Media & Evidence package

FOIA / public records request: evidence redaction and release

Public records requests from a form to release: statutory SLA, evidence gathering, AI-assisted redaction of video, photos, audio and documents, legal approval and an exemptions log.

Connects to Google Gemini

OfficialStarts from a formAdvanced~30 min setupv1.0.0

Download .utpkg 31 KB How to install

About this package

What it does

Public records requests (US FOIA and state public records acts, the NZ Official Information Act, the UK Freedom of Information Act or your own policy) start on a standalone form page: the requester gives their details, the records they want, the date range and how to receive them. The workflow gives the request a reference, looks up the response deadline in a configurable rules table, sets an SLA to match and emails an acknowledgement with the date.

A records officer attaches the responsive records: body-worn camera or CCTV video, photos, interview audio and documents. Redact Video blurs faces, licence plates and on-screen ID numbers and bleeps personal details it hears; Redact Image does the same for each photo; the interview is transcribed, bleeped and its transcript redacted; Redact Document finds personal information in the statement for review. Each item gets a proposed exemption in the Exemptions log.

A legal reviewer compares every original with its redacted copy (originals stay restricted to the request and are never released) and approves a full or partial release, denies it or sends it back. On release the document is redacted, the cover letter and exemption log become PDFs merged into a release package, and the requester gets the package by email or a download link. No-records, extension and denial letters are included, every step is written to an audit trail table, and a 7-year retention policy is applied. Redaction aids the reviewer; it does not replace them, and the deadline and exemption rows are examples to adapt with your counsel, not legal advice.

Starts from a form

Starts from a form page: share the Public records request form (/f/<id>) on your website; each submission starts the workflow.

Someone fills in a form to start it: the workflow start form (Run dialog in the app, or your own portal posting to the API) or a standalone form page (/f/<id>) whose Form submitted trigger starts the workflow. People complete User Task forms along the way.

How forms work

The flow

Step by step

1
Request form
The requester fills in the themed form page: who they are, the law, the records sought, dates and delivery preference.
2
Deadline and SLA
The rules table gives the statutory days (for example 20 business days, 10 state days or 20 working days), an approximate calendar due date and default exemption codes; the run SLA and the register use it.
3
Acknowledge
The requester is emailed the reference and the response date.
4
Gather records
The records officer attaches video, photos, interview audio and documents, or answers No records (letter) or Extend deadline (new SLA and notice).
5
Automated redaction
Redact Video blurs faces, plates and on-screen text and bleeps personal details in the speech; each photo goes through Redact Image; the interview is transcribed and bleeped; the document is checked for personal information. Each item gets a proposed exemption in the log.
6
Legal review
The legal reviewer compares originals with redacted copies, confirms the exemption codes and approves, approves in part, denies or sends back.
7
Release package
The document is redacted, the cover letter and exemption log become PDFs merged into one package, and the requester receives it by email or download link.
8
Audit and retention
Every step is recorded in the Request activity table and the request row gets the 7-year retention policy.

Request submitted

When a reusable form is submitted (its own page, the API or as a task form)

Reference

Store a value

reference = PRR-ƒ FORMAT_DATE(NOW(), "YYYYMMDD")-ƒ UPPER(LEFT(GUID(), 4))

Received date

Store a value

received_date = ƒ FORMAT_DATE(NOW(), "YYYY-MM-DD")

Date range

Store a value

date_range = form.date_from to form.date_to

Set title

Set the title for this workflow instance

Deadline and exemption defaults

Evaluate a business rule / decision table and return outputs

→ Records request rules (examples)

Due date

Store a value

due_date = {{=FORMAT_DATE(ADD_DAYS(received_date, calendar_days), "YYYY-MM-DD")}…

Statutory SLA

Set the SLA deadline and warning threshold for this workflow run

Records response (deadline_days day_type) · due due_dateT17:00:00Z ·…

Add to requests register

Query, insert, update, or delete data store rows

insert → Records requests

Apply 7-year retention

Create, assign, and inspect retention policies and their assets

Audit: received

Query, insert, update, or delete data store rows

insert → Request activity

Acknowledge with deadline

Send an email via Resend

To: form.requester_email

Gather responsive records

Assign a task to a person and wait for action

Gather records: {{referen

Records gathered

No records

Extend deadline

No-records letter

Build text from template

NO RECORDS LETTER Reference:

Letter to PDF

Convert between PDF, Word, HTML, Markdown, text, CSV, Excel and JSON

→ PDF

Email: no records

Send an email via Resend

To: form.requester_email

Close: no records

Query, insert, update, or delete data store rows

update → Records requests

Audit: no records

Query, insert, update, or delete data store rows

insert → Request activity

Closed: no records

Stop execution immediately

Extend due date

Store a value

due_date = ƒ FORMAT_DATE(ADD_DAYS(due_date, extension_days), "YYYY-MM-DD")

Extended SLA

Set the SLA deadline and warning threshold for this workflow run

Records response (extended) · due due_dateT17:00:00Z · warn 5 days early

Query, insert, update, or delete data store rows

update → Records requests

Email: extension notice

Send an email via Resend

To: form.requester_email

Audit: extended

Query, insert, update, or delete data store rows

insert → Request activity

Back to gathering

Jump to another activity on the canvas

→ Gather responsive records

Keep the evidence list

Store a value

evidence = task_data

Query, insert, update, or delete data store rows

update → Records requests

Audit: records attached

Query, insert, update, or delete data store rows

insert → Request activity

Video attached?IF

If/else if/else branching

evidence.bodycam_video is_not_empty

Video

Else

Redact Video: faces, plates, text, speech

Blur faces, plates and text over time; bleep or mute sensitive speech

faces, license plates, sensitive text · blur + bleep speech → redacted_video

Exemptions log: video

Query, insert, update, or delete data store rows

insert → Exemptions log

Photos attached?IF

If/else if/else branching

evidence.photos is_not_empty

Photos

Else

Each photo

Iterate over a collection

each in evidence.photos

Done

Each Item

Redact Image: faces, plates, text

Blur, pixelate or box faces, license plates and sensitive text in an image

faces, license plates, sensitive text · blur → redacted_photo

Collect redacted photo

Add an object to an existing JSON array variable

push → redacted_photos

Exemptions log: photos

Query, insert, update, or delete data store rows

insert → Exemptions log

Interview audio attached?IF

If/else if/else branching

evidence.interview_audio is_not_empty

Audio

Else

Transcribe interview

Speech to text with timestamps, speakers and SRT / VTT files (your AI provider)

Google Gemini · SRT, TXT · speakers → interview

Bleep personal details in the audio

Blur faces, plates and text over time; bleep or mute sensitive speech

Bleep speech → redacted_audio

Redact the transcript

Find or remove sensitive information (IDs, dates of birth, card and bank numbers…) and custom terms

high-confidence types → redacted_transcript

Exemptions log: audio

Query, insert, update, or delete data store rows

insert → Exemptions log

Document attached?IF

If/else if/else branching

evidence.documents is_not_empty

Document

Else

Find personal information (review only)

Find or remove sensitive information (IDs, dates of birth, card and bank numbers…) and custom terms

Find high-confidence types → doc_findings

Exemptions log: document

Query, insert, update, or delete data store rows

insert → Exemptions log

Query, insert, update, or delete data store rows

update → Records requests

Audit: redacted

Query, insert, update, or delete data store rows

insert → Request activity

Legal review and release decision

Assign a task to a person and wait for action

Legal review: {{reference

Approve release

Partial release

Deny

Send back

Audit: sent back

Query, insert, update, or delete data store rows

insert → Request activity

Back to gathering

Jump to another activity on the canvas

→ Gather responsive records

Decision letter

Build text from template

DECISION TO WITHHOLD Referenc

Letter to PDF

Convert between PDF, Word, HTML, Markdown, text, CSV, Excel and JSON

→ PDF

Email: decision to withhold

Send an email via Resend

To: form.requester_email

Close: denied

Query, insert, update, or delete data store rows

update → Records requests

Audit: denied

Query, insert, update, or delete data store rows

insert → Request activity

Closed: denied

Stop execution immediately

Decision

Store a value

decision = outcome

Approved exemptions

Store a value

approval = task_data

Exemptions log: approve video

Query, insert, update, or delete data store rows

update → Exemptions log

Exemptions log: approve photos

Query, insert, update, or delete data store rows

update → Exemptions log

Exemptions log: approve audio

Query, insert, update, or delete data store rows

update → Exemptions log

Exemptions log: approve document

Query, insert, update, or delete data store rows

update → Exemptions log

Cover letter

Build text from template

COVER LETTER: RELEASE OF RECOR

Cover letter to PDF

Convert between PDF, Word, HTML, Markdown, text, CSV, Excel and JSON

→ PDF

Exemption log

Build text from template

EXEMPTION LOG Reference: {{re

Exemption log to PDF

Convert between PDF, Word, HTML, Markdown, text, CSV, Excel and JSON

→ PDF

Release parts

Create a new JSON array or push items into an existing one

[] → release_parts

Document to release?IF

If/else if/else branching

evidence.documents is_not_empty

Document

Else

Redact the document

Find or remove sensitive information (IDs, dates of birth, card and bank numbers…) and custom terms

high-confidence types → redacted_doc

Redacted document to PDF

Convert between PDF, Word, HTML, Markdown, text, CSV, Excel and JSON

→ PDF

Add to release

Add an object to an existing JSON array variable

push → release_parts

Release package PDF

Merge, split, extract pages, watermark, rotate, fill or read PDF forms

Merge PDFs

Released files

Create a new JSON array or push items into an existing one

[] → release_files

Create release link

Execute an API reference

POST Create release link

Letter wording

Store a value

release_sentence = {{=IF(decision == "Partial release", "We are releasing some o…

DeliveryIF

If/else if/else branching

form.delivery_preference equals Secure download link

Download link

Else

Link wording

Store a value

delivery_sentence = Download the release package here: release_url (the link…

Email: release link

Send an email via Resend

To: form.requester_email

Attachment wording

Store a value

delivery_sentence = The release package PDF and the redacted recordings and phot…

Email: release package

Send an email via Resend

To: form.requester_email

Query, insert, update, or delete data store rows

update → Records requests

Audit: released

Query, insert, update, or delete data store rows

insert → Request activity

Released

Stop execution immediately

Public records request — A public records request (FOIA, OIA, state public records acts) from its form to release: statutory deadline and SLA, acknowledgement, records gathering, automated redaction of video, photos, audio and documents, an exemptions log, legal approval, and a release package with cover letter, or a denial, no-records or extension letter. The same canvas you get in the designer after installing.

Forms

The start form and the task forms

People start it from a form page (/f/<id>) with its own header, theme and buttons; submitting it starts the workflow. User Tasks show their fields and outcome buttons to the assignee.

Form page · /f/<id>

Public records request

2-column grid · own header and theme · Its own page: share the link or open it on a tablet

Your name * requester_name · text

Email * requester_email · emailname@company.com

Phone (optional) phone · phone

Organisation (optional) organisation · text

Which law are you requesting under? * jurisdiction · choice

US federal FOIAUS state public records (example)NZ Official Information ActUK Freedom of Information ActOther / internal policy

Records you are asking for * records_sought · textarea

Incident or case number (if known) incident_ref · text

From * date_from · dateYYYY-MM-DD

To * date_to · dateYYYY-MM-DD

Location (if relevant) location · text

How should we deliver the records? * delivery_preference · choice

Email attachmentsSecure download link

I understand that released records may be redacted and that some may be withheld under the law * acknowledge · boolean

Submit request

User Task

Gather responsive records

Gather records: {{reference}} (due {{due_date}}) · 2-column grid · own header and theme

Body-worn camera / CCTV video bodycam_video · attachments

Photos photos · attachments

Interview audio interview_audio · attachments

Documents (statement, report) documents · attachments

Search notes (systems searched, reasons for an extension) search_notes · textarea

Records gatheredNo recordsExtend deadline

User Task

Legal review and release decision

Legal review: {{reference}} (due {{due_date}}) · 2-column grid · own header and theme

Video exemption video_exemption · lookupPrefilled: {{law_enforcement_exemption}}

Photos exemption photo_exemption · lookupPrefilled: {{privacy_exemption}}

Audio exemption audio_exemption · lookupPrefilled: {{privacy_exemption}}

Document exemption document_exemption · lookupPrefilled: {{privacy_exemption}}

Withheld in full (for a partial release) withheld · textarea

Reasons (used in the letter) * decision_note · textareaPrefilled: Personal information of people other than the requester has been redacted to protect their privacy.

Approve releasePartial releaseDenySend back

From your code

Start a run over the API

Every workflow can be started over REST, MCP or the CLI, whatever its trigger, with the sample input below. Runs start straight away on the published version; replace <workflow id> with the id the install created.

REST

shell

curl -X POST "$USERTASKS_URL/api/v1/workflows/start" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $USERTASKS_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"workflow_id":"<workflow id>","variables":{"requester_name":"Jordan Example","requester_email":"jordan.example@example.com","phone":"+1 555 0100","organisation":"Example Community News","jurisdiction":"US federal FOIA","records_sought":"Body-worn camera video, photos, the witness interview and statement for incident SAMPLE-2026-0042 on Sample Street.","incident_ref":"SAMPLE-2026-0042","date_from":"2026-10-30","date_to":"2026-10-30","location":"Sample Street","delivery_preference":"Email attachments","acknowledge":true}}'

CLI

shell

usertasks workflows inputs <workflow id>          # the start form: keys, types, required
usertasks workflows run <workflow id> --input requester_name="Jordan Example" --input requester_email=jordan.example@example.com --input phone="+1 555 0100" --input organisation="Example Community News" … --wait

What's included

16 assets, ready to adapt

Type	Name	Details
Email template	Records release	Sent with the release package: cover letter, exemption log and the redacted records (or a download link).
Email template	Records request acknowledgement	Sent when a request arrives: reference and response deadline.
Email template	Records request: decision to withhold	Sent when the request is refused, with the decision letter attached.
Email template	Records request extension	Sent when the deadline is extended.
Email template	Records request: no records found	Sent when no responsive records exist, with the letter attached.
Data table	Exemption codes	The exemption codes reviewers can apply, per regime. A configurable list of EXAMPLES: edit it to match your statute and practice.
Data table	Exemptions log	One row per released item: what was redacted, the exemption applied and who approved it. It becomes the exemption log PDF sent with the release.
Data table	Records requests	Every public records request: requester, regime, statutory due date, status and outcome.
Data table	Request activity	Audit trail: each step of each request, when it happened and who acted.
Integration	Google Gemini (media AI)	Media AI provider for transcription, image and video analysis and finding what to redact. Paste your Gemini API key on install (aistudio.google.com). To use OpenAI, Azure AI or AWS instead, point the media steps at that integration.
Integration	Records release portal	Where released records are shared with the requester (a download link). Replace with your portal, document management system or secure file share.
API reference	Create release link	POST /releases — Uploads nothing itself: registers the release and returns a download link the requester can use (your portal fetches the redacted files from UserTasks or your store).
Decision table	Records request rules (examples)	5 rules — Response deadline and default exemption codes per regime. These rows are configurable EXAMPLES to adapt with your counsel, not legal advice: check the statute, how your office counts days, holidays and extensions.
Retention policy	Records requests: 7 years	Requests, exemption logs and the audit trail are kept for 7 years after creation, then reviewed. Adjust to your records schedule.
forms	Public records request	The public form for records requests (FOIA, OIA, state public records acts): requester details, records sought, dates and how to deliver them.
Workflow	Public records request	82 steps — A public records request (FOIA, OIA, state public records acts) from its form to release: statutory deadline and SLA, acknowledgement, records gathering, automated redaction of video, photos, audio and documents, an exemptions log, legal approval, and a release package with cover letter, or a denial, no-records or extension letter.

Exemption codes · 11 sample rows

CodeRegimeTitleCitation (example)Typical useActive

Exemptions log · schema only

Item keyRequestItemTypeRedactionsExemptionStatusApproved byLogged

Records requests · 1 sample rows

ReferenceRequesterEmailRegimeRecords soughtDate rangeDeliveryReceivedDueStatusDecisionRelease linkClosed

Request activity · schema only

RequestAtEventActorDetail

Requirements

What you connect it to

Credentials never travel in a package. The install wizard asks for what your environment must provide, or installs it incomplete until you finish setup.

Needs

Media AI provider — An API key for a media AI provider (Google Gemini by default; OpenAI, Azure AI, AWS and others can be swapped in) that transcribes, analyses and finds what to redact.
REST API — A REST API integration: set its base URL and credentials on install.
Assignees — People in your workspace to receive the User Tasks (picked on install).
Email — Email delivery configured for the instance (EMAIL_PROVIDER), used for notifications.

After installing

Google Gemini (media AI): paste your API key from aistudio.google.com. Redaction runs with your own key; to use another provider (OpenAI, Azure AI Vision, AWS) add that integration and choose it on the media steps.
Records release portal: set the base URL and token of the system that hosts download links (or remove the Create release link step and send attachments only).
Assignees: pick the records officer who gathers records and the legal reviewer who approves releases.
Review the Records request rules and Exemption codes tables with your counsel: the rows are examples (deadline counts, day types, extensions and exemption codes differ by statute and agency). They are not legal advice.
Apply the "Records requests: 7 years" retention policy to the Records requests, Exemptions log and Request activity tables to match your records schedule, and set EMAIL_PROVIDER so requesters receive their letters.
Background media steps need FFmpeg (Docker image or FFMPEG_PATH) and the media job scheduler (process-media) running, as for any long video.

Asked for on install

Integration “Google Gemini (media AI)”Required
- Key valueconfig.auth_config.key_value
- Base urlconfig.base_urldefault https://generativelanguage.googleapis.com· optional
Integration “Records release portal”Required
- Tokenconfig.auth_config.token
- Base urlconfig.base_urldefault https://records-portal.example.com/api· optional
Workflow “Public records request” assigneesRequired
- User for step “Gather responsive records”nodes.12.config.assignee_id
- User for step “Legal review and release decision”nodes.46.config.assignee_id

Install

Install it in your workspace

Works on UserTasks cloud and on any self-hosted instance. Installing creates the assets above; nothing runs until you complete setup and start it.

In the app

Download foia-records-request-redaction-1.0.0.utpkg.
Open Automations → Packages and drag the file onto the page (or choose Import package). Browse gallery there lists every gallery package without downloading by hand.
Pick the file. The wizard verifies the checksum, every file hash and the signature, and shows the readme.
Review the changes (what is created) and the data rows.
Fill in the requirements, or tick Keep incomplete and finish later with Complete setup.
Done: the workflow is published and active once setup is complete.

With the CLI

shell

curl -fLO https://usertasks.com/gallery/foia-records-request-redaction-1.0.0.utpkg
usertasks packages inspect foia-records-request-redaction-1.0.0.utpkg       # offline: checksum, hashes, signature
usertasks packages install foia-records-request-redaction-1.0.0.utpkg --dry-run
usertasks packages install foia-records-request-redaction-1.0.0.utpkg       # prompts for each requirement
usertasks packages install foia-records-request-redaction-1.0.0.utpkg --keep-incomplete --yes   # in CI; finish with:
usertasks packages complete foia-records-request-redaction -f values.yaml

Verify the download

File SHA-256: 72f39a50fbe5a48de3aec0377a3e6c516600296be44204877713daf6fe8bdce1
Package checksum (what is signed): sha256:4278287c42e5aa8519fffa2c1a182764591653beec5aeaa8e4508c2e96fa792a
Signer: UserTasks Gallery · 49:f3:04:90:47:02:4d:07:28:61:3d:dc:bb:aa:db:11

shasum -a 256 foia-records-request-redaction-1.0.0.utpkg should print the file SHA-256. How gallery packages are signed.

Versions

Version 1.0.0

v1.0.02026-10-30First release.

Installing a newer version upgrades in place: local credentials and requirement values are kept, and changes you made are flagged first. How packages work

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FOIA / public records request: evidence redaction and release

What it does

Starts from a form

Step by step

The start form and the task forms

Public records request

Gather responsive records

Legal review and release decision

Start a run over the API

16 assets, ready to adapt

What you connect it to

Needs

After installing

Asked for on install

Install it in your workspace

In the app

With the CLI

Version 1.0.0

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