POL Article 6 § 87 : Freedom of Information Law Requests

Requesting Copies or Inspection of Records Pursuant to POL § 87 (FOIL)

PLEASE NOTE: 1) Copies of Police Accident Reports (MV-104A) are obtained through the New York State Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV), www.dmv.ny.gov/AIS/ or by obtaining form MV-198C directly from your local DMV office. 2) Copies of State Police investigative and accident reconstruction reports may be requested by interested parties related to the incident pursuant to POL § 66-a.

The NYS Freedom of Information Law defines a record as information kept in any physical form. According to the NYS Department of State’s Committee on Open Government (advisory opinion # 11543), the law does not encompass requests that are interrogatory in nature, such as seeking answers to questions. The law provides access to, not analysis of, government records.

This agency maintains only those records associated with New York State Police arrests and investigations; it does not maintain records of any other police agencies.

FOIL requests for State Police records must be made in writing (9 NYCRR 483.6) and directed to the Records Access Officer at Division of State Police Headquarters in Albany, New York. Requests made to other Division installations may not be answered. The request should describe the record(s) sought with sufficient specificity to identify and locate the precise record(s) requested. The FOIL Request Form offered here may be of help in structuring your request. (See Tips for Making a FOIL Request for ways you can help the process.)