What does it mean when a Florida agency says it has no responsive records?

It means the office says it looked and found no record that fits your request. It does not have to create a record, but it must search in good faith first.

Is a no records answer the same as saying the records are exempt?

An exemption claim says a record exists but a law keeps it closed, and the office must name that law. A no records answer says nothing is there.

Can I challenge a no responsive records answer?

Ask how the office searched, who and what it checked, and which retention schedule applies. In court, a dispute over whether the records exist calls for a hearing.

Do I have to put a records request in writing in Florida?

Chapter 119 does not let an office require it. A written request still gives you a dated record and can start the 30-day hold in Section 119.07(1)(h).

Are records on a Florida official's personal phone or email public records?

They can be, if they relate to official business. The device or the account does not decide it.

Can a Florida agency destroy records to avoid producing them?

An office may destroy a record only as its retention schedule allows. If it calls a requested record not public, it must keep it 30 days after a written request.

What if the record exists at a different agency?

Ask who likely holds it and send the request there too. An office may not dodge a request by handing its records to someone else.

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Florida Public Records Request: What If the Agency Says the Records Don't Exist?

Written by Adam Bair.Published June 8, 2026Updated October 20, 2026

TL;DR: When a Florida agency says records don't exist, that is not always the last word. The office must make a good faith search before it says no, and you can test its answer. Ask how it searched, who it asked, and what happened to the record.

A government records desk with a manila folder, a no records denial letter, a rubber stamp, and a magnifying glass. — A no records letter is a starting point, not a closed door. The right moves depend on why the records are missing.

This guide covers what the agency has to do when it says there are no records. It shows how to test that answer, and what to do if you think the agency is wrong.

What does a "no responsive records" answer to a public records request mean?

What is the agency saying, and not saying?

A no records letter means the office says it looked and found nothing that fits your request. It is not a claim that the law lets the office hold the records back. It is a claim that there is nothing to give you.

Is "no records" the same as "exempt"?

A no records answer differs from an exemption claim. An exemption claim says a record exists, but a law lets the office keep it closed. For that claim, Section 119.07(1)(e) says the office must name the law it relies on.

If you ask, Section 119.07(1)(f) also makes the office explain in writing why it keeps the record closed. A no records answer skips those steps, so what matters most is the search.

Why is the answer not always the end?

Article I, Section 24 of the Florida Constitution gives every person a right of access to public records. Chapter 119, the public records law, applies that right to government records. A form letter with no real search behind it does not meet the duty in the statute.

What does Florida's Public Records Act require the agency to do?

Must the agency let any person inspect or copy the public record?

Yes, Section 119.07(1)(a) lets any person inspect or copy a public record at a reasonable time. You do not have to say why you want it.

Must the agency create a record that does not exist?

The law gives you a right to see records that exist. It does not make an office create new records to answer a request. Wootton v. Cook, 590 So. 2d 1039 (Fla. 1st DCA 1991).

An office also does not have to dig through its files to answer your questions. Bivens v. Tony, 368 So. 3d 16 (Fla. 4th DCA 2023).

Must the agency search in good faith under Section 119.07(1)(c)?

The office must answer each request promptly and in good faith under Section 119.07(1)(c) of the Florida Statutes. The records custodian, the official who keeps the files, owes that duty to every requester. The Florida Supreme Court has said the good faith rule adds real weight to that job.

A good faith answer includes a fair effort to ask other staff if the record exists and where it is. Board of Trustees, Jacksonville Police & Fire Pension Fund v. Lee, 189 So. 3d 120, 128 (Fla. 2016).

So a search should reach the people, systems, and files where the record would sit. Whether the office acted in good faith is a question the court decides on the facts. Consumer Rights, LLC v. Union County, 159 So. 3d 882, 885 (Fla. 1st DCA 2015).

How do you write a request that is hard to answer with "no records"?

Many no records answers start with a vague request. A precise request is harder to miss, so build it from these parts:

Name the type of record you want, such as an email, a text, a report, or a video.
Give a date range, even a rough one, so the search has a clear start and end.
Name the people or offices most likely to have the record.
Give key words, case numbers, or addresses the record would contain.
Ask for records on personal phones or accounts that staff used for agency work.

Chapter 119 does not let an office require a written request. Dade Aviation Consultants v. Knight Ridder, Inc., 800 So. 2d 302, 305 n.1 (Fla. 3d DCA 2001). Still, a written request gives you a dated record, and it matters under Section 119.07(1)(h), covered below.

For help with the wording, see how to write a Florida public records request letter.

Why don't the records exist, and what can you do about each reason?

A diagram showing three records systems connected by search arrows with a magnifying glass in the center, representing a multi-system records search. — A complete search covers every system and custodian where the record could live, not just the most convenient one.

Was the record never created?

Some records are never made, such as a choice someone made out loud. If no one wrote it down, the office is right that it has none. Still, check whether a law or rule told the office to keep that kind of record.

Was the record destroyed under a retention schedule?

Under Section 119.021, the Department of State sets retention schedules, and each agency must follow them. Section 257.36(6) says an office may destroy a public record only as those schedules allow. The general schedule for state and local offices is online, so you can look up the minimum time.

If the office says the record existed but no longer does, ask which schedule applied. Ask when the office destroyed it, too.

The limits on destruction apply even to exempt records, says AGO 93-86. In one circuit court case, the routine wiping of officials' text messages broke Section 119.021. That case is Raydient LLC v. Nassau County (Fla. 4th Cir. Ct. 2021).

Does the record exist where the agency did not look?

Often the search did not go far enough. The record may sit in another unit, on a system no one checked, or on an official's own phone. A no from one desk is not a no from the whole agency.

How do you push back on a no records answer?

Send a short follow-up letter that asks four things, and keep a dated copy. The office does not have to answer questions, but its answer or its silence tells you what to do next.

1. How did you search?

Ask what steps the office took, who searched, and what search terms it used. Point to the good faith duty in Section 119.07(1)(c).

2. Which people and systems did you check?

A search of one office or one database is not a search of the whole agency. Ask who looked and which email, paper, and phone systems they checked.

3. Which retention schedule applies, and what happened to the record?

If the office says it no longer has the record, ask which schedule covered it. Ask the date the office destroyed it and who approved that step.

4. Did the record go to or come from another agency?

If another office also keeps the record, the first office must still let you see its copy, says AGO 86-69. An office also may not dodge a request by moving its records to someone else. Chandler v. City of Sanford, 121 So. 3d 657, 660 (Fla. 5th DCA 2013).

When is destroying a public record improper?

Destroying a record before its schedule allows breaks the law. Section 119.07(1)(h) also adds a hold while a dispute is live.

Say the office claims a requested record is not public. It may not dispose of it for 30 days after your written request. If you sue within those 30 days, the office needs a court order to dispose of it.

A public officer who breaks Chapter 119 can face a fine of up to $500 under Section 119.10(1)(a). For more on what each office must keep, see Florida public records retention schedules.

What if the public record exists somewhere else?

Does the official business test reach personal phones?

It can. An email about agency work can be a public record even if it came from a personal account. What counts is its link to official business.

Texts that an elected official sends on a private phone to do public business can be public records too. O'Boyle v. Town of Gulf Stream, 257 So. 3d 1036, 1040 (Fla. 4th DCA 2018).

When officials do public business on their own devices, the agency must take fair steps to get those records back. A circuit court said so in the Raydient case.

What about contractors under Section 119.0701?

Section 119.0701 makes some contractors that act for a public agency keep and provide public records. If a private firm did the work, ask the agency about it and send the request there too.

What can you do if you don't believe the answer?

A vertical escalation ladder with steps representing follow-up letter, internal escalation, AG mediation, and mandamus action. — When the no records answer does not hold up, four escalation steps are available before and during litigation.

Can you get the answer in writing?

Ask the office to confirm its no records answer in writing, with the date. If it later calls the records exempt, the rules in Section 119.07(1)(e) and (f) apply.

Can the Attorney General's mediation program help under Section 16.60?

Section 16.60 sets up a free, voluntary open government mediation program in the Attorney General's office. Give it the agency, your request, the no records answer, and the dates.

For details, see the AG mediation program for Florida public records disputes.

What happens if you go to court?

A court should not toss a case on an unsworn claim that the records do not exist. Clay County Education Association v. Clay County School Board, 144 So. 3d 708, 709 (Fla. 1st DCA 2014).

When the two sides dispute whether the office has the records, the court must hold a hearing. Holley v. Bradford County Sheriff's Department, 171 So. 3d 805 (Fla. 1st DCA 2015).

You still need facts behind your doubt. A bare claim that more records “should” exist did not earn discovery. Johnson v. State, 769 So. 2d 990, 995 (Fla. 2000).

What about a Section 119.12 notice?

To seek fees, give the custodian separate written notice of the request at least 5 business days before you sue. That rule is in Section 119.12(1)(b).

You need no notice if the agency failed to post its custodian contact details, under Section 119.12(2). See the 5-day notice trap before suing under Section 119.12.

Is every no records answer wrong?

Some records truly do not exist, and not every no records answer is a stall. If the office describes a fair search of the right people and systems, the answer is likely right. The steps above are for answers that do not hold up.

Frequently asked questions

What does it mean when a Florida agency says it has no responsive records?: It means the office says it looked and found no record that fits your request. It does not have to create a record, but it must search in good faith first.
Is a no records answer the same as saying the records are exempt?: An exemption claim says a record exists but a law keeps it closed, and the office must name that law. A no records answer says nothing is there.
Can I challenge a no responsive records answer?: Ask how the office searched, who and what it checked, and which retention schedule applies. In court, a dispute over whether the records exist calls for a hearing.
Do I have to put a records request in writing in Florida?: Chapter 119 does not let an office require it. A written request still gives you a dated record and can start the 30-day hold in Section 119.07(1)(h).
Are records on a Florida official's personal phone or email public records?: They can be, if they relate to official business. The device or the account does not decide it.
Can a Florida agency destroy records to avoid producing them?: An office may destroy a record only as its retention schedule allows. If it calls a requested record not public, it must keep it 30 days after a written request.
What if the record exists at a different agency?: Ask who likely holds it and send the request there too. An office may not dodge a request by handing its records to someone else.

Not legal advice. Educational and informational content only. Reading this site does not create an attorney-client relationship. For advice on a specific matter, consult a licensed Florida attorney.