About the Defense Freedom of Information Policy Office (DFOIPO)

The Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) was created in 1966 to promote openness in the government. Since then it has been strengthened and amended. To learn more about how the Freedom of Information Act is applied in the Department of Defense (DoD), please see the DoD FOIA Manual.

DFOIPO was founded in 2006. It was created as a result of the issuance of the FOIA Executive Or-der 13392, which created the Chief FOIA Officer and added greater importance to the FOIA program. The DoD Chief FOIA Officer, Mr. Michael L. Rhodes, Director of Administration and Management (DA&M), Office of the Secretary of Defense, the Defense Freedom of Information Policy Office is responsible for the formulation and implementation of Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) policy for the DoD. DFOIPO carries out the guidance on behalf of the Director of Administration Management and facilitates the efficiency of the DoD FOIA program.

The DoD FOIA program operates under a decentralized approach. No single office has access to all the DoD records and information. Since DFOIPO is a policy office, and not a Requester Service Center, you should not send a FOIA request to us. Check Military Services, Department of Defense Agencies, and Combatant Commands for the Requester Service Center you should send the request to. Before sending a request to a Requester Service Center, check if it's reading rooms or frequently requested documents section already contain the material you need.

If you have made a request, but you disagree with the DoD's determination, you have a right to appeal. However, there are other ways to resolve any concerns you have. Please review the Complaint / Resolve a Dispute Section of the FOIA Handbook

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