Freedom of Information

The Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), known by its legal cite as 5 United States Code (U.S.C.) Section 552, along with Department of Defense (DoD) Publication 5400.7, can be found at Part 286 of Chapter 32 of the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR), which is available in most libraries or online from the U.S. Government Printing Office Access CFR website.

What is the FOIA?

The FOIA allows the general public including foreign citizens, military and civilian personnel acting as private citizens, to request records electronically or in writing from the Federal Government. Some records are released to the public under the FOIA, and may therefore reflect deletion of some information in accordance with the FOIA's nine statutory exemptions or two law enforcement record exclusions. A consolidated list of such records is on the DoD and Air Force FOIA sites. Currently the law allows 20 working days to process a FOIA request upon receipt of the request in the FOIA office.

Who can submit a request?

Members of the public, including foreign citizens, military and civilian personnel acting as private citizens, organizations and businesses, and individual members of the Congress for themselves or constituents, may request records in writing. It is important to remember that the Freedom of Information Act applies only to federal agencies. It does not create a right of access to records held by Congress, the courts, state or local government agencies, or by private businesses or individuals. Each state has its own public access laws that should be consulted for access to state and local records.

How to make a request

The Air National Guard has centralized its FOIA Program. We encourage requestors to make FOIA requests electronically through AF FOIA website. You may also mail, email or fax your FOIA request for ANG Records as follows:

NGB FOIA Office (NGB-DM&A-OIP)
111 South George Mason Drive, AH2
Arlington, VA 22204-1373
Phone: (844) 573-2939

Requests can also be made online at PAL Application-Home (af.mil) or by email, ngb.foia@army.mil when requesting by email, please be sure to indicate it is a request for the Air National Guard.

The ANG/FOIA Office can be contacted between 8:00 AM - 5:00 PM EST.

Requests must contain the following:

1. Name, address, and telephone number of requester.
2. Detailed description of record(s) requested.
3. A statement stating a willingness to pay fees incurred through search, review, and reproduction of the records. You may also include in your request a specific statement limiting the amount that you are willing to pay in processing fees. If the total fees for processing your request will exceed your limited amount, you will be notified in writing of the estimate and offer you an opportunity to resolve the matter. If you continue to want all the records involved, you will be asked to express your commitment in writing to pay all the associated fees. Processing of your request will be held in abeyance upon receipt of confirmation of willingness to pay appropriate processing fees by your category.

Personnel Records

Service records on former civilian and military members are NOT maintained by the Air National Guard. They are maintained by the National Archives and Records Administrations' National Personnel Records Center. Records request instructions and contact information is listed on their Web site.

More Information

To learn more about the FOIA and about how to request information through the FOIA, view the DoD FOIA Handbook.