Freedom of Information Act Requests

The records of all Georgetown County departments and offices is open to public review, as is required by the state's Freedom of Information Act (FOIA). Any member of the public may request county documents via our online form, or by mailing or hand delivering written requests to the office of the Public Information Officer at 716 Prince St., Georgetown, S.C. 29440. 

Once your request is received, Georgetown County will provide an initial determination within 10 business days if the requested records are no more than 24 months old; for records more than 24 months old, the county may take up to 20 business days to make a determination per S.C. Code Ann. § 30-4-30(C). The initial determination will contain information about what documents pertaining to the request are available and an estimated cost for providing the documents. S.C. Code Ann. § 30-4-30(B) allows public agencies to provide reasonable fees for the search, retrieval, redaction and copying of requested documents. A 25% deposit may be required before the retrieval process begins. Once a deposit has been made, the law requires requested records to be provided within 30 days for records under 24 months old and within 35 days for older records. 

The obligation of the County is to make records available for review by the public; employees are not required to analyze data or make data compilations in responding to FOIA requests. Information supplied pursuant to a Freedom of Information Act Request is subject to the provisions S.C. Code Ann. §30-2-50 and specifically, § 30-2-50(A), “A person or private entity shall not knowingly obtain or use personal information obtained from a state agency, a local government, or other political subdivision of the State for commercial solicitation directed to any person in this State.”

FOIA Fee Schedule