Bureau- or department-wide emails, DOL Women's Bureau

Mr. Eaton:

We have no record of a previous request. Therefore, your request has been assigned to the Women's Bureau with tracking number 827826. When they begin processing it, you will be able to track its progress at www.dol.gov/foia<http://www.dol.gov/foia>. If you need to contact them about it for any reason, please submit your inquiry through wb-foia@dol.gov<mailto:wb-foia@dol.gov> and reference the tracking number in the Subject line of any email submission.

Sincerely,

Arginia Karamoko
Government Information Specialist, Office of Information Services
Office of the Solicitor | Management & Administrative Legal Services
U.S. DEPARTMENT OF LABOR
200 Constitution Ave., N.W., N-2420 | Washington, DC 20210
T: (202) 693-5531 | F: (202) 693-5389 | E: karamoko.arginia@dol.gov<mailto:karamoko.arginia@dol.gov>

***This message may contain information that is privileged, confidential, or otherwise exempt from disclosure under applicable law. Do not disclose without consulting the Office of the Solicitor. If you think you received this email in error, please notify the sender immediately.***

This email is in response to your Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request submitted electronically to the U.S. Department of Labor at: FOIARequests@dol.gov<mailto:FOIARequests@dol.gov>. Your request was assigned to the Women's Bureau (WB) - an agency component of the Department of Labor - for processing under tracking #827826. In your request, you asked for the following:

o All bureau- or department-wide emails sent or received between Jan. 20, 2017, and the date [your] office processes this request, inclusive; The requested documents will be made available to the general public, and this request is not being made for commercial purposes

The FOIA requires that requests describe the records sought with sufficient detail to allow an agency to locate the records with a reasonable amount of effort. Your request is very broad and/or does not adequately describe the records sought and would cause an unusual circumstance requiring the Bureau to search for, collect, and examine a voluminous amount of separate and distinct records requested from multiple WB national office components and multiple regional field offices.

If you wish to pursue your request, you may clarify/limit the scope of your request, which may enable us to process it more quickly and/or allow an alternative time period for processing. However, if we do not receive your written response clarifying/limiting the scope of what records you are looking for within ten (10) workdays from the date of this email, we will presume that you are no longer interested in pursuing your request, and consider your request withdrawn/closed without any further action by the Women's Bureau. See 43 C.F.R. § 2.5(d).

Also, if you would like to discuss any aspect of your request, please feel free to contact the WB FOIA Coordinator Cheryl Edwards by phone at 202-693-6710; or DOL's FOIA Public Liaison, Thomas Hicks at 202-693-5427. Alternatively, you may contact the Office of Government Information Services National Archives and Records Administration (OGIS) to inquire about mediation services they offer. The contact information for OGIS is as follows: Office of Government Information Services, National Archives and Records Administration, 8601 Adelphi Road, College Park, MD 20740-6001. You can also reach that office by email at: ogis@nara.gov, by phone at 202-741-5770, fax at 202-741-5769, or by calling toll-free at 1-877-684-6448.
Regards,

Women's Bureau FOIA Service Center

Mr. Eaton,

Thank you for your response to our request to narrow/limit the previous scope pursuant to FOIA tracking #827826. The clarification you provided is most helpful in further describing the records you seek – which we anticipate will allow us to conduct a more reasonable search of records.

In your initial request, you indicated that the requested documents will be made available to the general public, and that your request is not being made for commercial purposes.

The Freedom of Information Act provides for the charging of fees "applicable to the processing of FOIA requests," and sets limitations and restrictions on the assessment of certain fees. The FOIA provides for three categories of requesters: commercial use requesters; educational institutions, noncommercial scientific institutions, and representatives of the news media; and finally, all requesters who do not fall within either of the preceding two categories. 29 C.F.R. Part 70.

Types of Requesters:
Commercial Requester – a FOIA requester who seeks records for a use or purpose that furthers the commercial, trade or profit interests of the requester or the person on whose behalf the request is being made.
· Chargeable fee: search, review and reproduction fees.

Educational Institutions – includes various schools, as well as institutions of higher learning and vocational education operating a program or programs of scholarly research.

Non-Commercial Scientific Organizations – an organization or institution that is operated solely for the purpose of conducting scientific research the results of which are not intended to promote any particular product or industry.

Representatives of the news media – any person or entity that gathers information of potential interest to a segment of the public, uses its editorial skills to turn the raw materials into a distinct work, and distributes that work to an audience. This definition includes recognized media organizations such as television and radio stations, media organizations such as the Associate Press (AP), freelance journalists and organizations such as the National Security Archive.
· Chargeable fee: reproduction fees only, with the first 100 pages free of charge.

All other requesters – FOIA requesters who do not fit into either of the categories referenced above.
· Chargeable fee: search and reproduction fees, with the first 100 pages free of charge. No charge for first two hours of search time.

Additionally, you advised that in the event that there are fees, you would like to be informed of the total charges in advance of fulfilling your request. You indicated you would prefer the request in electronic format via email attachment if available, or CDROM if not.

Types of fees:
Search – The time it takes to locate and retrieve records responsive to a FOIA request.
· Cost:
o $20.00 per hour when the search is performed by clerical staff.
o $40.00 per hour when the search is performed by professional or supervisory staff.
· Fee is chargeable even if the agency component does not locate any responsive records or when any records located are exempt from disclosure.

Review costs – The time it takes to review any responsive records to determine if any materials are exempt from disclosure.
· Cost:
o $20.00 per hour when the review of any responsive records is performed by clerical staff.
o $40.00 per hour when the review of any responsive records is performed by professional or supervisory staff.

Reproduction costs – actual costs of reproducing the requested records.
· Cost:
o $0.15 per page for black and white paper copies.
o The direct cost of reproducing other types of media such as computer tapes, compact discs (CDs), audio visual media or color copies.
· Other charges may be assessed for special services such as priority mailing or for certified copies.
· DOL may require advance payments when total charges will be more than $250.00.

Processing fee determinations will be made based on the category in which you are classified. Given the purpose/description of your request, it appears that you may be considered as “other use” requester. If you agree with this classification and wish to proceed with a search based on the respective fee estimates, or wish to further narrow the scope, please advise.
Regards,

Women’s Bureau FOIA Service Center

Hello Mr. Eaton, thank you for your response and further clarification with regard to your status as a representative of the News Media. As such, you are only subject to reproduction fees, with the first 100 pages free of charge in accordance with the information referenced in our previous response below.

In your modified request, you indicated that you are seeking records limited to:

o Any emails sent to all staff in the Women's Bureau. These could include, for example, emails to an all-staff list or emails on which all staff were copied. Please feel free to exclude purely logistical emails — for example, emails reminding staff to complete time sheets or emails about ordering food for an office. I'm seeking substantive correspondence, such as memos or announcements sent to all staff.

The Women’s Bureau will proceed with its search for the above-requested records. We anticipate that you can expect to receive a final response within ten (10) working days from the date of this email. However, in the event that our search results are found to be extensive and require additional processing time we will notify you accordingly via email.

Should you have any question or wish to further discuss this request please feel free respond to this email, or contact the WB FOIA Coordinator Cheryl Edwards directly by phone at 202-693-6710. Alternatively, you may also contact DOL's FOIA Public Liaison Thomas Hicks at 202-693-5427.

Kind regards,

Women’s Bureau FOIA Service Center

Hello Mr. Eaton, thank you for your response and further clarification with regard to your status as a representative of the News Media. As such, you will only be subject to reproduction fees, with the first 100 pages free of charge in accordance with the information referenced in our previous response below.

In your modified request, you indicated that you are seeking records limited to:

o Any emails sent to all staff in the Women's Bureau. These could include, for example, emails to an all-staff list or emails on which all staff were copied. Please feel free to exclude purely logistical emails — for example, emails reminding staff to complete time sheets or emails about ordering food for an office. I'm seeking substantive correspondence, such as memos or announcements sent to all staff.

The Women’s Bureau will proceed with its search for the above-requested records. We anticipate that you can expect to receive a final response within ten (10) working days from the date of this email. However, in the event that the records search results are found to be voluminous and require additional processing time and/or fee assessments we will notify you accordingly via email.

Should you have any questions, or wish to further discuss this request, please feel free respond to this email or contact the WB FOIA Coordinator Cheryl Edwards directly by phone at 202-693-6710 (office), or 301-535-8849 (mobile). Alternatively, you may also contact DOL's FOIA Public Liaison Thomas Hicks at 202-693-5427.

Kind regards,

Women’s Bureau FOIA Service Center

Dear Mr. Eaton:

This is in response to your Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request submitted electronically to the U.S. Department of Labor at: FOIARequests@dol.gov<mailto:FOIARequests@dol.gov>. Your request, assigned to the Women's Bureau (WB) - an agency component of the Department of Labor, was processed under tracking #827826. In your amended request, based on WB follow-up communications, you limited or narrowed the initial scope to the following:

o Any emails sent to all staff in the Women's Bureau. These could include, for example, emails to an all-staff list or emails on which all staff were copied. Please feel free to exclude purely logistical emails - for example, emails reminding staff to complete time sheets or emails about ordering food for an office. I'm seeking substantive correspondence, such as memos or announcements sent to all staff sent or received between Jan. 20, 2017, and the date your office processes this request, inclusive.

The Women's Bureau has searched its files and located records determined to be responsive to the above request. Please note that as a representative of the News Media you are only subject to reproduction fees, for pages in excess of 100 pages. However, since the reproduction of responsive records did not exceed the allowable amount for your fee category, there is no billable fee for the processing of this request. We have attached an electronic PDF document consisting of approximately 73 pages (including cover and blank divider pages), which is being released to you in its entirety.

If you need any further assistance or would like to discuss any aspect of your request please do not hesitate to contact Cheryl Edwards, WB FOIA Coordinator and FOIA Service Center Administrator, via email at either: Womens.Bureau@DOL.GOV<mailto:Womens.Bureau@DOL.GOV>, WB-FOIA@dol.gov<mailto:WB-FOIA@dol.gov>, by phone at 202-693-6735; or DOL's FOIA Public Liaison, Thomas Hicks, at 202-693-5427. Alternatively, you may contact the Office of Government Information Services National Archives and Records Administration (OGIS) to inquire about mediation services they offer. The contact information for OGIS is as follows: Office of Government Information Services, National Archives and Records Administration, 8601 Adelphi Road, College Park, MD 20740-6001. You can also reach that office by email at ogis@nara.gov<mailto:ogis@nara.gov>; by phone at 202-741-5770, by fax at 202-741-5769, or by calling toll-free at 1-877-684-6448.

If you are not satisfied with the response to this request, you may administratively appeal by writing to the Solicitor of Labor within 90 days from the date of this letter. The appeal must state in writing the grounds for the appeal, and it may include any supporting statements or arguments, but such statements are not required. In order to facilitate processing of the appeal, please include your mailing address and daytime telephone number, as well as a copy of the initial request and copy of this letter. The envelope and letter of the appeal should be clearly marked "Freedom of Information Act Appeal." Any amendment to the appeal must be made in writing and received prior to a decision. The appeal should be addressed to the Solicitor of Labor, Division of Management and Administrative Legal Services, U.S. Department of Labor, 200 Constitution Avenue, NW, Room N2420, Washington, DC 20210. Appeals may also be submitted by email to foiaappeal@dol.gov<mailto:foiaappeal@dol.gov>. Appeals submitted to any other email address will not be accepted.

Sincerely,

Women's Bureau FOIA Service Center
WB-FOIA@dol.gov<mailto:WB-FOIA@dol.gov>
U.S. Department of Labor
FOIARequests@dol.gov<mailto:FOIARequests@dol.gov>

________________________________
May 22, 2017
U.S. Department of Labor - Women's Bureau
U.S. Department of Labor, Women's Bureau
FOIA Coordinator
200 Constitution Avenue, NW, Room S-3305
Washington, DC, 20210
This is a follow up to request number 827826:
Many thanks!
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