Public Records

Our public-records policy

It is the policy of the executive branch of the State of Alabama to promptly provide citizens with public records upon request, subject to their payment of reasonable fees, to comply with applicable laws protecting sensitive information, and to serve the interest of the general public in having the business of government carried on efficiently and without undue interference.

Submitting a public-records request

Use the following steps to fill out a public-records request.


What to expect

The Alabama Department of Transportation strives to respond as promptly as possible to all public records requests consistent with the demands of the agency's functions as determined by state law. The Department will endeavor to provide a substantive response to your request within fifteen (15) days of acknowledging receipt of the request; however, time-sensitive requests requiring more than eight (8) hours for research and retrieval will require a longer period for a substantive response. The Department will notify you with fifteen (15) business days following acknowledgement of receipt of the request if such an extension is required.

The nature of your request will dictate how promptly the Department responds. If your request very clearly identifies a specific, discrete document you are looking for, the Department will respond more quickly than if your request requires substantial staff time to process. A request will require substantial staff time to process if it requires difficulty in identifying and retrieving documents or taking measures to redact or otherwise withhold legally protected information.

In addition, the Department is permitted by state law to charge reasonable fees in connection with processing public-records requests. The Department’s records requests form contains a schedule of fees for your information, and you will be notified in advance of the fees you likely will incur as a result of your request.

Questions?

You may contact our agency's public-records coordinator at public.records@dot.state.al.us