FOIA section 9(a)

FOIA

5 ILCS 140/9(a). Section 9 overview: When a public body denies a request, the denial must be in writing, must give a detailed factual basis for whichever exemption it's claiming (not just cite the letter), must name who made the decision, and must tell the requester about their right to go to the Public Access Counselor or to court.

4 issues across 4 determination letters:3 violation found · 1 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 Determination letters are not binding precedent.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

Redacted portions of letters deemed outside scope (Pub. Acc. Op. No. 12-009) cited 1 times
Kenyon v. Garrels, 184 Ill. App. 3d 28 (4th Dist. 1989) cited 1 times

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-9-a.json.

TOPIC: 5 ILCS 140/9(a)
SOURCE: Illinois Attorney General Public Access Bureau decisions compiled at https://illinoisfoia.org/issues/foia-9-a/
NOTE: Determination letters are not binding precedent; they show how the Bureau applies the law. Verify every decision against the source PDF before citing it.

VIOLATION FOUND (3):
- Denial notice failed to comply with section 9(a)
  Rule: A public body denying a FOIA request must notify the requester of the reasons for denial, the exemption claimed, a detailed factual basis, and the names and titles of responsible persons.
  Decision: Application materials for a housing development assessment (non-binding determination letter, June 24, 2024) https://illinoisfoia.org/opinions/letter-79594/
- Department improperly redacted responsive record
  Rule: A public body denying a request must provide a detailed factual basis for any exemption claimed and bears the burden of proving the exemption by clear and convincing evidence.
  Decision: A summary of responses to an Invitation for Proposals (non-binding determination letter, May 25, 2023) https://illinoisfoia.org/opinions/letter-75440/
- Whether the denial letter complied with section 9(a) name and title requirements
  Rule: Section 9(a) requires a public body to identify the person responsible for a denial by name and title; 'Legislative Reference Bureau' does not satisfy this requirement.
  Decision: A legislative reference bureau's denial letter (non-binding determination letter, December 11, 2023) https://illinoisfoia.org/opinions/letter-56946/

NO VIOLATION (1):
- No expense reports or reimbursement requests
  Rule: A public body need not provide a denial notice for records it does not maintain, and searching for non-existent records would be futile.
  Decision: A village employee's timesheets, expense reports, and economic interest statements (non-binding determination letter, December 17, 2024) https://illinoisfoia.org/opinions/letter-83586/

MOST-CITED AUTHORITIES: Ill. Att'y Gen. Pub. Acc. Op. No. 12-009; Kenyon v. Garrels, 184 Ill. App. 3d 28 (4th Dist. 1989)

TASK FOR THE ASSISTANT: Using only the decisions above, help draft a letter. Argue from the rule and cite the decision by name and date. Do not invent decisions.

Violation found (3)

Denial notice failed to comply with section 9(a)
Rule: A public body denying a FOIA request must notify the requester of the reasons for denial, the exemption claimed, a detailed factual basis, and the names and titles of responsible persons.
Violation found Application materials for a housing development assessment · June 24, 2024
Department improperly redacted responsive record
Rule: A public body denying a request must provide a detailed factual basis for any exemption claimed and bears the burden of proving the exemption by clear and convincing evidence.
Violation found A summary of responses to an Invitation for Proposals · May 25, 2023
Whether the denial letter complied with section 9(a) name and title requirements
Rule: Section 9(a) requires a public body to identify the person responsible for a denial by name and title; 'Legislative Reference Bureau' does not satisfy this requirement.
Violation found A legislative reference bureau's denial letter · December 11, 2023

No violation (1)

No expense reports or reimbursement requests
Rule: A public body need not provide a denial notice for records it does not maintain, and searching for non-existent records would be futile.
No violation A village employee's timesheets, expense reports, and economic interest statements · December 17, 2024