Deleted Tweets by @USGS • MuckRock

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Communications

From: Muira McCammon

11/05/2017

Subject: Freedom of Information Request: Deleted Tweets by @USGS

To Whom It May Concern:

This is a request under the Freedom of Information Act. I hereby request the following records:

I would like copies of all tweets deleted by the U.S. Geological Survey’s Twitter feed (@USGS) from April 2008 to the present. This would include any tweets sent out on Twitter that were deleted or kept in draft form from the Twitter account @USGS. This request also would include copies of any e-mails or correspondence regarding the drafting and deletion of these tweets.

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.

I am a journalist whose works have appeared in Slate, VICE, the Massachusetts Review, Kill Screen, and elsewhere. This FOIA request is part of research for an ongoing piece of journalistic work, and as such, I am requesting a fee waiver. I have submitted versions of this FOIA request to other agencies, including the Office of Government Ethics, and in the process, I have been granted this fee waiver without question.

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,

Muira McCammon

From: U.S. Geological Survey

11/07/2017

Subject: FOIA: USGS-2018-00025: Acknowledgment of your FOIA request

Dear Ms. McCammon:

On November 06, 2017, the USGS Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) office
received your FOIA request, dated November 05, 2017 and assigned it control
number USGS-2018-00025. Please cite this number in any future
communications with our office regarding your request. You request the
following information:

· Copies of all tweets deleted by the U.S. Geological Surveys Twitter
feed (@USGS) from April 2008 to the present, to include any tweets sent out
on Twitter that were deleted or kept in draft form from the Twitter account
@USGS, and to include copies of any e-mails or correspondence regarding the
drafting and deletion of these tweets.

Before proceeding with your request, I want to inform you that this request
presents unusual circumstances for the following reason: the need to search
for or collect records from a field facility or establishment separate from
the office processing the request. Therefore, we are taking a 10-workday
extension under
<http://www.ecfr.gov/cgi-bin/text-idx?c=ecfr&sid=0fc3ab3499768eebc2e3691c8cf
88dec&rgn=div5&view=text&node=43:1.1.1.1.2&idno=43#43:1.1.1.1.2.4.5.6> 43
C.F.R. § 2.19(b).

As a result of the unusual circumstances, your request meets the exceptions
to Section 2 of the FOIA Improvement Act of 2016 rule against assessing FOIA
processing fees. We will notify you if we need to take an additional
extension.

We have classified you as a representative of the news media requester.
As such, we may charge you for some of our duplication costs, but we will
not charge you for our search or review costs; you also are entitled to up
to 100 pages of photocopies (or an equivalent volume) for free. See
<http://www.ecfr.gov/cgi-bin/text-idx?c=ecfr&sid=0fc3ab3499768eebc2e3691c8cf
88dec&rgn=div5&view=text&node=43:1.1.1.1.2&idno=43#43:1.1.1.1.2.7.5.3>
<http://www.ecfr.gov/cgi-bin/text-idx?c=ecfr&sid=0fc3ab3499768eebc2e3691c8cf
88dec&rgn=div5&view=text&node=43:1.1.1.1.2&idno=43#43:1.1.1.1.2.7.5.3> 43
C.F.R. § 2.39. If, after taking into consideration your fee category
entitlements, our processing costs are less than $50.00, we will not bill
you because the cost of collection would be greater than the fee collected.
See
<http://www.ecfr.gov/cgi-bin/text-idx?c=ecfr&sid=0fc3ab3499768eebc2e3691c8cf
88dec&rgn=div5&view=text&node=43:1.1.1.1.2&idno=43#43:1.1.1.1.2.7.5.13>
<http://www.ecfr.gov/cgi-bin/text-idx?c=ecfr&sid=0fc3ab3499768eebc2e3691c8cf
88dec&rgn=div5&view=text&node=43:1.1.1.1.2&idno=43#43:1.1.1.1.2.7.5.13> 43
C.F.R. § 2.49(a)(1). You can expect to hear from us promptly regarding the
outcome of this search.

You have asked us to waive the fees for processing your request. Our FOIA
regulations state that bureaus will waive, or partially waive, fees if
disclosure of all or part of the information is:

1. In the public interest because it is likely to contribute
significantly to public understanding of government operations or
activities, and

2. Not primarily in your commercial interest.

See
<http://www.ecfr.gov/cgi-bin/text-idx?c=ecfr&sid=0fc3ab3499768eebc2e3691c8cf
88dec&rgn=div5&view=text&node=43:1.1.1.1.2&idno=43#43:1.1.1.1.2.7.5.9>
<http://www.ecfr.gov/cgi-bin/text-idx?c=ecfr&sid=0fc3ab3499768eebc2e3691c8cf
88dec&rgn=div5&view=text&node=43:1.1.1.1.2&idno=43#43:1.1.1.1.2.7.5.9> 43
C.F.R. § 2.45(a). Our FOIA regulations also provide four specific criteria
that are used to determine whether these two requirements are met. See
<http://www.ecfr.gov/cgi-bin/text-idx?c=ecfr&sid=0fc3ab3499768eebc2e3691c8cf
88dec&rgn=div5&view=text&node=43:1.1.1.1.2&idno=43#43:1.1.1.1.2.7.5.12>
<http://www.ecfr.gov/cgi-bin/text-idx?c=ecfr&sid=0fc3ab3499768eebc2e3691c8cf
88dec&rgn=div5&view=text&node=43:1.1.1.1.2&idno=43#43:1.1.1.1.2.7.5.12> 43
C.F.R. § 2.48(a). Your request meets the criteria and supports your
requested fee waiver; therefore, I approve your request and waive the FOIA
processing fees.

We use Multitrack Processing to process FOIA requests. The Simple track is
for requests that can be processed in one to five workdays. The Normal
track is for requests that can be processed in six to twenty workdays. The
Complex track is for requests that can be processed in twenty-one to sixty
workdays. The Exceptional/Voluminous track is for requests requiring more
than sixty workdays for processing. The Expedited track is for requests
that have been granted expedited processing. Within each track, requests
are usually processed on a first-in, first-out basis.

Your request falls into the Complex processing track. We therefore
anticipate that we will complete a final response to you by January 31,
2018. During the interim, we will attempt to provide records to you in
batches.

You may limit the scope of your request, which may enable us to process it
more quickly, or agree to an alternative time period for processing by
communicating with us or our USGS FOIA Public Liaison, Mr. Brian May, email
at <mailto:f> f <mailto:oia@usgs.gov> oia@usgs.gov; telephone (443)
498-5521; fax (443) 498-5510; or by mail, USGS, 5522 Research Park Drive,
Baltimore, MD 21228. 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 they offer. The
contact information for OGIS is as follows:

Office of Government Information Services

National Archives and Records Administration

8601 Adelphi Road-OGIS

College Park, Maryland 20740-6001

Telephone: (202) 741-5770

Toll free: 1-877-684-6448

Fax: (202) 741-5769

E-mail: <mailto:ogis@nara.gov> ogis@nara.gov;

Web: <https://ogis.archives.gov/> https://ogis.archives.gov

If you have any questions concerning your request, please contact me by
email at <mailto:foia@usgs.gov> foia@usgs.gov or by phone at (303)
236-2737.

Thank you for your interest in the U.S. Geological Survey.

V/r

Andreas

//SIGNED//

Georg-Andreas Pogány

Government Information Specialist

Freedom of Information Act Office / FOIA

U.S. Department of the Interior / U.S. Geological Survey

Denver Federal Center, Bldg 53

Box 25046, Mail Stop 801A

Denver, Colorado 80225-0046

Ph: 303-236-2737

Email: <mailto:foia@usgs.gov> foia@usgs.gov

CONFIDENTIALITY NOTICE
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individual or entity to which it is addressed. This communication may
contain information that is proprietary, privileged or confidential or
otherwise legally exempt from disclosure. If you are not the named
addressee, you are not authorized to read, print, retain, copy or
disseminate this message or any part of it. If you have received this
message in error, please notify the sender immediately by e-mail and delete
all copies of the message.

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From: Muckrock Staff

12/07/2017

Subject: RE: Freedom of Information Request #USGS-2018-00025

To Whom It May Concern:

I wanted to follow up on the following Freedom of Information request, copied below, and originally submitted on Nov. 5, 2017. Please let me know when I can expect to receive a response, or if further clarification is needed. You had assigned it reference number #USGS-2018-00025.

Thanks for your help, and let me know if further clarification is needed.

From: U.S. Geological Survey

12/07/2017

Subject: FOIA: USGS-2018-00025 - Final Response

Good Afternoon Ms. McCammon,

Please find attached to this email our Final Response to your FOIA request
dated November 5, 2017 and assigned FOIA Tracking # USGS-2018-00025.

Additionally, please find attached to this email the one responsive document
referenced in our Final Response.

If you have any questions, please dont hesitate to contact me via email or
telephone.

Thank you for your interest in the USGS.

V/r