The Freedom of Information Law (Public Officers Law, Article 6) (FOIL) grants members of the public access to the records of government in accordance with its provisions. For more information about FOIL and the Personal Privacy Protection Law (Public Officers Law, Article 6-A), please visit the Committee on Open Government’s website.
The following is a current list of records, by subject matter, that are maintained by DFS. Before submitting a request via FOIL, you should check to see if the information or data you are seeking is already readily available online:
FOIL requests for records maintained by the Department of Financial Services must be submitted to the Records Access Officer. Please be as specific as possible in describing the records you seek. Requests can be delivered in person, mailed, faxed, emailed or submitted online by using the link below:
You may also send a letter, mail a print version of the DFS FOIL request or email a request. However, be aware that it will take longer to process your request due to the mailing process and the time it takes for us to manually enter your information into our system.
New York State Department of Financial Services
Office of General Counsel
Attn: Records Access Officer
1 State Street, 20th Floor
New York, NY 10004
[email protected]
When you make a FOIL request, you may ask to inspect records in person, rather than receive copies. If you are granted access to the records you requested, you will be contacted to make an appointment to inspect records in person. Appointments for in-person inspection occur Monday to Friday, between the hours of 9:00 am and 4:00 pm. Records are maintained in either the New York City or Albany office of DFS and you may inspect records only in the office in which they are maintained. The New York City office is located at One State Street Plaza, New York, NY 10004 and the Albany office is located at One Commerce Plaza, Albany, NY 12257.
Within five business days of the receipt of a written request for a record reasonably described, we will send you a letter either making such record available, denying the request in writing, or furnishing a written acknowledgment of the receipt of the request. If you have not received a letter within five business days, contact [email protected] .
The acknowledgment letter will provide you with an estimate of when the records you requested will be available, which shall be reasonable under the circumstances of the request. This date is determined by the number of documents you request, their format, their availability, the time it takes to redact any information that cannot be disclosed pursuant to FOIL, the time it takes to assemble the documents, and other factors.
Depending upon the records that you request, copies may be made available by hard copy, fax, CD, DVD, USB drive, or as an email attachment. Indicate in your request the format in which you wish the records to be provided to you.
If the copies cannot be made available in the format that you request, DFS will advise you of the available format alternatives.
If copies can be made in electronic format, but are so large that they cannot be emailed, you will be advised of the cost of providing the records in an appropriate format.
If the records you request require a fee to be paid, you will be notified prior to the records being released to you.
No record will be disclosed until all applicable fees are paid. Fees may be paid by check or money order, made payable to “Superintendent of Financial Services.” Cash is not accepted. Please do not make payment until you have been advised of the exact cost, or your payment will be returned to you. Checks or money orders should contain the FOIL tracking number that was assigned to your request and should be sent to the DFS representative who advised you of the applicable fee.
Email attachments are free.
Hard copies: records photocopied by DFS staff are $0.25 per page not exceeding 9 by 14 inches, and $0.70 for each page larger than 9 by 14 inches. Fax transmissions: $4.00 for the first page, $2.50 for each additional page. CD/DVD/USB Drive: $1.00 each.
Outside service: If DFS must engage an outside professional service to prepare copies, the fee is the actual cost charged by such outside professional service. If DFS requires more than two hours to prepare copies in response to your FOIL request, the fee charged for such preparation after the first two hours is the amount equal to the hourly salary attributed to the lowest paid DFS employee. Preparation costs do not include search time or administrative costs.
You have the right to appeal a determination by DFS to deny access to the records that you requested in accordance with N.Y. Public Officers Law Section 89(4) or 89(5)(c), as appropriate. Your appeal must be in writing and submitted to:
Contact Information
FOIL Appeals Officer
New York State Department of Financial Services
One State Street Plaza, 20th Floor
New York, NY 10004
[email protected]
You will be informed in writing of the decision within ten business days of our receipt of such an appeal. Please include the FOIL Request Number when corresponding on this subject.
The Department of Financial Services regulates many different types of institutions. Supervision by DFS may entail chartering, licensing, registration or filing requirements, examination, etc. The "Who We Supervise App" on the DFS Portal can help you find out whether a financial institution is licensed by the Department, and what additional locations or branches they may have:
To request records under New York Public Officers Law Article 6-A, Personal Privacy Law, see our Privacy Policy.
