5 Oldest Requests (Federal Communications Commission)
| Tracking # |
2021-000660 FCC-2021-000660 |
| Multi Request | 5 Oldest Requests |
| Submitted | Sept. 11, 2021 |
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Communications
From: Michael Quinn
To Whom It May Concern:
Pursuant to the Freedom of Information Act, I hereby request the following records:
All records referencing the five oldest FOIA and Privacy Act requests which are still being processed that contain remarks, comments, notes, explanations, etc. made by your personnel or contractors about the processing of these requests (and appeals, if appropriate), the invocation of exemptions, or related matters. This is to include any analysts' notes made during the processing of the requests, any standard worksheets completed by the analysts, any justifications for exemption invocations or other supporting documentation provided to the Appeals Authority, and any correspondence referencing the requests, including tasking orders, emails, and coordination documentation. However, any records previously released to the original requesters in unredacted form may be excluded from this request. Additionally, please provide the initial request letters for the 5 oldest open FOIA/PA requests.
When processing this request, please note that the D.C. Circuit has previously held that agencies have a duty to construe the subject material of FOIA requests liberally to ensure responsive records are not overlooked. See Nation Magazine, Washington Bureau v. U.S. Customs Service, 71 F.3d 885, 890 (D.C. Cir. 1995). Accordingly, you are hereby instructed that the term “record” includes, but is not limited to: 1) all email communications to or from any individual within your agency; 2) memoranda; 3) inter-agency communications; 4) sound recordings; 5) tape recordings; 6) video or film recordings; 7) photographs; 8) notes; 9) notebooks; 10) indices; 11) jottings; 12) message slips; 13) letters or correspondence; 14) telexes; 15) telegrams; 16) facsimile transmissions; 17) statements; 18) policies; 19) manuals or binders; 20) books; 21) handbooks; 22) business records; 23) personnel records; 24) ledgers; 25) notices; 26) warnings; 27) affidavits; 28) declarations under penalty of perjury; 29) unsworn statements; 30) reports; 31) diaries; or 32) calendars, regardless of whether they are handwritten, printed, typed, mechanically or electronically recorded or reproduced on any medium capable of conveying an image, such as paper, CDs, DVDs, or diskettes.
The requested documents will be made available to the general public, and this request is not being made for commercial purposes.
In the event that there are fees, I would be grateful if you would inform me of the total charges in advance of fulfilling my request. I would prefer the request filled electronically, by e-mail attachment if available or CD-ROM if not.
Thank you in advance for your anticipated cooperation in this matter. I look forward to receiving your response to this request within 20 business days, as the statute requires.
Sincerely,
Michael Quinn
From: Federal Communications Commission
Dear Michael Quinn <requests@muckrock.com>,
Your password has been updated per your request. You can change your password in the future from your
profile page.
If you believe you received this email in error or need additional assistance, please contact the FOIAonline Help Desk. (mailto:foia.help@epa.gov)
Thank you!
FOIAonline Team (mailto:foia.help@epa.gov)
From: Federal Communications Commission
This message is to confirm your request submission to the FOIAonline application: View Request. Request information is as follows: (https://www.foiaonline.gov/foiaonline/action/public/submissionDetails?trackingNumber=FCC-2021-000660&type=request)
* Tracking Number: FCC-2021-000660
* Requester Name: Michael Quinn
* Date Submitted: 09/13/2021
* Request Status: Submitted
* Description:
Please See attachment for description.
From: Federal Communications Commission
Mr. Quinn,
We are in receipt of your Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request filed with the Federal Communications Commission on September 14, 2021, and assigned FOIA Control Number 2021-000660<tel:2021-000660>. In order to process, we would like to discuss the parameters of your request as it appears to seek information regarding review-related materials of FOIAs still pending before the Commission. Please let us know when a convenient time would be to set up a phone call.
Thank you.
Tracy Bloom
Attorney Advisor
Office of General Counsel
Federal Communications Commission
From: Michael Quinn
If we can either discuss this here (as in via email/records portal) or you can provide me a time and phone number/ext to call, that would be great. I'm free nearly any business hour provided I've got a ~24 hours heads up. I'd strongly prefer to discuss this matter via written communication however since part of why I use Muckrock is to provide real-world examples of how agencies process requests and communicate with requesters.
From: Federal Communications Commission
Mr. Quinn,
This email is a follow up to my request to discuss the parameters of your FOIA request. If we do not hear from you by Friday, October 29, 2021, we will assume that you are no longer seeking the materials and we will administratively close the FOIA. Please note that this administrative action does not prejudice you in any way and that you are free to file additional FOIA requests with the Commission in the future.
Thank you.
Tracy Bloom
Attorney Advisor
Office of General Counsel
Federal Communications Commission
From: Michael Quinn
Please see my previous message (October 11th) - I told you to provide some way for me to call you and that I'm available with enough notice given.
From: Federal Communications Commission
Mr. Quinn,
Thank you for your response. We believe conducting a brief phone call would be a more effective and efficient means of covering some of the questions we had and the points we needed clarification on. We will memorialize our understanding via written follow-up after our call. To that end, are you available next Tuesday, November 2 at 1 PM? If so , we will provide you with a conference bridge.
Thank you!
Tracy Bloom
From: Muckrock Staff
To Whom It May Concern:
I'm following up on the following Freedom of Information Act request, copied below, and originally submitted on Sept. 11, 2021. You previously indicated that it would be completed on Oct. 29, 2021. I wanted to let you know that I am still interested in the following documents, and to see if that date was still accurate. You had assigned it reference number #FCC-2021-000660.
Thanks for your help, and let me know if further clarification is needed.
From: Michael Quinn
Hi Tracy,
Is there any chance we can do later in that week? I'm currently in the hospital with E. Coli and don't know when I'll be feeling better by, so I'm trying to take a few days off of public records work.
Additionally, would that be eastern time or pacific?
From: Federal Communications Commission
Mr. Quinn,
We regret that we were not able to discuss the parameters of your request with you this week and are very sorry to hear that you have been sick. We wish you a speedy recovery. When you are feeling better, we would like to schedule a brief phone call to discuss some questions we had and provide you with our initial impressions as well. With that in mind and giving you some time to recover, we are free the week after next [e.g., Tuesday, November 16 at 1 EST or Wednesday, November 17 at 11 EST] and if that works for you, just let us know and we will circulate the call-in information. In the interim, however, we can give you an overview of our thoughts. In short, your request seeks:
All records referencing the five oldest FOIA and Privacy Act requests which are still being processed that contain remarks, comments, notes, explanations, etc. made by your personnel or contractors about the processing of these requests (and appeals, if appropriate), the invocation of exemptions, or related matters. This is to include any analysts' notes made during the processing of the requests, any standard worksheets completed by the analysts, any justifications for exemption invocations or other supporting documentation provided to the Appeals Authority, and any correspondence referencing the requests, including tasking orders, emails, and coordination documentation. However, any records previously released to the original requesters in unredacted form may be excluded from this request. Additionally, please provide the initial request letters for the 5 oldest open FOIA/PA requests.
Our questions go to what it is you are seeking, and are as follows:
Are you seeking information regarding 1) the 5 oldest FOIA and the 5 oldest Privacy requests; 2) the 5 oldest FOIA or Privacy requests; or 3) the 5 oldest [joint] FOIA/Privacy Act requests?
Are you seeking records from 1) individual offices/bureaus that process the requests; 2) central processing records; or 3) both?
Are you seeking records regarding the application of exemptions to responsive materials?
Moreover, based upon our initial assessment of your request, it appears that you are seeking review-related materials of FOIAs still in process. To the extent you are seeking internal deliberation records of pending matters, the materials you seek would most likely be exempt from disclosure under FOIA Exemption 5, which protects certain inter-agency and intra-agency records that are normally considered privileged in the civil discovery context including the deliberative process and attorney client privileges. See e.g., National Security Counselors v. Central Intelligence Agency, 206 F. Supp. 3d 241 (D.D.C. 2016) (protecting internal processing records of an open and on-going FOIA request as predecisional and deliberative and protecting legal advice in connection with the processing of such request).
In addition, to the extent you seek information regarding requests made under the Privacy Act, records responsive to your request would also most likely be exempt from disclosure under FOIA Exemption 6, which protects “personnel and medical files and similar files the disclosure of which would constitute a clearly unwarranted invasion of personal privacy.”
We believe that discussing these issues in a bit more depth would allow us to process your request in a more efficient manner in addition to also providing you with the opportunity to ask any questions that you may have as well. As we stated, we are hopeful we can connect the week next but, if that’s not possible, we would appreciate any answers you can provide to the questions that are listed above.
Thank you,
Tracy Bloom
From: Federal Communications Commission
Mr. Quinn,
We hope that that you are feeling better and wanted to follow-up with you regarding scheduling a convenient time to discuss your request. Please let us know if you available Monday, November 22 at 11am EST or Tuesday, November 23 at 1pm EST? If those times are not available, we welcome an alternative.
Thank you,
Tracy Bloom
From: Michael Quinn
Ms. Bloom,
I hope your holiday was well. Thank you for the well wishes and my sincere apologies for not seeing this till now -- I've been focused on other projects and this has slipped through the cracks.
First off, I'd like to address discussing these records over the phone: I'm only interested in written communication, not only for more concrete and clear details but also because I believe agency interactions are just as educational and valuable to the understanding of government operations as the records received. All communications related to this request and any records provided are posted on muckrock.com, discussing over the phone would make that somewhat pointless.
Let me try and address some of those questions from your earlier email:
1) I'm seeking the 5 oldest FOIA, Privacy Act or joint FOIA/Privacy Act requests -- essentially, whatever the 5 requests with your agency that have been pending/active for the longest period of time.
2) I'm seeking both central processing records and records from individual offices/bureaus that process the requests. Please interpret the scope of this request in the most liberal manner possible short of an interpretation that search criteria doesn't reasonably describe the records sought. If there's somewhere likely to contain the records sought, I ask that your agency conducts searches of it.
3) If records exist regarding the usage of exemptions, i.e a "Vaughn Index" or similar record outlining the specific application of redactions on a document and it's justification: yes, I am interested.
Finally, in regards to concerns of records being exempt under Exemption 5 or 6, I'd like to remind you of the final paragraph of 5 U.S.C 522(b), more specifically where it states "Any reasonably segregable portion of a record shall be provided to any person requesting such record after deletion of the portions which are exempt under this subsection." Additionally, depending on how old certain requests are, 5 U.S.C 552(b)(5) states that it "shall not apply to records created 25 years or more before the date on which the records were requested". While it would be unreasonable for me to expect these records be untouched by Exemptions 5 or 6, it's important to note that their contents are unlikely warrant being fully withheld and likely contain reasonably segregable material that can be released. If my request receives a denial stating otherwise without a clear attempt from your agency to process and provide whatever is deemed reasonably segregable and responsive, I plan on fully exhausting administrative remedies available to me (up to and including litigation).
Once again I apologize for the delayed response and hope to get back to you significantly quicker now. Please don't hesitate to let me know if you have further questions or want further clarification.
Thank you!
From: Muckrock Staff
To Whom It May Concern:
I'm following up on the following Freedom of Information Act request, copied below, and originally submitted on Sept. 13, 2021. You had previously indicated that it would be completed on Oct. 29, 2021. I wanted to check on the status of my request, and to see if there was a new estimated completion date. You had assigned it reference number #FCC-2021-000660.
Thanks for your help, and let me know if further clarification is needed.
From: Federal Communications Commission
Mr. Quinn,
Thank you for your inquiry regarding the status of your FOIA request. Please be advised that we are actively working on your request and hope to have it completed soon.
Best,
Tracy Bloom
From: Muckrock Staff
To Whom It May Concern:
I'm following up on the following Freedom of Information Act request, copied below, and originally submitted on Sept. 13, 2021. You had previously indicated that it would be completed on Oct. 29, 2021. I wanted to check on the status of my request, and to see if there was a new estimated completion date. You had assigned it reference number #FCC-2021-000660.
Thanks for your help, and let me know if further clarification is needed.
From: Federal Communications Commission
Mr. Quinn,
Thank you for your follow-up inquiry regarding the status of your FOIA request. As we have previously advised, we are actively working on your request. We hope to complete this request as soon as possible and appreciate your continued understanding.
Best,
Tracy Bloom
From: Muckrock Staff
To Whom It May Concern:
I'm following up on the following Freedom of Information Act request, copied below, and originally submitted on Sept. 13, 2021. You had previously indicated that it would be completed on Oct. 29, 2021. I wanted to check on the status of my request, and to see if there was a new estimated completion date. You had assigned it reference number #FCC-2021-000660.
Thanks for your help, and let me know if further clarification is needed.
From: Muckrock Staff
To Whom It May Concern:
I'm following up on the following Freedom of Information Act request, copied below, and originally submitted on Sept. 13, 2021. You had previously indicated that it would be completed on Oct. 29, 2021. I wanted to check on the status of my request, and to see if there was a new estimated completion date. You had assigned it reference number #FCC-2021-000660.
Thanks for your help, and let me know if further clarification is needed.
From: Muckrock Staff
To Whom It May Concern:
I'm following up on the following Freedom of Information Act request, copied below, and originally submitted on Sept. 13, 2021. You had previously indicated that it would be completed on Oct. 29, 2021. I wanted to check on the status of my request, and to see if there was a new estimated completion date. You had assigned it reference number #FCC-2021-000660.
Thanks for your help, and let me know if further clarification is needed.
From: Muckrock Staff
To Whom It May Concern:
I'm following up on the following Freedom of Information Act request, copied below, and originally submitted on Sept. 13, 2021. You had previously indicated that it would be completed on Oct. 29, 2021. I wanted to check on the status of my request, and to see if there was a new estimated completion date. You had assigned it reference number #FCC-2021-000660.
Thanks for your help, and let me know if further clarification is needed.
From: Muckrock Staff
To Whom It May Concern:
I'm following up on the following Freedom of Information Act request, copied below, and originally submitted on Sept. 13, 2021. You had previously indicated that it would be completed on Oct. 29, 2021. I wanted to check on the status of my request, and to see if there was a new estimated completion date. You had assigned it reference number #FCC-2021-000660.
Thanks for your help, and let me know if further clarification is needed.
From: Muckrock Staff
To Whom It May Concern:
I'm following up on the following Freedom of Information Act request, copied below, and originally submitted on Sept. 13, 2021. You had previously indicated that it would be completed on Oct. 29, 2021. I wanted to check on the status of my request, and to see if there was a new estimated completion date. You had assigned it reference number #FCC-2021-000660.
Thanks for your help, and let me know if further clarification is needed.
From: Muckrock Staff
To Whom It May Concern:
I'm following up on the following Freedom of Information Act request, copied below, and originally submitted on Sept. 13, 2021. You had previously indicated that it would be completed on Oct. 29, 2021. I wanted to check on the status of my request, and to see if there was a new estimated completion date. You had assigned it reference number #FCC-2021-000660.
Thanks for your help, and let me know if further clarification is needed.
From: Federal Communications Commission
Your FOIAonline user account for requests@muckrock.com will be deactivated in 5 days due to inactivity.
From: Federal Communications Commission
Your FOIAonline user account for requests@muckrock.com will be deactivated in 5 days due to inactivity.
From: Federal Communications Commission
Your FOIAonline user account for requests@muckrock.com has been deactivated due to inactivity.
From: Federal Communications Commission
Dear Mr. Quinn,
Attached please find a response to the September 14, 2021 Freedom of Information Act request you filed with the Federal Communications Commission and assigned FOIA Control Number 2021-000660<tel:2021-000660>, however, due to size limitations, the responsive documents will be provided separately via Box. Should you have any questions, don’t hesitate to let us know.
Regards,
Tracy Bloom
Attorney Advisor
Office of General Counsel
Federal Communications Commission
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