Ambassador Marks IG complaints
| Tracking # |
F-2021-07992 2021-F-023 F-00231-21 2021-F-023 |
| Submitted | March 26, 2021 |
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Communications
From: William Middleton
To Whom It May Concern:
Pursuant to the Freedom of Information Act, I hereby request the following records:
I would like to request copies of any and all complaints submitted to the State Department's Office of the Inspector General about Lana Marks, Ambassador to South Africa. The period to be covered is twelve months, from November 1, 2019 to November 1, 2020. I am interested in complaints from any source, on any topic, submitted in any format. I am a retired Foreign Service Officer and am currently a student in a journalism class at the University of Nevada Reno. I make this request in partial fulfillment of the requirements for that course. I will be writing a story for publication based on the requested material.
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,
William Middleton
From: U.S. Department of State
Thank you for filing your FOIA request online on 3/29/2021. Here is a review of your request.
The records I request can be described as follows:
To Whom It May Concern:Pursuant to the Freedom of Information Act, I hereby request the following records:I would like to request copies of any and all complaints submitted to the State Department's Office of the Inspector General about Lana Marks, Ambassador to South Africa. The period to be covered is twelve months, from November 1, 2019 to November 1, 2020. I am interested in complaints from any source, on any topic, submitted in any format. I am a retired Foreign Service Officer and am currently a student in a journalism class at the University of Nevada Reno. I make this request in partial fulfillment of the requirements for that course. I will be writing a story for publication based on the requested material.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,William MiddletonUpload documents directly: https://https://www.muckrock.comhttps://www.muckrock.com/
The time period of my request is from 11/01/2019 to 11/01/2020
I am A representative of the news media seeking information as part of a news gathering effort and not for commercial use.
I am willing to pay $25 for my request.
My additional comments are as follows:
N/A
Contact Information
Mr. Bill Middleton
MuckRock News 411A Highland Ave
DEPT MR 110225
Somerville, Massachusetts 02144
P: (617) 299-1832
F: N/A
requests@muckrock.com
From: U.S. Department of State
Mr. Middleton,
This Office referred your request to the U.S. Department of State Office of Inspector General (OIG) for processing and direct response to you. OIG is an independent component within the Department and responds to request for records that are exclusively OIG-related such as inspections, audits, or investigations relating to the Department's programs or operations. Please contact OIG's FOIA Requester Service Center for status updates on your request at FOIA@stateoig.gov<mailto:FOIA@stateoig.gov>.
Sincerely,
Requester Communications Branch
Office of Information Programs and Services
From:
Dear Mr. Middleton: Attached to this email please find correspondence related to your case at the Department of State (DOS) Office of Inspector General (OIG), dated March 29, 2021, and assigned our tracking number 2021-F-023. Sincerely, DOS-OIG FOIA Office ***To respond to this email, please contact Thank you*** foia@stateoig.gov (mailto:foia@stateoig.gov)
From: U.S. Department of State
Dear Mr. Middleton: Attached to this email please find correspondence related to your case at the Department of State (DOS) Office of Inspector General (OIG), dated March 29, 2021, and assigned our tracking number 2021-F-023. Sincerely, DOS-OIG FOIA Office ***Please do not reply to this email as it will not reach us. To reply, please email us at foia@stateoig.gov . Thank you.***
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2021-F-023
From: U.S. Department of State
July 07, 2021 RE: USAID FOIA No. F-00231-21 (Acknowledgment Letter) Dear Mr. Middleton: We have received a referral letter from Department of State OIG dated July 02, 2021, requesting information pursuant to the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. § 552. The tracking number for your request is F-00231-21. Please use this number when corresponding with our office. At this time, we are in the process of perfecting your request. A perfected request for records reasonably describes such records and is made in accordance with published rules stating the time, place, fees (if any) and procedures to be followed. This process includes reviewing the request for clarity and fee category determination and related commitment to pay, if applicable. Once your request is perfected, you will be notified of the FOIA Specialist assigned to process your case. If you have questions, please contact us at . Please cite the above-referenced number when corresponding with our office. (mailto:foia@usaid.gov) foia@usaid.gov Thank you. Sincerely, Diamond Johnson
FOIA Specialist
Bureau for Management
Office of Management Services
Information and Records Division
From: U.S. Department of State
July 07, 2021 RE: USAID FOIA No. F-00231-21 (FOIA Specialist Assignment Email) Dear Mr. Middleton: This acknowledges receipt of your July 02, 2021, referred Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request to the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). Specifically, you requested records concerning a named individual. (Date Range for Record Search: From 11/1/2019 To 11/1/2020).
Fee
The FOIA provides that fees should be waived or reduced if disclosure of the information is in the public interest because it is likely to contribute significantly to public understanding of the operations and activities of the government and is not primarily in the commercial interest of the requester. As a member of the media, the only applicable fee is duplication. Duplication is $0.10 per page, but the first 100 pages are free. Since the only applicable fee is duplication, and USAID routinely furnishes responsive records to FOIA requesters in electronic format, it's most likely there will be no duplication fees to assess.
Appeal rightsYou have a right to appeal the denial of expedited processing. Your appeal must be received by USAID no later than 90 days from the date of this communication. In order for it to considered an official appeal, please address and send directly to the FOIA Appeal Officer:
Deputy Director, Office of Management Services
U.S. Agency for International Development
1300 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW
USAID Annex, M/MS, Room 10.8.OD
Washington, DC 20523
If you wish to fax your appeal, the fax number is (202) 916-4990. Both the appeal and envelope should be marked "FOIA Appeal". Please include the subject-referenced tracking number in your letter
FOIA Specialist
Your request has been assigned to Tiffanie Woodland, FOIA Specialist. You may contact Tiffanie Woodland by email at twoodland@usaid.gov. (mailto:twoodland@usaid.gov) Please reference the tracking number cited above in any future correspondence.
Extending the FOIA’s Time Limits due to Unusual Circumstances The FOIA provides that an agency may extend its time limits when “unusual circumstances” occur in the processing of a request. See 5 U.S.C. § 552(a)(6)(B)(i) (2016). Those “unusual circumstances” are set forth in the statute, 5 U.S.C § 552(a)(6)(B)(iii), and are described as: 1) The need to search for records from field facilities or other locations separate from the office processing the request; 2) The need to search, collect and examine voluminous records; and 3) The need for consultation with another agency. Based upon the records you have requested, we have determined that one or more unusual circumstances will occur during the processing of your request. Accordingly, your response time-limit has been extended beyond the 20 days required by statute; therefore, 10 additional processing days have been added to your request. To mitigate this action, you may limit the scope of the request so that it can be processed more quickly or to arrange an alternative time to respond. If you have any questions or wish to discuss reformulation or an alternative time frame for the processing of your request, you may contact the assigned FOIA Specialist noted above. You may also contact USAID’s FOIA Public Liaison, Christopher Colbow, at foia@usaid.gov.
Additionally, you may contact the Office of Government Information Services (OGIS) at the National Archives and Records Administration to inquire about the FOIA mediation services offered: Office of Government Information Services National Archives and Records Administration 8601 Adelphi Road-OGIS, College Park, Maryland 20740-6001 E-mail: ogis@nara.gov Telephone: 202-741-5770; Toll Free: 1-877-684-6448 Fax: 202-741-5769 Thank you for your interest in USAID. Sincerely, Diamond Johnson
FOIA Specialist
Bureau for Management
Office of Management Services
Information and Records Division
From: U.S. Department of State
**THIS EMAIL BOX IS NOT MONITORED, PLEASE DO NOT REPLY TO THIS EMAIL.** Mr.Middleton: This email acknowledges receipt of your March 29, 2021, Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) (5 U.S.C. § 552) request received by the U.S. Department of State, Office ofInformation Programs and Services on July 2, 2021, regardingcopies of any and all complaints submitted to the State Department's Office of the Inspector General about Lana Marks, Ambassador to South Africa (Date Range for Record Search: From 11/1/2019 To 11/1/2020). Unless you advise otherwise, we will treat as non-responsive any compilations of publicly available news reports and any publicly available documents not created by the U.S. government, such as mass-distribution emails from news media. This Office assigned your request the subject reference number and placed it in the complex processing track where it will beprocessed as quickly as possible. See 22 CFR § 171.11(h). This Office willnot be able to respond within the 20 days provided by the statute due to“unusual circumstances.” See 5 U.S.C. §552(a)(6)(B)(i)-(iii). In this instance,the unusual circumstances include the need to search for and collect requestedrecords from other Department offices or Foreign Service posts. If you have any questions regarding yourrequest , would like to narrow the scope or arrange analternative time frame to speed its processing, or would like an estimated dateof completion, please contact our FOIA Requester Service Center or our FOIAPublic Liaison by email at FOIAstatus@state.gov or telephone at202-261-8484. Additionally, youmay contact the Office of Government Information Services (OGIS) at theNational Archives and Records Administration to inquire about the FOIAmediation services they offer. Thecontact information for OGIS is as follows: Office of Government InformationServices, National Archives and Records Administration, 8601 Adelphi Road-OGIS,College Park, Maryland 20740-6001, email at ogis@nara.gov; telephone at202-741-5770; toll free at 1-877-684-6448; or facsimile at 202-741-5769. **THIS EMAIL BOX IS NOT MONITORED, PLEASE DO NOT REPLY TO THIS EMAIL.**
From: U.S. Department of State
Greetings Mr. Middleton,
Attached is the final response letter and documents pertaining to your
March 29, 2021, Freedom of Information Act Request to the Department of
State, Office of Inspector General in which 6 pages were referred to the
United States Agency for International Development.
Best,
*Tiffanie M. WoodlandGovernment Information SpecialistUSAID – US Agency for
International DevelopmentBureau for Management, Office of Management
Services, Information and Records Division (M/MS/IRD) *
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