Freedom of Information Law (FOIL)

The University at Albany fully complies with the New York State Freedom of Information Law (Article VI, Sections 84-90, Public Officers Law, as amended effective January 1, 1978) and SUNY’s FOIL procedure. Under FOIL, an agency must make available its existing records, except to the extent that records, or portions thereof, fall within one or more grounds for exemption detailed in NYS law.

Available Records

Records kept and maintained by the University at Albany generally fall under the subject matter categories listed in Appendices of the State University of New York (SUNY)'s Record Retention and Disposition Schedule.

Note that only those records which the University at Albany keeps and/or maintains are subject to disclosure under FOIL. FOIL imposes no obligation for an agency to translate, explain the content of, or create a new record.

Request Records  

You may make a request under FOIL in writing to the University at Albany Records Access Officer by email ([email protected]) or by mail: 

Office of Enterprise Risk Management and Compliance  
University Hall 212 
University at Albany 
1400 Washington Ave 
Albany, NY 12222 

To facilitate the timely processing of your request, please describe the record(s) sought and include as much descriptive information as possible, such as date range, keywords in a record, file type(s) and other information that may help locate records. 

Please include your email address, your postal mail address and your phone number with your request. 
 

Note on Educational Records

The release of an individual's education record is regulated by the Family Education Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) and therefore should be requested under FERPA, rather than under FOIL. 

Please visit the Registrar’s website to learn more about FERPA protections and to understand your rights.

Note on Police Records

The University Police Department is responsible for its own records. Please visit the University Police Department’s Statistics & Records webpage for more information.

Fee for Records Requested Under FOIL 

UAlbany can charge for some FOIL requests per Section 87(1)(b)(iii) and 87(1)(b)(c) of Article 6 of New York State Public Officers Law.  

This includes, but is not limited to, charging 25 cents per photocopy or an amount equal to the hourly salary attributed to the lowest paid agency employee who has the necessary skill required to prepare a copy of the requested record.