r/foia

Hello,

I am looking to obtain a certified police arrest report from the Massachusetts State Police from an arrest of mine back in August in 2013. It's my understanding that these types of requests need to be submitted online. I had a couple of quick questions I was hoping someone may be able to help with:

1. Does anyone know if I can go somewhere in person to get this report?
2. If the online portal is the only way, could anyone help with what Type of Record I need to submit? The options I see are:
   1. Motor Vehicle Crash Report
   2. Incident Report
   3. Motor Vehicle Citation
   4. Collision Analysis Reconstruction Report
   5. Department Plicy
   6. Internal Affairs Document
   7. Other

There was no accident or crash. so I'm assuming it would be either :Other" or "Incident Report". If anyone could provide any tips or guidance on getting the report, submitting the request, or expediting the request it would be greatly appreciated, thank you!

Hello

I made a SAR towards the end of April 2026. I was told someone from the information team would be in contact with me. To date this has not happened. I sent chaser emails and no response so I logged a stage 1 complaint regarding the handling and lack of communication.

The council customer service officer asked for my name / address to log the complaint which I provided. They have now responded saying they can't discuss anything with me as there is no third party consent form on the account. My parents are the main tenants and I live at home.

I called the helpline to which someone said my SAR had been logged and then I said I haven't heard anything as they said I need to get a form signed. She then shut down and she thought I was the main tenant (I had already made it clear on the call I wasn't) and refused to say anything aside from "sign the form and call us back". I asked them to clarify whether they are confirming that they can't discuss my SAR which is about my personal data and she just responded with the same line.

Is this correct? At no point did I ask to discuss the tenancy, rent etc it was about my SAR and they have refused to discuss my complaint and SAR request with me as I am not the main tenant.

https://preview.redd.it/y14xh9ym0r1h1.png?width=1567&format=png&auto=webp&s=90433cdce710777b31368439b5cd101f2b44363e

I have called VA a few times and I went by my regional office but they could not help me with this FOIA claim that is more than 13 months old. Has anyone else had to wait this long to get your C-file? I have attached a screenshot of the claim showing it is 388 days old.

So I am a Coast Guard veteran first of all. Last July I submitted a FOIA request for my service medical records along with other records. Here me are in the middle of May 2026 and it has not moved at all. I contacted my regional office for my service records as I was told to do and they said they don’t have my service records. I contacted my local VA and they don’t have my service records. How can I get this moving so that I can get the benefits I deserve??? Thanks in advance

Hi all,

I’m an out-of-state requester trying to get public records from a Tennessee city (Clarksville) related to an active government bid I’m participating in.

They denied/blocked the request unless I provide a Tennessee driver’s license or ID, saying only “Tennessee citizens” can access records under their policy (T.C.A. § 10-7-503).

Problem is:

• I’m not a TN resident
• I am a bidder on the project the records relate to
• So it’s not a random request

Is this normal in Tennessee FOIA practice?
Do agencies actually enforce the residency requirement like this?

Also curious if anyone has dealt with a workaround (proxy requester, etc.).

Question: Are attachments to an email such as pictures, docs or spreadsheets part of the email? I am being told I did not get them because I asked for emails and did not specifically request to include attachments.