17 CFR § 200.308 - Administrative appeals.

(a) Administrative review. A requester who has been notified pursuant to § 200.304(c), § 200.306(d), or § 200.307(d) that his or her inquiry or request has been denied in whole or in part, or who has received no response to a request for access or to amend within 30 days (excluding Saturdays, Sundays, and Federal holidays) after his or her request was received by the Office of the FOIA Services, may appeal to the Office of the General Counsel the adverse determination.

(1) Appeals must be received within 90 calendar days of the date of the written denial of an inquiry or request and must be received no later than 11:59 p.m., eastern time, on the 90th day.

(2) The appeal should be in writing and should provide the assigned request number, a copy of the original request, and the adverse determination. The appeal should also explain why the requester contends any adverse determination was in error. The requester may state such facts and cite such legal or other authorities as the requester may consider appropriate in support of the appeal. If only a portion of the adverse determination is appealed, the requester should specify which part is being appealed.

(3) The appeal may be submitted by email (foiapa@sec.gov) or online at the Commission's website at https://www.sec.gov/forms/request_public_docs. A requester may alternatively submit an appeal by mail to the Securities and Exchange Commission, Office of FOIA Services, 100 F Street NE, Washington, DC 20549 or other mailing address or facsimile number published on the Commission's website at https://www.sec.gov/oso/help/foia-contact.html.

(4) The Office of the General Counsel will endeavor to make a determination with respect to an appeal within 30 days after the receipt of such appeal (excluding Saturdays, Sundays, and Federal holidays) unless, for good cause shown, the Office of the General Counsel extends that period. If such an extension is made, the individual who is appealing will be advised in writing of the extension, the reasons therefor, and the anticipated date when the appeal will be decided.

(5) If the Office of the General Counsel concludes that an inquiry or request for access, amendment or correction, or an accounting should be granted, it will issue a decision granting the inquiry or request and instructing the Office of FOIA Services to comply with § 200.304(b), § 200.306(c), or § 200.307(c), as applicable.

(6) If the Office of the General Counsel affirms the initial decision denying an inquiry or request for access or an accounting, it will issue a decision denying the inquiry or request and advising the requester of:

(i) The reasons for the denial; and

(ii) The requester's right to obtain judicial review of the decision pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 552a(g)(1)(B) or (g)(1)(D), as applicable.

(7) If the Office of the General Counsel determines that the decision of the Office of FOIA Services denying a request for amendment or correction should be upheld, it will issue a decision denying the request and the individual will be advised of:

(i) The decision refusing to amend or correct the record and the reasons therefor;

(ii) The requester's right to file a concise statement setting forth his or her disagreement with the decision not to amend or correct the record;

(iii) The procedures for filing such a statement of disagreement;

(iv) The fact that any such statement of disagreement will be made available to anyone to whom the record is disclosed, together with, if the Office of the General Counsel deems it appropriate, a brief statement setting forth the Office of the General Counsel's reasons for refusing to amend or correct;

(v) The fact that prior recipients of the record in issue will be provided with the statement of disagreement and the Office of the General Counsel's statement, if any, to the extent that an accounting of such disclosures has been maintained pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 552a(c); and

(vi) The requester's right to seek judicial review of the Office of the General Counsel's refusal to amend or correct, pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 552a(g)(1)(A).

(8) In appropriate cases the Office of the General Counsel may, in its sole discretion, refer matters requiring administrative review of initial decisions to the Commission for determination and the issuance, where indicated, of decisions.

(b) Statements of disagreement. As noted in paragraph (a)(6)(ii) of this section, a requester may file a statement setting forth his or her disagreement with the Office of the General Counsel's denial of the request for amendment or correction.

(1) Such statement of disagreement may be submitted by email (foiapa@sec.gov) or online at the Commission's website at https://www.sec.gov/forms/request_public_docs. A requester who is not able to submit a statement of disagreement by email or online may submit a request by mail to the Securities and Exchange Commission, Office of FOIA Services, 100 F Street NE, Washington, DC 20549 or other mailing address or facsimile number published on the Commission's website at https://www.sec.gov/oso/help/foia-contact.html. A requester must submit a statement of disagreement within 30 days after receipt of the Office of the General Counsel's decision denying the request for amendment or correction. For good cause shown this period can be extended for a reasonable time.

(2) Statements of disagreement should be concise and must clearly identify each part of any record that is disputed and state the basis for the requester's disagreement. The Office of the General Counsel will return unduly lengthy or irrelevant materials to the individual for appropriate revisions before they become a permanent part of the requester's record. Statements of disagreement will be placed in the system of records in which the disputed record is maintained. The disputed record will be marked to indicate that a statement of disagreement has been filed and where in the system of records it may be found.

(3) If a requester has filed a statement of disagreement, the Office of FOIA Services will append a copy of it to the disputed record whenever the record is disclosed and may also append a concise statement of its reason(s) for denying the request for amendment or correction.

(4) In appropriate cases, the Office of the General Counsel may, in its sole discretion, refer matters concerning statements of disagreement to the Commission for disposition.