Despite the waiting, the fees, and the exemptions, there have been hundreds of FOIA officers this year that have made accessing records smooth and seamless. In FY 2017, the Federal government processed over 820,000 requests, which is more than the 800,000 requests it received. MuckRock’s own data on users’ request fees indicates that the majority of our requests incurred no fees at all. In honor of the holiday, we’re asking requesters far and wide to take a minute and thank a records officer who has gone above and beyond to answer a request.

Do you know of a FOIA officer who responded quickly to your request? Did a records custodian work with you in getting the information you needed? Write them a quick note letting them know you appreciate the work they’re doing! A brief note of appreciation can go a long way.

We’ll be taking submissions over the next couple of weeks and sending those responses accordingly. We’ll highlight the best stories and contact records officers for more tips on how to make record requesting easy. Don’t miss your chance to thank the record rockstars who facilitate our FOIAs!

On behalf of MuckRock, we would to thank our users for their incredible support this year and also thank the amazing FOIA officers across the nation who help the watchdogs of our government.