What Can You Request Under the FOIA and State Open Records Laws?
With the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) and state public records laws, you can request awide variety of government documents.
Calunah makes the process simple — we draft your request letter so you can send it with confidence.
Browse Records by Category
Thank you! Your submission has been received!
Oops! Something went wrong while submitting the form.
Law Enforcement & Public Safety Records
These records reveal how police and emergency services operate.
Law Enforcement & Public Safety
- Arrest records
- Fire department incident reports
- Mugshots
- Police incident reports
- Jail rosters and incident logs
- Use-of-force reports
- 911 call logs
- Autopsy reports
- Body-worn camera videos
- Closed criminal investigations
10 Real-Life Examples
- Requesting bodycam footage from an officer-involved shooting.
- Obtaining 911 call transcripts during a high-profile emergency.
- Reviewing use-of-force reports after a protest arrest.
- Accessing SWAT deployment logs for a controversial raid.
- Requesting autopsy and toxicology reports in a suspicious death.
- Investigating internal affairs complaints against a police officer
- Requesting fire investigation findings after a large building fire
- Seeking parole board records for a high-profile inmate
- Obtaining dashcam videos from a disputed traffic stop
- Requesting hazardous material spill response records after a chemical accident
Government Operations & Accountability
Hold agencies accountable by requesting internal documents, communications, and spending records.
What You Can Request
- Public official emails
- Audit reports
- Inspector General reports
- Meeting minutes and recordings
- FOIA logs
- Whistleblower complaint summaries
- Expense reports
- Procurement bids
- Government contracts
- Policy manuals
10 Real-Life Examples
- Requesting emails of a mayor regarding a controversial land sale.
- Reviewing travel expense records for a city council member.
- Obtaining audit reports exposing financial mismanagement.
- Accessing vendor invoices for a multimillion-dollar contract.
- Reviewing lobbyist communication logs for policy influence
- Requesting meeting recordings from a closed-door session.
- Investigating performance evaluations of a public agency.
- Obtaining gift and ethics disclosures for an elected official.
- Requesting procurement bid scoring sheets to ensure fairness.
- Accessing FOIA logs to see what others have requested.
Property, Land & Environmental Records
Understand land ownership, environmental impact, and government land use decisions.
What You Can Request
- Property deeds and tax assessments
- Eminent domain records
- Forestry and wildlife enforcement reports
- Building permits
- Environmental impact statements (EIS)
- Public park maintenance logs
- Zoning maps and decisions
- Air and water quality reports
- Land use applications
- Hazardous waste site data
10 Real-Life Examples
- Requesting zoning maps before purchasing property.
- Reviewing environmental studies on a planned industrial site.
- Accessing hazardous waste cleanup reports for a local river.
- Obtaining building permits for a neighbor’s new construction.
- Investigating pesticide usage reports near farmland.
- Requesting forestry management plans to monitor logging activity.
- Obtaining water quality test results for a municipal supply.
- Reviewing radiation monitoring data near a power plant.
- Requesting mining operation permits for a new excavation site.
- Accessing public park maintenance logs to check safety compliance
Education & Public Institutions
School and university records are often requested to understand policies, spending, and safety
What You Can Request
- School board meeting minutes
- Standardized test performance data
- Student directory information (FERPA-limited)
- School safety incident reports
- Charter school contracts
- School bus accident reports
- Teacher salary data
- University budget allocations
- Teacher disciplinary records
- Campus police incident logs
10 Real-Life Examples
- Requesting school safety reports after a series of threats.
- Reviewing teacher disciplinary records in a public district.
- Accessing charter school contracts to evaluate funding.
- Obtaining school board meeting recordings about curriculum changes.
- Reviewing university budgets to track public spending.
- Requesting campus police incident logs after an on-campus crime.
- Investigating standardized test data for statewide performance trends.
- Obtaining school bus accident reports for liability research.
- Requesting public salary data for teachers and administrators.
- Reviewing maintenance logs for school facilities safety.
Transportation, Utilities & Infrastructure
Access records on roads, bridges, public transit, and utilities to monitor safety and service quality.
What You Can Request
- Bridge inspection reports
- Traffic engineering studies
- Transit ridership data
- Road maintenance logs
- FAA incident reports
- Infrastructure project contracts
- Utility outage records
- Telecom tower permits
- Public transportation accident reports
- Utility rate schedules
10 Real-Life Examples
- Requesting bridge inspection data after a structural collapse.
- Reviewing road repair logs to see if repairs were delayed
- Accessing utility outage records after prolonged blackouts
- Investigating FAA incident reports about a near-miss event.
- Obtaining traffic engineering studies for a proposed intersection redesign.
- Requesting public transit accident records for bus and rail safety.
- Reviewing utility rate increases and justification documents.
- Accessing telecom tower permits to check for local compliance.
- Obtaining infrastructure project contracts for public spending transparency.
- Requesting transit ridership data to study service usage patterns.
Why This Matters
Investigate government decisions
Support journalism and research
Uncover historical information
Empower your rights as a citizen
How Calunah Helps You
No lawyer needed. No hassle.
Ready to Request Your Records?
Generate My FOIA Request