Does Delaware FOIA require an agency to let you view records the same day you ask?

Official title

18-IB01 1/2/2018 FOIA Opinion Letter to Mr. La Mar Gunn re: FOIA Complaint Concerning the Department of Insurance

Plain-English summary

La Mar Gunn, Sr., president of the Central Delaware NAACP, hand-delivered a FOIA request to the Delaware Department of Insurance (DOI) for a copy of its employee manual and asked for immediate access. A DOI representative told him she was unsure where to locate the manual and that the office had 15 days to respond. Gunn petitioned the AG, arguing that FOIA's requirement of "reasonable access for reviewing public records during regular business hours" meant DOI had to let him view the manual in person right away.

The AG disagreed. FOIA gives a public body up to 15 business days to respond, either by granting access, denying it, or explaining why more time is needed, and separately requires reasonable access to records during business hours, but neither provision requires instant, on-the-spot access the moment a request is made. Because DOI had already offered Gunn an in-person review of the manual just one business day after his request, well within the 15-day window, the AG found DOI had complied with both the timeliness and access requirements and had not violated FOIA.

Currency note

This opinion was issued in 2018. Subsequent statutory amendments, court decisions, or later AG opinions may have changed the analysis. Treat this page as historical context, not current legal advice. Verify current law before relying on any specific rule, deadline, or remedy mentioned here.

Common questions

Can I demand to see a Delaware agency's records the moment I walk in and ask?

No, according to this opinion. FOIA gives a public body up to 15 business days to respond to a request, and its "reasonable access" requirement for reviewing records during business hours does not mean the agency must produce the records for immediate, on-the-spot inspection.

What happens if an employee doesn't immediately know where a requested record is located?

This opinion did not treat that alone as a FOIA violation. The agency representative's uncertainty about where the employee manual was kept did not change the outcome once DOI offered access well within the statutory response window.

How fast did DOI actually respond in this case?

According to the opinion, DOI offered the requester an in-person review of the employee manual just one business day after he hand-delivered his request, which the AG found comfortably satisfied both the 15-business-day response deadline and the reasonable-access requirement.

Does FOIA require a public body to let you take records away with you immediately, or just to let you look at them?

This opinion addressed only the timing of access, not the format. It confirmed FOIA requires reasonable access for reviewing records during business hours, consistent with the general framework requiring in-person inspection and copying rather than an on-demand digital or immediate handover.

Background and statutory framework

Delaware FOIA, 29 Del. C. §§ 10001-10007, requires a public body to respond to a request "as soon as possible, but in any event within 15 business days," either by granting access, denying it, or explaining the need for more time. 29 Del. C. § 10003(h)(1). It separately requires "reasonable access for reviewing public records during regular business hours." 29 Del. C. § 10003(1). Read together, these provisions set an outer deadline and a general in-person access standard, not a right to instantaneous access the moment a request is submitted.

Citations

• 29 Del. C. §§ 10001-10007 (Delaware FOIA)
• 29 Del. C. §10005 (petition procedure for AG determination)
• 29 Del. C. § 10003(h)(1) (15-business-day response deadline)
• 29 Del. C. § 10003(1) (reasonable access for reviewing records during business hours)

Source

• Landing page: https://attorneygeneral.delaware.gov/2018/01/03/18-ib01-122018-foia-opinion-letter-mr-la-mar-gunn-re-foia-complaint-concerning-department-insurance/
• Original PDF: https://attorneygeneral.delaware.gov/wp-content/uploads/sites/50/2018/01/Attorney-General-Opinion-No.-18-IB01.pdf

Original opinion text

Best-effort transcription from a scanned PDF. Minor errors may remain, the linked PDF is authoritative.

CIVIL DIVISION (302) 577-8400
FAX: (302) 577-6630
DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE CRIMINAL DIVISION (302) 577-8500
NEW CASTLE COUNCIL FAX: (302) 577-2496
MATTHEW P. DENN 820 NORTH FRENCH STREET FRAUD DIVISION (302) 577-8600
ATTORNEY GENERAL WILMINGTON, DELAWARE 19801 FAX: (302) 577-6499

OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL OF THE STATE OF DELAWARE
Attorney General Opinion No. 18-IB01
January 2, 2018

VIA U.S. MAIL & EMAIL

La Mar Gunn, Sr.
President

Central Delaware NAACP
11 North State Street
Dover, DE 19901
[email protected]

RE: FOIA Petition Regarding the Delaware Department of Insurance

Dear Mr. Gunn:

I write regarding your correspondence, received December 29, 2017, wherein you allege
that the Delaware Department of Insurance ("DOI") violated the Delaware Freedom of
Information Act, 29 Del. C. §§ 10001-10007 ("FOIA"). I treat your correspondence as a petition
for a determination pursuant to 29 Del. C. §10005 regarding whether a violation of FOIA has
occurred or is about to occur ("Petition"). For the reasons set forth below, it is my determination
that DOI did not violate FOIA as alleged.

On December 29, 2017, you hand-delivered a FOIA request to DOI for a copy of DOI's
employee manual and requested immediate access thereto. You state that a DOI representative,
Ms. Leslie Ledogar, "gave the excuse that she was unsure as to where she could locate the
employee manual and that her office had 15 days to respond to the subject request." You rely on
29 Del. C. § 10003(1), which states "[t]he public body shall provide reasonable access for
reviewing public records during regular business hours," for the proposition that DOI violated
FOIA by failing to provide you immediate in-person access to the requested record.

FOIA requires a public body to "respond to a FOIA request as soon as possible, but in any
event within 15 business days after the receipt thereof, either by providing access to the requested
records, denying access to the records or parts of them, or by advising that additional time is needed
because the request is for voluminous records, requires legal advice, or a record is in storage or
archived."[1] FOIA also requires "reasonable access for reviewing public records during regular
business hours."[2] FOIA does not require a public body to provide immediate in-person access to
records.

Here, the record demonstrates that DOI has already offered to make the requested record
available to you, for an in person review, just one business day after your request. On this record,
I am satisfied that DOI has complied with Sections 10003(h)(1) and (1). As such, it is my
determination that DOI did not violate FOIA as alleged.

Very truly yours,

LaKresha Roberts
Chief Deputy Attorney General

cc: Michelle E. Whalen, Deputy Attorney General
Kathleen P. Makowski, Deputy Attorney General

[1] 29 Del. C. § 10003(h)(1).

[2] 29 Del. C. § 10003(1) (emphasis added).