5 C.F.R. § 9800.107 – Administrative appeals.

(a) Appeals of adverse determinations. A requester may appeal a determination denying a FOIA request in any respect to the CIGIE Chairperson c/o Office of General Counsel, Council of the Inspectors General on Integrity and Efficiency, 1717 H Street NW, Suite 825, Washington, DC 20006. The appeal must be in writing, and must be submitted either by:
1. (1) Regular mail sent to the address listed in this subsection, above; or
2. (2) By fax sent to the FOIA Officer at (202) 254-0162; or
3. (3) By email to FOIAAPPEAL@cigie.gov.
(b) Submission and content. The Office of General Counsel must receive the appeal within 90 calendar days of the date of the letter denying the request. For the quickest possible handling, the appeal letter and envelope or any fax cover sheet or email subject line should be clearly marked “FOIA Appeal.” The appeal letter must clearly identify the CIGIE determination (including the assigned FOIA request number, if known) being appealed.
(c) Adjudication of appeals.
1. (1) The CIGIE Chairperson or designee will act on all appeals under this section.
2. (2) An appeal ordinarily will not be adjudicated if the request becomes a matter of FOIA litigation.
3. (3) On receipt of any appeal involving classified information, CIGIE will take appropriate action to ensure compliance with applicable classification rules.
(d) Decisions on appeals. Ordinarily, CIGIE will have 20 days (excepting Saturdays, Sundays, and legal public holidays) from receipt of the appeal to issue an appeal decision. 5 U.S.C. 552(a)(6)(A)(ii). CIGIE will provide its decision on an appeal in writing. A decision that upholds CIGIE's determination in whole or in part will contain a statement that identifies the reasons for the affirmance, including any FOIA exemptions applied. The decision will provide the requester with notification of the statutory right to file a lawsuit and will inform the requester of the dispute resolution services offered by the Office of Government Information Services of the National Archives and Records Administration as a non-exclusive alternative to litigation. If CIGIE's decision is remanded or modified on appeal, CIGIE will notify the requester of that determination in writing. CIGIE will then further process the request in accordance with that appeal determination and will respond directly to the requester.
(e) Engaging in dispute resolution services provided by the Office of Government Information Services. Mediation is a voluntary process. If CIGIE agrees to participate in the mediation services provided by the Office of Government Information Services, it will actively engage as a partner to the process in an attempt to resolve the dispute.
(f) When appeal is required. Before seeking review by a court of CIGIE's adverse determination, a requester generally must first submit a timely administrative appeal.