FDA: Cara Welch Employment and Hiring Process
| Tracking # |
2018-756 |
| Submitted | Jan. 25, 2018 |
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Communications
From: Anthony Roberts
To Whom It May Concern:
This is a request under the Freedom of Information Act. I hereby request all documents and related information leading up to the hiring of Cara Welch by FDA. This should include details on the position she applied for, where that position was advertised, how she applied, who interviewed her, who made the decision to hire her, her résumé and curriculum vitae, positions held while at FDA, plus the same information for any such positions in addition to the same information on the hiring process or promotion process for those positions.
I am also seeking records and documentation for all projects and initiatives she has undertaken while at FDA (i.e. any participation in any FDA action, program, or activity, records of her testimony as an expert witness, the final version of any public documents or white papers she has written, plus records and transcripts of depositions and testimony in any and all criminal or civil lawsuits on behalf of FDA).
The requested time frame is from January 1st, 2013 (*a year before she was hired by FDA) to the current date, January 25, 2018
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,
Anthony Roberts
From: Food and Drug Administration
An acknowledgement letter, stating the request is being processed.
From: Food and Drug Administration
Sheila Wright
FOIA Officer
Center for Food Safety & Applied Nutrition
Office of Regulations and Policy
Tel: 240-402-2812
[cid:image001.png@01D1C57E.DFA022A0]<http://www.fda.gov/>
[cid:image002.jpg@01D1C57E.DFA022A0]<https://www.facebook.com/FDA> [cid:image003.jpg@01D1C57E.DFA022A0] <https://twitter.com/US_FDA> [cid:image004.jpg@01D1C57E.DFA022A0] <http://www.youtube.com/user/USFoodandDrugAdmin> [cid:image005.jpg@01D1C57E.DFA022A0] <http://www.flickr.com/photos/fdaphotos/> [cid:image006.jpg@01D1C57E.DFA022A0] <http://www.fda.gov/AboutFDA/ContactFDA/StayInformed/RSSFeeds/default.htm>
From: Anthony Roberts
Just to circle back on this per our phone conversation, while I am unable to narrow the scope of documents I've requested with regards to the hiring of Dr. Cara Welch, I can limit the portion of the request that dealt with her activity at FDA post-hiring to exclusively consist of projects and initiatives that she personally spearheaded or that would have been either her initiative or that primary or significant authorship could rightly be attributed to her.
From: Muckrock Staff
To Whom It May Concern:
I wanted to follow up on the following Freedom of Information Act request, copied below, and originally submitted on Jan. 25, 2018. Please let me know when I can expect to receive a response, or if further clarification is needed. You had assigned it reference number #2018-756.
Thanks for your help, and let me know if further clarification is needed.
From: Food and Drug Administration
Dear Mr. Roberts,
Please find enclosed the records from the Office of Human Resources that are responsive to your request.
Your request further seeks records regarding projects and initiatives that Dr. Welch "personally spearheaded or that would have either been her initiative or that primary or significant authorship could rightly be attributed to her."
FDA does not maintain a list of Dr. Welch's projects, nor would we be able to conduct a reasonable search of our files to identify such records. Dr. Welch is the Senior Advisor in the Office of Dietary Supplement Programs. The projects and initiatives on which she works are created by, and under the jurisdiction of, that office. Information on the products regulated by the office is available at:
https://www.fda.gov/forconsumers/consumerupdates/ucm153239.htm. If you wish to receive records about any particular product or agency program related to dietary supplements, please submit a FOIA request with that information.
You have the right to appeal this determination. 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.
Your appeal must be mailed within 90 days from the date of this response, to:
Deputy Agency Chief FOIA Officer
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
Office of the Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs
Room 729H
200 Independence Avenue, S.W.
Washington, DC 20201
Please clearly mark both the envelope and your letter "FDA Freedom of Information Act Appeal."
If you would like to discuss our response before filing an appeal to attempt to resolve your dispute without going through the appeals process, please contact me at 301-796-8976 or Sarah.Kotler@fda.hhs.gov. You may also contact the FDA FOIA Public Liaison for assistance at:
Office of the Executive Secretariat
US Food & Drug Administration
5630 Fishers Lane, Room 1050
Rockville, MD 20857
E-mail: FDAFOIA@fda.hhs.gov<mailto:FDAFOIA@fda.hhs.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 is:
Office of Government Information Services
National Archives and Records Administration
8601 Adelphi Road-OGIS
College Park, MD 20740-6001
Telephone: 202-741-5770
Toll-Free: 1-877-684-6448
E-mail: ogis@nara.gov<mailto:ogis@nara.gov>
Fax: 202-741-5769
Sincerely,
Sarah B. Kotler, J.D.
Director
Office of the Executive Secretariat
Division of Freedom of Information
U.S. Food and Drug Administration
Tel: 301-796-8976
Sarah.Kotler@fda.hhs.gov<mailto:Sarah.Kotler@fda.hhs.gov>
[cid:image001.png@01D1C57E.DFA022A0]<http://www.fda.gov/>
[cid:image002.jpg@01D1C57E.DFA022A0]<https://www.facebook.com/FDA> [cid:image003.jpg@01D1C57E.DFA022A0] <https://twitter.com/US_FDA> [cid:image004.jpg@01D1C57E.DFA022A0] <http://www.youtube.com/user/USFoodandDrugAdmin> [cid:image005.jpg@01D1C57E.DFA022A0] <http://www.flickr.com/photos/fdaphotos/> [cid:image006.jpg@01D1C57E.DFA022A0] <http://www.fda.gov/AboutFDA/ContactFDA/StayInformed/RSSFeeds/default.htm>
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