Issue #13 FOIA Filing Procedures

Welcome to Issue #13! I'd like to take this opportunity to thank everyone for their support! The warm reception all of you have given my postings are deeply appreciated. It is my hope that The Field Investigator's Tool Box will continue to grow to be a valuable asset to all Field Investigators, and anyone interested in UFO's and related subjects. With that said, let me launch right into the topic this week...the procedure for filing an FOIA request.

Besides knowing where to send your FOIA request, one also needs to know the proper way to format your request so that you can obtain the maximum results. The following is an example of how to format a request.

Suggestions for formatting your FOIA request letter.

Keep in mind that if you choose to file online, you are giving consent to be monitored. Call me old fashioned, but for my purposes I'm going to help finance the pension of my mailman rather than give away my privacy rights.

Okay, so now you have some idea of how to frame your request, let me also include that you want to be as specific as possible as to what information you request. In my case, I'm fortunate enough to have a date, a location, and (I always save the best for last!) a Project Blue Book file number. In the case of copies of letters you might be requesting, don't forget to include the author of the letter, the recipient of the letter, and where any copies went to. Again, the more information you can provide, the better chance that your search can be narrowed down to what you are looking for. Of course, there is no guarantee that what you request can be released. Always keep in mind that if it is in the best interest of national security, it will remain classified. Following are three examples of where you would want to send your FOIA request. All of the following are associated with the Department of Defense...for some reason our interests are often found to be their interest's too, although officially they will never say so.

FOIA request information for the National Security Agency.

FOIA request information for the Defense Intelligence Agency.

FOIA request information for the Department of the Air Force.

After I publish today's issue, I'm going to go mail my requests so you won't hear any more about this until I hear some results...which I am hoping are going to be worth sharing!

Come back next week as I look at requests for information from local law enforcement, and civilian and military air installations.

I hope you all liked this weeks issue! Don't forget to share with all your friends, and 'click' "Follow" if you really like it! Thanks for all your support!