FOIA section 2(g)
FOIA5 ILCS 140/2(g). Section 2 overview: Defines the Act's key terms: what counts as a “public body” (state agencies, counties, cities, school districts, and their subcommittees), who counts as a “requester,” what a “public record” is, what makes a request a “commercial purpose” or “recurrent” request (which get different response rules), and other terms used throughout the Act.
12 issues across 9 determination letters:5 violation found · 7 no violation.
Counts are per issue, not per letter, and come from automated extraction checked against sampled letters. Determination letters are not binding precedent.
Authorities the Bureau cites most on this issue
- Ill. Att'y Gen. PAC Req. Rev. Ltr. 29472 cited 4 times
- In re Appointment of Special Prosecutor, 2017 IL App (1st) 161376, ¶ 53, 91 N.E.3d 424, 435 (2017) cited 2 times
- Rushton v. Department of Corrections, 2019 IL 124552 cited 2 times
- A township's recurrent requester designation (PAC Req. Rev. Ltr. 77350 77529) cited 2 times
- Perry v. Dep't of Financial and Professional Regulation, 2018 IL 122349 cited 1 times
- Cellular phone bills and credit card expenditures (PAC Req. Rev. Ltr. 44649) cited 1 times
- A police department's recurrent requester designation (PAC Req. Rev. Ltr. 47422 47571 47800 48007 48008) cited 1 times
How to challenge a denial on this issue
AI-generated summary of the decisions listed on this page, with each point linked to the letters it comes from. Determination letters are not binding precedent and this is not legal advice. Open the letter and check the PDF before relying on any point.
When a challenge is strong
- The requester did not submit 50 or more requests in the 52 weeks before the request at issue. The Bureau found violations when the public body miscounted or used an incorrect time period, and the requester fell below the statutory threshold.Based on: n.d. · A village's calculation of FOIA r… · n.d. · A township's recurrent requester … · n.d. · A township's recurrent requester …
- The public body counted requests made by other individuals who were not acting as a group with the requester. In D840.1, attributing employee requests to an employer without establishing group action was a violation, while D1060.1 shows that only requests from individuals acting as a group can be combined.Based on: n.d. · Retroactive application of recurr… · n.d. · Emails between a school board pre…
- The public body applied the recurrent requester designation retroactively to requests made before the law's effective date. D840.2 held that retroactive application imposes new legal consequences on past lawful conduct and is not permitted.Based on: n.d. · Retroactive application of recurr…
When the public body usually wins
- The requester submitted 50 or more requests in the 52 weeks before the request, or 7 requests in 7 days and then another request. D1140.2 and D891.1 upheld designations when the numerical threshold was met, and D1016.1 confirmed that meeting the statutory minimum supports the designation.Based on: n.d. · A village's calculation of FOIA r… · n.d. · A police department's recurrent r… · n.d. · A police department's designation…
- The requester claims a news media exception but cannot show the request was made by news media, or claims non-profit status but failed to notify the public body at submission. D1496.1 and D1040.1 found no violation when the requester did not satisfy these requirements.Based on: 2024 · Transit authority dispatch record… · n.d. · Amendment of requester identity t…
- The requester is part of a group that collectively submitted enough requests to meet the threshold. D1060.1 held that individuals acting as a group can be considered a single person for the recurrent requester count.Based on: n.d. · Emails between a school board pre…
Points to put in your letter
- Count the number of FOIA requests you personally submitted in the 52 weeks before the request at issue. If it is below 50, state that you do not meet the statutory threshold.Based on: n.d. · A village's calculation of FOIA r… · n.d. · A township's recurrent requester … · n.d. · A township's recurrent requester …
- If the public body counted requests made by other people, argue that only your own requests count unless you were all acting as a coordinated group.Based on: n.d. · Retroactive application of recurr… · n.d. · Emails between a school board pre…
- If you are a news media requester, clearly state that the request is made by news media, not just that you contribute to news media.Based on: 2024 · Transit authority dispatch record…
- If you are a non-profit organization, point out that you notified the public body of your status and principal purpose at the time you submitted the request.Based on: n.d. · Amendment of requester identity t…
- If the public body counted requests you made before the recurrent requester law took effect, argue that retroactive application is not permitted.Based on: n.d. · Retroactive application of recurr…
Common mistakes
- Assuming that the 12-month lookback period is a calendar year rather than the 52 weeks immediately before each request.Based on: n.d. · A township's recurrent requester … · n.d. · A township's recurrent requester … · n.d. · A village's calculation of FOIA r…
- Believing that any connection to news media exempts you from recurrent requester status, without showing the request was made by a news media entity.Based on: 2024 · Transit authority dispatch record…
- Forgetting to notify the public body at the time of the request that you are a non-profit organization seeking the exception.Based on: n.d. · Amendment of requester identity t…
- Thinking that requests from different individuals can never be combined to reach the 50-request threshold, even if they are acting as a group.Based on: n.d. · Emails between a school board pre…
- Not objecting when a public body counts requests you made before the recurrent requester law became effective.Based on: n.d. · Retroactive application of recurr…
Facts to gather first
- The date and number of each FOIA request you submitted in the 52 weeks before the request at issue.
- Whether you were acting as part of a group with other requesters.
- Documentation of your news media or non-profit status, and any notification you gave to the public body at the time of the request.
- The effective date of the recurrent requester provision and the dates of any requests made before that date.
These determination letters are non-binding, the outcome depends on specific facts, and you should review the full PDF for context.
Drafting brief for an AI assistant
Copy this into your assistant to help draft a request, appeal, or challenge to a denial that turns on this issue. It carries the rules and decisions, not your facts: add those yourself. Machine-readable version: foia-2-g.json.
Violation found (5)
Recurrent requester designation for April 22, 2025 request
Rule: A public body may look back 52 weeks from each request to determine if the requester submitted at least 50 requests in that period.
Violation found A village's calculation of FOIA requests for recurrent requester status · June 11, 2025
Improper recurrent requester designation for July 13, 2023 request
Rule: The 12 months immediately preceding a request means the 52 weeks before submission, and the requester did not meet the 50-request threshold.
Violation found A township's recurrent requester designation · September 18, 2023
Improper recurrent requester designation for July 23, 2023 request
Rule: The 12 months immediately preceding a request means the 52 weeks before submission, and the requester did not meet the 50-request threshold.
Violation found A township's recurrent requester designation · September 18, 2023
Attribution of employee FOIA requests to employer
Rule: FOIA requests submitted by employees in their employment capacity are attributable to the business employer for classifying it as a recurrent requester.
Violation found Retroactive application of recurrent requester status · September 21, 2018
Retroactive application of recurrent requester provision
Rule: The recurrent requester amendment cannot be applied retroactively to requests submitted before its effective date because it imposes new legal consequences on past lawful conduct.
Violation found Retroactive application of recurrent requester status · September 21, 2018
No violation (7)
Recurrent requester treatment of FOIA request
Rule: A requester is not exempt from recurrent requester status merely by claiming to contribute to news media; the request must be made by news media.
No violation Transit authority dispatch records and service policies · September 18, 2024
Recurrent requester designation for April 23, 2025 request
Rule: A requester qualifies as a recurrent requester if they submitted at least 50 requests in the 52 weeks immediately preceding the request.
No violation A village's calculation of FOIA requests for recurrent requester status · June 11, 2025
Recurrent requester designation
Rule: Individuals acting as a group can be considered a single person and meet the recurrent requester threshold based on combined requests.
No violation Emails between a school board president and superintendent · September 19, 2025
Recurrent requester designation based on seven requests
Rule: A requester must notify the public body at submission that a request is made by a non-profit and identify the principal purpose to qualify for the section 2(g) exception.
No violation Amendment of requester identity to avoid recurrent status · June 20, 2024
Recurrent requester designation based on request count
Rule: A public body may designate a requester as recurrent if they submitted the statutory minimum number of requests in the specified time periods.
No violation A police department's designation of a recurrent requester · July 31, 2023
Recurrent requester designation upheld
Rule: A requester who submits seven requests within a 7-day period becomes a recurrent requester upon the next request, unless a section 2(g) exception applies.
No violation A police department's recurrent requester designation · August 28, 2017
Recurrent requester designation of SpotCrime
Rule: Requests from news media are exempt from recurrent requester counting, but SpotCrime is not news media, so its requests count toward the threshold.
No violation A data-aggregation website's classification for daily crime data requests · April 4, 2017