Ill. Admin. Code tit. 2, § 1976.425 - Requests for Review of Denials - Public Access Counselor
a)
A person whose request to inspect
or copy a record is denied by the Agency may file a request for review with the
Public Access Counselor established in the Office of the Attorney General not
later than 60 days after the date of the final denial. The request for review
shall be in writing, be signed by the requester, and include a copy of the
request for access to records and any response from the Agency.
(Section 9.5(a) of FOIA)
b)
A person whose request to inspect or copy a record is made for a
commercial purpose may not file a request for review with the Public Access
Counselor. A person whose request to inspect or copy a record was treated by
the Agency as a request for a commercial purpose may file a request for review
with the Public Access Counselor for the limited purpose of reviewing whether
the Agency properly determined that the request was made for a commercial
purpose. (Section 9.5(b) of FOIA)
c)
Within 7 business days after the
Agency receives a request for review from the Public Access Counselor, the
Agency shall provide copies of records requested and shall otherwise fully
cooperate with the Public Access Counselor. (Section 9.5(c) of
FOIA)
d)
Within 7 business
days after it receives a copy of a request for review and request for
production of records from the Public Access Counselor, the Agency may, but is
not required to, answer the allegations of the request for review. The answer
may take the form of a letter, brief, or memorandum. The Public Access
Counselor shall forward a copy of the answer to the person submitting the
request for review, with any alleged confidential information to which the
request pertains redacted from the copy. (Section 9.5(d) of
FOIA)
e)
The requester may,
but is not required to, respond in writing to the answer within 7 business days
and shall provide a copy of the response to the Agency. (Section
9.5(d) of FOIA)
f)
In
addition to the request for review, and the answer and response to the request,
if any, a requester or the Agency may furnish affidavits or records concerning
any matter germane to the review. (Section 9.5(e) of FOIA)
g)
A binding opinion from the
Attorney General shall be binding upon both the requester and the Agency,
subject to administrative review under Section
1976.435. (Section 9.5(f) of
FOIA)
h)
If the Attorney
General decides to exercise his or her discretion to resolve a request for
review by mediation or by a means other than issuance of a binding opinion, the
decision not to issue a binding opinion shall not be reviewable.
(Section 9.5(f) of FOIA)
i)
Upon receipt of a binding opinion concluding that a violation of FOIA
has occurred, the Agency will either take necessary action immediately to
comply with the directive of the opinion or shall initiate administrative
review under Section
1976.435. If the opinion
concludes that no violation of FOIA has occurred, the requester may initiate
administrative review under Section
1976.435. (Section 9.5(f) of
FOIA)
j)
If the Agency
discloses records in accordance with an opinion of the Attorney General, the
Agency is immune from all liabilities by reason thereof and shall not be liable
for penalties under FOIA. (Section 9.5(f) of FOIA)
k)
If the requester files suit
under Section
1976.430
with respect to
the same denial that is the subject of a pending request for review, the
requester shall notify the Public Access Counselor. (Section 9.5(g) of
FOIA)
l)
The Attorney
General may also issue advisory opinions to the Agency regarding compliance
with FOIA. A review may be initiated upon receipt of a written request from
the Director of the Agency or the Agency's Chief Legal Counsel,
which shall contain sufficient accurate facts from which a
determination can be made. The Public Access Counselor may request additional
information from the Agency in order to assist in the review. If the Agency
relies in good faith on an advisory opinion of the Attorney General in
responding to a request, the Agency is not liable for penalties under FOIA, so
long as the facts upon which the opinion is based have been fully and fairly
disclosed to the Public Access Counselor. (Section 9.5(h) of
FOIA)
Notes
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