§ 1184.5 How will my request be processed?

(a) Acknowledgment of requests. IMLS will assign a tracking number to your request and will, as soon as practicable, advise you in writing of this tracking number, and, as appropriate, a brief description of the request, and relevant IMLS contact information, including the name and contact information of the FOIA Public Liaison. (b) Clarifications. If there is any uncertainty, IMLS will attempt to communicate with you to clarify the scope of your request. (c) Estimated dates of completion and interim responses. Upon request, IMLS will provide an estimated date by which the agency expects to provide a response to the requester. If a request involves a voluminous amount of material, or searches in multiple locations, IMLS may provide interim responses, releasing the records on a rolling basis. (d) Referrals of requests. Whenever IMLS refers all or any part of the responsibility for responding to a request to another agency, IMLS will notify you of the name of the agency to which the request has been referred. (e) Grants of requests. When responsive records are located, IMLS will apply a presumption of disclosure and openness. If IMLS decides to grant your request in whole or in part, the agency will notify you in writing. The notice will include any applicable fee and the agency will disclose records to you promptly upon payment of applicable fees. IMLS will mark or annotate any records disclosed in part to show the amount, the location, and the FOIA exemptions under which the redaction is made, unless doing so would harm an interest protected by an applicable exemption. (f) Denials of requests. Denials of your FOIA request, either whole or in part, will be made in writing by the FOIA Public Liaison. IMLS will inform you of the reasons for the denial, including any FOIA exemption(s) applied by the agency in denying the request, and notify you of your right to appeal the determination as described in § 1184.6. IMLS will, as appropriate, provide a brief description of the information being withheld. In addition, IMLS will provide information about the mediation services provided by the Office of Government Information Services of the National Archives and Records Administration.