused pending a deposit, and if a requester asks for a cost estimate but the estimate is less than $200, the response time is also paused pending notification by the requester to proceed with the request. If no deposit is made nor affirmative response given to proceed, the request shall be deemed automatically withdrawn after thirty (30) days.

All deposits shall be paid by check or money order, made payable to King George County, and delivered to the County Administrator’s Office (10459 Courthouse Drive, Suite 200). Checks and money orders will be held and only deposited once the request is complete. Any outstanding balance will be billed on or after the date the response is complete. In the event that the cost estimate exceeded actual costs, any balance remaining from the deposit shall be returned to the requester. 

If the county is owed money from a previous FOIA request that has remained unpaid for more than 30 days, the county may require payment of the past-due bill before it will respond to any new FOIA request from the delinquent requester.

Fees charged for supplies, duplications, etc. shall be as follows:

• Copies
  $0.02 per page
• Compact Disc
  $0.30 per C.D. (or at cost for thumb drives or similar external storage devices)
• Mail
  Actual cost to mail the request
• Documents from GIS
  See GIS fee schedule

Types of Responses to Requests 

The county must respond to a request for public records within five (5) working days of receiving it. “Day One” is considered the next working day after a request is received. The five-day period does not include weekends, holidays, or emergency closures. Below are the five potential responses a requester may receive.

1. Provided the requested records in their entirety with reasonable efforts to produce the records at the lowest possible cost.
2. Withheld all of the requested records because the records are subject to a specific statutory exclusion or exemption. If all of the records are withheld, the county will send you a response in writing, identifying the volume and subject matter of the records being withheld, and state the specific provision of FOIA or other legal authority that allows the county to withhold the records.
3. Provided some of the requested records but withheld other records. The county may not withhold an entire record if only a portion of it is subject to an exemption. In that instance, the county may redact the portion of the record that may be withheld and will provide the remainder of the record. The county will provide a written response stating the specific statute that allows portions of the requested records to be withheld.
4. Informed in writing that the requested records do not exist or cannot be found. However, if the county knows another public body has the requested records, the county will include contact information for the other public body in the response.
5. Informed in writing with reasoning as to why the county invokes a seven (7) additional working day extension to fulfill the request, resulting in a total of twelve (12) working days to respond to a request.
   
   If a request results in a large number of records, and the county concludes that it cannot provide the records within twelve (12) working days without disrupting its other administrative or organizational responsibilities, the county may petition the circuit court for additional time to respond to your request. Prior to petitioning the court, the county will make a reasonable effort to reach an agreement with the requester to modify the request by scope and/or expected response time. 

Common Exemptions 

The Code of Virginia allows any public body to withhold certain records from public disclosure. The county generally withholds records under the following exemptions:

1. Personnel records (§ 2.2-3705.1 (1)), except for the job title, salary, and expense reimbursements.
2. Records that are subject to attorney-client privilege (§ 2.2-3705.1 (2)) or attorney work product (§ 2.2-3705.1 (3)).
3. Vendor proprietary information (§ 2.2-3705.1 (6)).
4. Medical and social services records.
5. Records relating to the negotiation and award of a contract before a contract has been awarded (§ 2.2-3705.1 (12)).

Other departments and offices are subject to additional laws pursuant to the nature of their work that may result in the withholding of records.