FOIA - DHS - OPSEC@ emails

Good Morning,
Attached is our acknowledgment of your DHS FOIA request.  If you need to contact this office again concerning your request, please provide the DHS reference number. This will enable us to quickly retrieve the information you are seeking and reduce our response time. This office can be reached at 866-431-0486 or at foia@hq.dhs.gov. (mailto:foia@hq.dhs.gov)
Regards,
DHS Privacy Office
Disclosure & FOIA Program
STOP 0655
Department of Homeland Security
245 Murray Drive, SW
Washington, DC 20528-0655
Telephone:  1-866-431-0486 or 202-343-1743
Fax:  202-343-4011
Visit our FOIA website (http://www.dhs.gov/foia)

Good Afternoon,

Thank you for your message. We appreciate your frustration with the delay in our ability to respond to your request, and apologize that we are not able to give you a more precise estimate of when you can expect to receive our response. At this time, our general expectation is that, we will be able to send you a final response in the next three to four  months.

Please understand that our office handles a very large volume of requests – in one month we respond to more requests on average than most Departments receive in a year. In addition to handling a large volume of requests, we are also responsible for processing a variety of particularly sensitive types of records. We have a responsibility to ensure that we carefully review all of the records we process to ensure that we provide maximum transparency while withholding any exempt material that could foreseeably cause harm to a protected interest. This is a labor intensive task that involves working with offices to ensure that any potentially responsive materials are provided to us and then conducting a page-by-page and line-by-line review of all responsive records.

OCIO has provided us with potentially responsive records and your request has been added to our processing queue. It is very difficult to provide an accurate estimated date of completion until our FOIA analyst reviews these records for responsiveness and we have a better sense of the number of pages and the sensitivity of the material. The Privacy Office is also coordinating the Department’s response to requests related to COVID-19; many of these requesters asked and qualified for expedited processing, meaning that they are required to be placed at the front of the queue. Again, our general expectation is that we will be able to send you a final response within three to four months. Please know that this estimate may change dramatically based on the volume of work associated with our expedited COVID-19 requests and on the types of records that OCIO has provided us for your request. Regardless of the specificity of your request, we cannot accurately estimate the amount of time it will take to process the record until we understand both the volume and sensitivity of the record.

While we make every effort to be responsive to requesters and hope to be able to respond to you sooner, there may be additional delays.

I hope that this response provides additional insight into why we are not able to give you a more precise estimated date of completion, and why we expect it will take three to four months for us to respond to your request. Please let us know if you have any other questions about our processes.

Respectfully,

DHS Privacy Office
Disclosure and FOIA Program
STOP 0655
U.S. Department of Homeland Security
2707 Martin Luther King Jr. AVE SE
Washington, DC 20032
Telephone: 1-866-431-0486 or 202-343-1743
Fax: 202-343-4011
foia@hq.dhs.gov
Visit our FOIA website

J Ader
411A Highland Ave
Somerville, MA, 02144

The FOIA referral CBP-2021-081487 has had its Tracking Number changed to CBP-IA-2021-081487. This is normally due to the referral being transferred to another agency (for example, EPA to Dept. of Commerce) or to a sub-agency to process it. Additional details for this referral are as follows:

* Old Tracking Number:
CBP-2021-081487
* New Tracking Number:
CBP-IA-2021-081487
* Requester Name:
J Ader
* Date Submitted:
07/07/2021
* Long Description:
DHS HQ Referral: 2021-HQFO-00060 (Please see referred 2 pg. doc for review).

All emails sent to/from OPSEC@hq.dhs.gov from October 1st, 2020 to October 14th, 2020. Emails should include attachments (in their entirety) as well, when applicable.

Good Morning, Attached is our final response to your request.  If you need to contact this office again concerning your request, please provide the DHS reference number. This will enable us to quickly retrieve the information you are seeking and reduce our response time. This office can be reached at 866-431-0486. Regards, DHS Privacy Office
Disclosure & FOIA Program
STOP 0655
Department of Homeland Security
245 Murray Drive, SW
Washington, DC 20528-0655
Telephone:  1-866-431-0486 or 202-343-1743
Fax:  202-343-4011
Visit our FOIA website

July 09, 2021 SENT VIA E-MAIL TO: requests@muckrock.com
Re: FOIARequest Number 2021-FEFO-00762 Acknowledgment Dear J Ader: This correspondence acknowledges receipt of your Freedom ofInformation Act (FOIA) request to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) dated October 14, 2020,and referred to the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) on July 07, 2021. Youare seeking all emails sent to/from OPSEC@hq.dhs.gov from October 1, 2020 to October 14, 2020. Yourrequest has been assigned the following tracking number 2021-FEFO-00762. Due to current working conditions in response to theCOVID-19 outbreak, please expect a delay in our response. Please be assured that we continue ourcommitment to provide timely FOIA responses and are processing your FOIArequest as soon as possible. If you have any questions or would like to discuss thismatter, please contact me the assigned FOIA specialist directly at, juan.vegasandoval@fema.dhs.gov. (mailto:juan.vegasandoval@fema.dhs.gov) If you require additional support, you may alsocontact FEMA’s Public Liaison at . If you need to contact FEMA’s FOIA Public Liaison, then please referencethe FOIA request number and address your email to “Attn: FEMA’s PublicLiaison” and summarize your concerns. FEMA-FOIA@fema.dhs.gov
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS)referred to the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) six (6) pages. They will be reviewed fordetermination of releasability. We will contact you again once our review iscompleted and/or the search is completed. Interim responses will be provided as appropriate. We appreciate your patience as we proceedwith your request If you have any questions or would like to discuss this matter, p lease contact the assigned FOIA specialist directly at, juan.vegasandoval@fema.dhs.gov (mailto:juan.vegasandoval@fema.dhs.gov) and reference the request number 2021-FEFO-00762 . Again, If you require additional support, you may alsocontact FEMA’s Public Liaison at . If you need to contact FEMA’s FOIA Public Liaison, then please referencethe FOIA request number and address your email to “Attn: FEMA’s PublicLiaison” and summarize your concerns. FEMA-FOIA@fema.dhs.gov You may also contact FEMA at (202) 646-3323, or you may contact FEMA’s Public Liaison in the same manner.  Please reference FOIA request number 2021-FEFO-00762. For a faster response please communicate by email. Thank you for your interest in FEMA. Sincerely, Disclosure Branch Information Management Division Office of the Chief Administrative Officer Federal Emergency Management Agency U.S. Department of HomelandSecurity

Good morning,

We are still currently working on your FOIA request. We estimate that you will receive a response to this request on or near August 31, 2021. We apologize for any inconvenience and appreciate your patience with us. We will notify you if this date should change. Thank you for your cooperation.

Sincerely,

Juan Vega
Government Information Specialist | Information Management Division | Office of the Chief Administrative Officer
Office: (202) 646-3323 | Work Mobile: (202) 674-2989
juan.vegasandoval@fema.dhs.gov<mailto:juan.vegasandoval@fema.dhs.gov>

Federal Emergency Management Agency
fema.gov<http://www.fema.gov/>

Dear  J Ader:
Attached is our final response to your Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) Request numbered 2021-FEFO-00762.  If you need to contact our office concerning this request, please email me directly and reference your FOIA tracking number 2021-FEFO-00762. You may also send an e-mail to FEMA-FOIA@fema.dhs.gov, or call (202) 646-3323, and you maycontact our FOIA Public Liaison in the same manner. (mailto:FEMA-FOIA@fema.dhs.gov) For a faster response please contact me directly by email.
Regards,
Disclosure Branch
Information Management Division
Office of the Chief Administrative Officer
Federal Emergency Management Agency
U.S. Department of Homeland Security
Telephone: (202) 646-3323
FEMA-FOIA@fema.dhs.gov

May 11, 2022 J Ader MuckRock News DEPT MR 103730 411A Highland Ave Somerville, MA 02144-2516 RE:     ICE FOIA Case Number 2022-ICFO-15652 Dear Ader: This acknowledges receipt of your July 07, 2021, Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), for documents pertaining to all emails sent to/from OPSEC@hq.dhs.gov from October 1st, 2020 to October 14th, 2020..  Your request was received in this office on May 11, 2022. PLEASENOTE: Requesters seekingresponsive records from the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) areencouraged to create a DHS FOIA Public Access Link (PAL) accountat: . Creating a PALaccount will allow you to directly submit your FOIA request to ICE and trackthe status of your request. In PAL, you can view your prior PAL submissions,sent correspondences, and responsive records. Although PAL is preferred, ICEFOIA will continue to accept FOIA requests via email at (https://foiarequest.dhs.gov/) https://foiarequest.dhs.gov or via regularmail at U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Freedom ofInformation Act Office, 500 12 ICE-FOIA@ice.dhs.gov th St. SW, STOP 5009, Washington,DC 20536-5009. Due to the increasing number of FOIA requests received by this office, we may encounter some delay in processing your request. Per Section 5.5(a) of the DHS FOIA regulations, 6 C.F.R. Part 5, ICE processes FOIA requests according to their order of receipt. Although ICE’s goal is to respond within 20 business days of receipt of your request, the FOIA does permit a 10-day extension of this time period. As your request seeks numerous documents that will necessitate a thorough and wide-ranging search, ICE will invoke a 10-day extension for your request, as allowed by Title 5 U.S.C. § 552(a)(6)(B). If you care to narrow the scope of your request, please contact our office. We will make every effort to comply with your request in a timely manner. FOR COMMERCIAL REQUESTERS: Provisions of the FOIA allow us to recover part of the cost of complying with your request.  We shall charge you for records in accordance with the DHS Interim FOIA regulations as they apply to commercial requesters.  As a commercial requester, you will be charged 10 cents per page for duplication, and for search and review time at the per quarter-hour rate ($4.00 for clerical personnel, $7.00 for professional personnel, $10.25 for managerial personnel) of the searcher and reviewer.  We will construe the submission of your request as an agreement to pay up to $25.00. You will be contacted before any further fees are accrued. FOR MEDIA REQUESTERS: Provisions of the FOIA allow us to recover part of the cost of complying with your request.  We shall charge you for records in accordance with the DHS Interim FOIA regulations, as they apply to media requesters.  As a media requester, you will be charged 10 cents per page for duplication; the first 100 pages are free.  We will construe the submission of your request as an agreement to pay up to $25.00. You will be contacted before any further fees are accrued. FOR EDUCATIONAL REQUESTERS: Provisions of the FOIA allow us to recover part of the cost of complying with your request.  We shall charge you for records in accordance with the DHS Interim FOIA regulations as they apply to educational requesters.  As an educational requester, you will be charged 10 cents per page for duplication; the first 100 pages are free.  We will construe the submission of your request as an agreement to pay up to $25.00. You will be contacted before any further fees are accrued. FOR PRIVATE INDIVIDUALS AND OTHER REQUESTERS: Provisions of the FOIA allow us to recover part of the cost of complying with your request.  We shall charge you for records in accordance with the DHS Interim FOIA regulations as they apply to non-commercial requesters.  As a non-commercial requester, you will be charged 10 cents per page for duplication; the first 100 pages are free, as are the first two hours of search time, after which you will pay the per quarter-hour rate ($4.00 for clerical personnel, $7.00 for professional personnel, $10.25 for managerial personnel) of the searcher.  We will construe the submission of your request as an agreement to pay up to $25.00. You will be contacted before any further fees are accrued. We have queried the appropriate program offices within ICE for responsive records. If any responsive records are located, they will be reviewed for determination of releasability. Please be assured that one of the processors in our office will respond to your request as expeditiously as possible. We appreciate your patience as we proceed with your request.
Your request has been assigned reference number 2022-ICFO-15652. Please refer to this identifier in any future correspondence. To check the status of an ICE FOIA/PA request, please visit . Please note that to check the status of a request, you must enter the 2022-ICFO-15652 tracking number. If you need any further assistance or would like to discuss any aspect of your request, please contact the FOIA office. You may send an e-mail to ice-foia@ice.dhs.gov, call toll free (866) 633-1182, or you may contact our FOIA Public Liaison, Marcus Francis, in the same manner. Additionally, you have a right to right to seek dispute resolution services from the Office of Government Information Services (OGIS) which mediates disputes between FOIA requesters and Federal agencies as a non-exclusive alternative to litigation. If you are requesting access to your own records (which is considered a Privacy Act request), you should know that OGIS does not have the authority to handle requests made under the Privacy Act of 1974. You may contact OGIS as follows: Office of Government Information Services, National Archives and Records Administration, 8601 Adelphi Road-OGIS, College Park, Maryland 20740-6001, e-mail at ogis@nara.gov; telephone at 202-741-5770; toll free at 1-877-684-6448; or facsimile at 202-741-5769. (http://www.dhs.gov/foia-status) http://www.dhs.gov/foia-status
Regards,

ICE FOIA Office
Immigration and Customs Enforcement
Freedom of Information Act Office
500 12th Street, S.W., Stop 5009
Washington, D.C. 20536-5009
Telephone: 1-866-633-1182
Visit our FOIA website at www.ice.gov/foia

Dear J Ader,
The password to open the responsive records delivered in a separate email for 2022-ICFO-15652 is listed below. If you do not receive the email containing the responsive documents within a reasonable timeframe please contact our office at foia-obim@hq.dhs.gov. (mailto:foia-obim@hq.dhs.gov)
Document Password: 3O62ib84
Sincerely, OBIM FOIA Branch

Ader,

ICE's final response to your FOIA request, 2022-ICFO-15652, for documents pertaining to all emails sent to/from OPSEC@hq.dhs.gov from October 1st, 2020 to October 14th, 2020. is attached.

Please note that the attachment may be password protected. If you are prompted to enter a password when opening the attachment and you did not receive a password it may be in your junk/spam folder.

Sincerely,
ICE FOIA

CBP-2021-081487 has been processed with the following final disposition: Partial Grant/Partial Denial.
Given the nature of this request, some records are only being released to you as the requester. If you have an account in FOIAonline, you may access those records by [FOIAONLINE_HOME]. Otherwise, those responsive records will be sent via the method agreed upon with the FOIA processor.