How it works
Follow a request from the front desk to the final letter.
Every records request travels the same path. Here is each step the way the clerk's desk sees it — and where you can try it for yourself.
Try the live demo →-
Step 1
A request comes in
A resident, reporter, or attorney files a records request through your public portal. The submission is structured from the start — subject, description, and contact — so it lands as a real record, not an email to triage. The requester gets a request number on the spot.
See A request comes in in the demo → -
Step 2
The statutory clock starts
The moment the request is received, the deadline clock begins counting in business days against the FOIL timeline. Acknowledgment and response dates are computed for you, so nothing slips because a date was added up by hand.
See The statutory clock starts in the demo → -
Step 3
It routes to the right departments
Intake fans the request out to the departments that actually hold the records — one request, several branches. Each department gets its own internal due date, while the single statutory clock stays on the parent request so the town answers with one voice.
See It routes to the right departments in the demo → -
Step 4
Records are reviewed and redacted
Departments upload what they find. Reviewers work each item — clear it, redact it, or withhold it with a reason — and redactions remove the underlying content rather than just hiding it on screen. The original and the redacted copy stay paired underneath.
See Records are reviewed and redacted in the demo → -
Step 5
Letters write themselves from the record
Acknowledgments, extensions, and determination letters are drafted from the request's own data — dates, departments, and the exemption citations chosen during review — so the correspondence stays consistent with the file and the clock.
See Letters write themselves from the record in the demo → -
Step 6
The response is released
Cleared records are assembled into a release package and sent to the requester. The release gate only lets cleared items through, so a package cannot accidentally include something still pending review.
See The response is released in the demo → -
Step 7
An appeal has its own track
If a requester appeals, the appeal opens on its own timeline with the record assembled for the appeals officer to affirm, reverse, or grant in part. The determination and its reasons are kept with the original request.
See An appeal has its own track in the demo →
That is the whole path.
The demo runs the same lifecycle end to end with sample data — no signup.
Open the demo →