FOIA Logs

Pursuant to the Freedom of Information Act, 5 U.S.C. § 552, I am requesting the following documents issued by the Office for Civil Rights for the period of March 1, 2021 to March 15, 2021: Copies of letters, letters of finding, substance closure letters, public policy documents, and "Dear Colleague" documents not posted in the public domain in accordance with subsection (a)(1) of the FOIA, including any and all attached documents of resolution and/or agreements involving or applying: 1) Title VI of the Civil Rights Act 2) Title IX of the Education Amendments 3) Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act 4) Title II of the American with Disabilities Act with respect to students (preschool through secondary) and/or the public education institutions that they attend, including any and all attached documents of resolutions and/or agreement addressing the allegations, issued by OCR headquarters in Washington, D.C., or any of the regional OCR offices I understand that you will delete any personally identifiable information pertaining to complaints, parents, or children before you release the documents. LRP Publications is categorized as "representative of the news media" on the basis that it provides news in various periodicals (See Appeal No. 18-00010-A-FOIA Request No. 18-00074-F by Chief Privacy Officer Kathleen M. Styles.) Under FOIA, a representative of the news media is defined as "any person or entity that gathers information of potential interest to a segment of the public, uses its editorial skills to turn the raw material into a distinct work, and distributes that work to an audience." 5 U.S.C. § 552(a)(4) (A)(ii). To determine whether a requester qualifies as a "representative of the news media," the requester's past, present, and future work should be considered. Liberman v. U.S. Dep't of Transportation, 227 F. Supp. 3d 1, 11 (D.D.C. 2016). LRP Publications is the national leader in education case reporters, including the Individuals with Disabilities Education Law Report® ; newsletters, including Special Education Law Monthly; pamphlets; books, including What Do I Do When...® The Answer Book on Section 504 and Section 504 Compliance: The Complete K-12 Handbook; national conferences; e-learning; websites; videos; and more. LRP provides news materials in various periodicals, including Section 504 Compliance Advisor and The Special Educator® , as well as on Special Ed Connection® and EducationDaily.com®. The websites are one-stop sources for news, practical advice, best practices, compliance tips, proven implementation ideas, forms, and guidance. By furnishing OCR's LOFs and correspondence on Section 504, Title VI of the Civil Rights Act, Title IX of the Education Amendments, and Title II of the ADA, LRP informs the public of government operations and contributes to the understanding of the statutes and their application. See Elec. Privacy Info. Ctr. V. U.S. Dep't of Def., 241 F.Supp.2d 5, 9 (D.D.C. 2003)(holding that a non-profit entity that had previously published seven books containing information derived from various sources beyond FOIA qualified as a representative of the news media), and National Security Archive v. U.S. Dep't of Defense, 880 F. 2d 1381 (D.C. Cir. 1989)(finding that an organization that planned to publish document sets along with indices and other finding aids was a representative of the news media.) For many years, LRP has requested copies of all letters, letters of finding, substantive closure letters, interpretive memoranda, and public policy documents, and "Dear Colleague" documents, involving or applying: 1