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How to Get Information - Use Open Records Requests
Print this page How to Request Information from Government Entities Many people have asked “How do you find out all this information?” Most of our information is obtained through Open Records requests. Under the Texas Open Records Act, any public entity must respond to Open Records requests for information within10 days. The Federal Law, the Freedom of Information Act, gives you the same rights to information from Federal government entities. In this case, it is called a Freedom of Information request. (FOIA). You might ask why not just ask someone in the school administration, the city, the county or the state for the information you want? It would be nice if it worked that way. However, there is nothing to stop public officials or school administrators from lying to you. There is no penalty for lies told, even when they are proven. If you submit your request in writing, the law says they have 10 days to respond, and they must tell the truth. When you use an Open Records Request, at least you have the law behind you. To submit an Open Records request, write a letter to the entity which has the information. For instance, the Cleburne Independent School District, the City of Cleburne, Johnson County, or any other Texas public entity. Call them and ask for the address to send Open Records requests. Deliver your request by mail, fax, email, or hand delivery. Begin your letter with “This is an Open Records Request for the following information:” Then list your questions in a numbered list. This makes it easier for them to respond to Question 1, Question 2, etc. Next comes a balancing act. You must be as specific as possible so as not to leave any loopholes for a partial answer to your request. Yet you must be as general as you can to get all the information you want. To achieve this balance, you may have to ask a series of related questions. You must sign your request and provide your address so they can respond to you. It is good to include a phone number. They sometimes call you with questions. When you receive your response, look it over and decide if you got the information you wanted. If you did not, submit a follow-up request. You may discover from the answers that you did not ask your question exactly right. Or their answers may bring up more questions you had not thought about. They have 10 days to respond. If you have not received a response by 12 days, call and ask about it. The other way to gather facts is to attend regular meetings of the boards. They are open to the public and usually allow public input at certain parts of the meeting. Be warned that even though you have public input, they will not always respond to you. After you get your Open Records information, share your findings. A good forum is letters to the editor of your local newspapers. Another good place is http://www.cleburnepolitics.com. Welcome to active participation in your government. Alden Nellis

How to Get Information - Use Open Records Requests

How to Request Information from Government Entities

Many people have asked “How do you find out all this information?”

Most of our information is obtained through Open Records requests. Under the Texas Open Records Act, any public entity must respond to Open Records requests for information within10 days.

The Federal Law, the Freedom of Information Act, gives you the same rights to information from Federal government entities. In this case, it is called a Freedom of Information request. (FOIA).

You might ask why not just ask someone in the school administration, the city, the county or the state for the information you want? It would be nice if it worked that way. However, there is nothing to stop public officials or school administrators from lying to you. There is no penalty for lies told, even when they are proven. If you submit your request in writing, the law says they have 10 days to respond, and they must tell the truth. When you use an Open Records Request, at least you have the law behind you.

To submit an Open Records request, write a letter to the entity which has the information. For instance, the Cleburne Independent School District, the City of Cleburne, Johnson County, or any other Texas public entity. Call them and ask for the address to send Open Records requests. Deliver your request by mail, fax, email, or hand delivery.
Begin your letter with “This is an Open Records Request for the following information:” Then list your questions in a numbered list. This makes it easier for them to respond to Question 1, Question 2, etc.

Next comes a balancing act. You must be as specific as possible so as not to leave any loopholes for a partial answer to your request. Yet you must be as general as you can to get all the information you want. To achieve this balance, you may have to ask a series of related questions.

You must sign your request and provide your address so they can respond to you. It is good to include a phone number. They sometimes call you with questions.

When you receive your response, look it over and decide if you got the information you wanted. If you did not, submit a follow-up request. You may discover from the answers that you did not ask your question exactly right. Or their answers may bring up more questions you had not thought about.

They have 10 days to respond. If you have not received a response by 12 days, call and ask about it.

The other way to gather facts is to attend regular meetings of the boards. They are open to the public and usually allow public input at certain parts of the meeting. Be warned that even though you have public input, they will not always respond to you.

After you get your Open Records information, share your findings. A good forum is letters to the editor of your local newspapers. Another good place is http://www.cleburnepolitics.com.
Welcome to active participation in your government.

Alden Nellis