Digital Public Library of America communications
Tracking # |
NARA-NGC-2022-001048 |
Submitted | April 12, 2022 |
MuckRock users can file, duplicate, track, and share public records requests like this one. Learn more.
Communications
From: TR
To Whom It May Concern:
Pursuant to the Freedom of Information Act, I hereby request the following records:
All emails, including attachments, exchanged between National Archives and Records Administration staff and any staff member of the Digital Public Library of America. This request can be scoped to encompass any email in which any sender or recipient email address includes the domain "@dp.la"—excepting <info@dp.la> or any other email addresses determined to be purely newsletters in nature (including any NARA sending email addresses that are newsletters), unless attempting to exclude such emails would increase rather than decrease the agency's efforts, in which case it would be fine to include all.
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,
TR
From: National Archives and Records Administration
This message is to confirm your request submission to the FOIAonline application: View Request. Request information is as follows: (https://foiaonline.gov/foiaonline/action/public/submissionDetails?trackingNumber=NARA-NGC-2022-001048&type=request)
* Tracking Number: NARA-NGC-2022-001048
* Requester Name:
T R
* Date Submitted: 04/12/2022
* Request Status: Submitted
* Description:
To Whom It May Concern:
Pursuant to the Freedom of Information Act, I hereby request the following records:
All emails, including attachments, exchanged between National Archives and Records Administration staff and any staff member of the Digital Public Library of America. This request can be scoped to encompass any email in which any sender or recipient email address includes the domain "@dp.la"—excepting or any other email addresses determined to be purely newsletters in nature (including any NARA sending email addresses that are newsletters), unless attempting to exclude such emails would increase rather than decrease the agency's efforts, in which case it would be fine to include all.
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,
TR
Upload documents directly: https://www.muckrock.com/
From: National Archives and Records Administration
Dear T R,
We received your FOIA request on 4.12.2022, via FOIAonline. Your request
was assigned the case number NARA-NGC-2022-001048. Your request was also
assigned internal FOIA request number NGC22-451. In your request you stated
that you sought:
*All emails, including attachments, exchanged between National Archives and
Records Administration staff and any staff member of the Digital Public
Library of America. This request can be scoped to encompass any email in
which any sender or recipient email address includes the domain "@dp.la
<http://dp.la>"-excepting <info@dp.la <info@dp.la>> or any other email
addresses determined to be purely newsletters in nature (including any NARA
sending email addresses that are newsletters) unless attempting to exclude
such emails would increase rather than decrease the agency's efforts, in
which case it would be fine to include all. *
NARA has more than 40 locations around the U.S., including our Washington,
D.C. headquarters, regional locations, presidential libraries, and federal
records centers. Could you please provide a department, unit, or staff
whom you believe may have corresponded with the Digital Public Library of
America?
We request that you consider narrowing your request, which will allow us to
conduct a more targeted successful search.
Thank you,
Wanda Williams
Deputy Freedom of Information Act Officer/Archivist
Office of General Counsel (NGC)
National Archives and Records Administration
8601 Adelphi Road
College Park, Maryland, 20740-6001
301-837-0773 voice mail
wanda.williams@nara.gov
From: TR
Dear Wanda,
Thank you so much for your response. In my original request, I described the exact nature of the records I requested. I am unsure what the number of NARA facilities has to do with email records. I took care in the request I submitted to phrase it as specifically and narrowly as possible, so I do not believe it can or should be narrowed further. Considering the organization with which I am requesting NARA's correspondence has a staff in the single digits (not all of which are even in a position likely to have ever corresponded with NARA), I believe the request is already highly targeted. Can you clarify if this request for narrowing scope is just a boilerplate response, or if it is based an initial investigation, and if you have some reason to believe the number of records is large? If you have reason to believe the number of responsive email records is excessive, I would like to ask what is the number of emails you preliminarily believe to be responsive, and any other general information you can provide about them.
Thank you!
From: National Archives and Records Administration
NARA-NGC-2022-001048 has been processed with the following final disposition: Improper FOIA Request for Other Reasons.
May 9, 2022
T R
MuckRock News Dept MR
127381 411A
Highland Avenue
Somerville, MA 02144-2516
Re: Freedom of Information Act Request: NGC22-451
Dear T R:
This is in response to your Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request, dated April 12, 2022, which we received in our office on the same date via FOIAonline. We assigned your request the above internal tracking number in addition to your FOIAonline tracking number NARA-NGC-2022-001048. In your request, in the section for description of records, you stated:
I hereby request the following records: All emails, including attachments, exchanged between National Archives and Records Administration staff and any staff member of the Digital Public Library of America. This request can be scoped to encompass any email in which any sender or recipient email address includes the domain "@dp.la"-excepting or any other email addresses determined to be purely newsletters in nature (including any NARA sending email addresses that are newsletters), unless attempting to exclude such emails would increase rather than decrease the agency's efforts, in which case it would be fine to include all. 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.
The National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) is the repository for documents and materials created in the course of business conducted by agencies of the Executive Branch of the United States Federal government. We estimate that less than 5% percent of these records are retained permanently for legal or historical purposes. Federal agencies usually transfer their permanent records to NARA no earlier than 15 years from the date of creation, but we receive many well after 30 years from the date of creation. The transfer takes place under agency record schedules pursuant to the Federal Records Act.
The federal FOIA statute, 5 U.S.C. §552, allows a person to request records from most federal agencies of the Executive branch. However, the requester needs to be specific in identifying the type of record; the topic or subject covered by the record, and an approximate date for the record. The FOIA does not require agencies to conduct research, answer questions, or analyze data.
Your request does not give the information necessary to identify potentially Federal responsive records. Could you please provide a specific department (within NARA) that you believe may have communicated with the organization cited in your FOIA request? For more guidance on how to conduct research at NARA, to include an explanation on how to identify Federal records, visit this website: https://www.archives.gov/research.
Therefore, your FOIA request is considered an improper FOIA request.
This completes the processing of your FOIA/Privacy Act request.
If you are not satisfied with our action on this request, you have the right to file an administrative appeal within ninety (90) calendar days from the date of this letter via regular U.S. mail or email. By filing an appeal, you preserve your rights under FOIA and give the agency a chance to review and reconsider your request and the agency’s decision. If you submit your appeal in writing, please address it to the Deputy Archivist of the United States (ND), National Archives and Records Administration, 8601 Adelphi Road, College Park, Maryland 20740. Both the letter and the envelope should be clearly marked “Freedom of Information Act Appeal.” If you submit your appeal by e-mail please send it to FOIA@nara.gov, also addressed to the Deputy Archivist of the United States. Please be sure to explain why you believe this response does not meet the requirements of the FOIA. All correspondence should reference your case tracking number NGC20-451 and your FOIAonline tracking number.
If you would like to discuss our response before filing an appeal to attempt to resolve your dispute without going through the appeals process, you may contact our FOIA Public Liaison Gary M. Stern for assistance at:
National Archives and Records Administration
8601 Adelphi Road, Room 3110
College Park, MD 20740-6001
301-837-1750
garym.stern@nara.gov
If you are unable to resolve your FOIA dispute through our FOIA Public Liaison, the Office of Government Information Services (OGIS), the Federal FOIA Ombudsman’s office, offers mediation services to help resolve disputes between FOIA requesters and Federal agencies. The contact information for OGIS listed below:
Office of Government Information Services
National Archives and Records Administration
8601 Adelphi Road–OGIS
College Park, MD 20740-6001
ogis@nara.gov
ogis.archives.gov
202-741-5770
1-877-684-6448
Thank you for contacting the National Archives and Records Administration.
Sincerely,
Wanda Williams
Deputy FOIA Officer/Archivist
301-837-0773
wanda.williams@nara.gov
Files
pages