This past year, MuckRock helped our community of FOIA requesters release a record number of documents — over a million pages — and file over 13,000 new public records requests. But we couldn't do it without your support.

As the holidays approach, support from readers like you is essential to continuing our work. MuckRock is a registered 501c3 non-profit organization, and tax-deductible donations are critical to supporting our filing tools, free data and document resources and our original reporting.

If you donate this holiday season, your donation will also be matched 100%, helping us continue to expand our work and give you and the public direct access to primary source information free of paywalls, advertising or other restrictions. Please consider supporting our work.

Next Wednesday at 9 a.m. ET, reporters Betsy Ladyzhets and Dillon Bergin will share how MuckRock's editorial team uses collaboration to pursue large data projects — including collaborations with academic experts and across different newsrooms.

The Q&A will be a live recording for DataJournalism.com's Conversations with Data podcast, accompanying an upcoming article that Ladyzhets and Bergin wrote about their experience on MuckRock's Uncounted project.

To attend the Q&A, join DataJournalism.com's Discord server for data reporters and communicators. Learn more and add the event to your calendar here.

▶ MuckRock is hiring a front-end developer: We're seeking a developer who will own the Svelte front end for DocumentCloud, helping to expand the utility of this platform. The position is remote and has a starting salary of $85,000. Learn more and apply here!

▶ Upcoming FOIA advisory committee meeting: The National Archives and Records Association's FOIA advisory committee is a group that facilitates conversations between the agency and records requesters nationwide. This committee's next meeting will take place on December 1, from 10 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. ET, with an agenda including a panel on complex FOIA requests and updates from subcommittees. Register by November 29 to attend.

▶ Flatwater Free Press sues Nebraska state agency: The Flatwater Free Press, a nonprofit newsroom in Nebraska focused on investigations, is suing the state's Department of Environment and Energy over a public records request. After reporter Yanqi Xu requested emails about nitrates in groundwater, the department said this request would cost more than $44,000. The newsroom has filed a lawsuit in response to this "outrageous fee," Matt Wynn writes in an article explaining why the outlet made this decision.

• Drone registrations: The Federal Aviation Administration recently completed a FOIA request from Ben Welsh, providing data on DJI drones registered across the country. Software engineer Lars Schönander used the data to map out drone registrations in military ZIP codes.
• SARS-CoV-2 origins: Independent reporter Jimmy Tobias recently received unredacted emails between Dr. Anthony Fauci and virologists discussing potential origins of the coronavirus in early 2020. Tobias shared the emails on DocumentCloud.
• Ambulance contracts: MuckRock user Cully Williams recently filed a request to the Indian Health Service for contracts between ambulance companies and three hospitals in the Great Plans area.

For The Record was written by Betsy Ladyzhets and edited by Michael Morisy.