Federal Agency Settlements (Department of Agriculture)
| Tracking # |
1390650, 2019-OGC-01246-F 1390650 |
| Multi Request | Federal Agency Settlements |
| Submitted | Nov. 6, 2017 |
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Communications
From: Beryl Lipton
To Whom It May Concern:
This is a request under the Freedom of Information Act. I hereby request the following records:
Absolutely any and all logs, reports, spreadsheets, databases, or other materials detailing all settlements or similar dispute resolutions to which this agency, or any division thereof, was a party, including, but not limited to, all conciliatory agreements related to complaints or court or legal proceedings against any representative of or office of this agency. Please include all available segregable data, including the entities involved, the date on which the initial complaint or court action was brought, the nature of the charge or complaint, the nature of the dispute resolution (i.e. in-court, out-of-court, in-agency mediation, third-party, etc.), any financial agreements associated with the settlement, the date on which the case was closed.
Please provide all available materials from January 1, 2010 through October 31, 2017.
If further clarification should be necessary, feel free to call the MuckRock office at 617-299-1832.
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,
Beryl Lipton
From: U.S. Department Of Agriculture, Office of the Secretary
Dear Ms. Lipton:
Thank you for speaking with me earlier today to discuss your above-referenced FOIA request. You agreed to narrow your request to the following information:
1. A report on litigation settlements, as maintained by USDA's headquarters' Office of the General Counsel.
2. A report on settlements of EEO litigation, as maintained by USDA' Office of the Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights.
The responsive time period remains as originally requested, from January 1, 2010 through October 31, 2017.
Please confirm the foregoing, and I will route your request to the appropriate offices for processing.
Thank you,
Camille C. Aponte, Esq.
FOIA Analyst (Contractor)
United States Department of Agriculture
Department FOIA Office
Office of the Chief Information Officer
1400 Independence Avenue, S.W.
Room 4105
Washington, DC 20250
Telephone: (202) 694-5260
Email: Camille.Aponte@ocio.usda.gov
This electronic message contains information generated by the USDA solely for the intended recipients. Any unauthorized interception of this message or the use or disclosure of the information it contains may violate the law and subject the violator to civil or criminal penalties. If you believe you have received this message in error, please notify the sender and delete the email immediately.
From: U.S. Department Of Agriculture, Office of the Secretary
Hi Ms. Lipton,
Following up on the below. If I do not receive confirmation from you by end of business today, I will assume that you are in agreement with the below information regarding the narrowing of your request, as we discussed on Tuesday, and will proceed to route the request to OGC and Civil Rights, as agreed, for processing.
Thank you,
Camille
From: U.S. Department Of Agriculture, Office of the Secretary
Dear Ms. Lipton:
This email acknowledges receipt of your attached Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request to the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Department FOIA Office (DFO). Your request was received by this office on November 7, 2017.
On November 28, 2017, you agreed to narrow your request to the following information, as reflected in the attached email:
1. A report on litigation settlements, as maintained by USDA's headquarters' Office of the General Counsel.
2. A report on settlements of EEO litigation, as maintained by USDA' Office of the Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights.
The responsive time period remains as originally requested, from January 1, 2010 through October 31, 2017.
USDA has a decentralized FOIA program. Each agency processes its own FOIA requests and appeals independently. The Department FOIA Office (DFO) processes requests and appeals on behalf of the Office of the Secretary, the Offices of the Under Secretaries and Departmental Management's ("DM") components only. For a complete listing of DM's components, please visit http://www.dm.usda.gov/agencies.htm.
Upon review, the DFO has determined that the records sought are likely to be maintained by the Office of the General Counsel (OGC) and by the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights ("OASCR"), USDA components. Therefore, according to USDA regulation 7 C.F.R. § 1.5(f), the DFO is routing your request to the OGC and the Office for Civil Rights FOIA offices for processing and direct response to you, by separate cover. In the event you have questions regarding your request, please contact the agency using the contact information below:
For OGC:
Danielle Duvall Adams
FOIA Officer
Office of the General Counsel
1400 Independence Ave, SW
South Building
Room 2023-A
Washington, DC 20250-1415
Tel: 202-378-1074
Email: foiaofficerogc@ogc.usda.gov<mailto:foiaofficerogc@ogc.usda.gov>
For OASCR:
Samantha Y. Jones
FOIA Specialist
OASCR, Office of Adjudication
Patriot Plaza III
355 E Street, S.W., 7th Floor
Washington, DC 20024
Tel. 202-720-5212
Fax: (202) 690-7442
Email: ascrfoia@ascr.usda.gov<mailto:ascrfoia@ascr.usda.gov>
For additional information regarding USDA FOIA regulations and frequently requested records, please visit the USDA FOIA homepage at www.dm.usda.gov/foia<http://www.dm.usda.gov/foia>. There you can access our Public Access Link (PAL). Once registered, PAL allows you to: 1) submit a FOIA request to any of our 20 USDA component agencies electronically; 2) check the status of your FOIA request; and 3) download responsive records as they become available.
If you have any questions or concerns regarding this e-mail, please contact Ms. Camille Aponte at 202-694-5260 or electronically at Camille.aponte@ocio.usda.gov<mailto:Camille.aponte@ocio.usda.gov> or USDAFOIA@ocio.usda.gov<mailto:USDAFOIA@ocio.usda.gov>.
The DFO Team appreciates the opportunity to assist you.
Department FOIA Office
This electronic message contains information generated by the USDA solely for the intended recipients. Any unauthorized interception of this message or the use or disclosure of the information it contains may violate the law and subject the violator to civil or criminal penalties. If you believe you have received this message in error, please notify the sender and delete the email immediately.
From: U.S. Department Of Agriculture, Office of the Secretary
Dear Ms. Beryl Lipton:
In response to your attached FOIA request which you are seeking, settlements of EEO litigation, as maintained by USDA' Office of the Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights. It appears you are seeking information that can be found in the Agency no fear report located on our website at https://www.usda.gov/nofear/. Please take a look at the no fear reports and confirm whether you are seeking this listed information.
Sincerely,
Samantha Y. Jones, FOIA Specialist
Office of the Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights
Office of Adjudication
Patriot Plaza III
355 E Street, S.W., 3rd Floor
Room 3-240
Washington, DC 20024
E-mail: Samantha.Jones@ascr.usda.gov<mailto:Samantha.Wiggins@ascr.usda.gov>
Voice: 202-720-7569
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From: U.S. Department Of Agriculture, Office of the Secretary
Good Afternoon Ms. Lipton,
Please see the attached Final Response and responsive records for the USDA’s Office of the General Counsel pursuant to the above referenced FOIA request.
Let me know if you have any questions.
[cid:image003.png@01D2D531.9DDFCF50]
Kyle Kemper
FOIA Analyst
Administration and Resource Management
Office of the General Counsel
US Department of Agriculture
1400 Independence Ave., SW, Room 2025A
Washington, DC 20250
☎ 202-378-1074 (Voice)
📠 844-288-3373 (Fax)
✉ Kyle.Kemper@usda.gov<mailto:Kyle.Kemper@usda.gov>
This electronic message contains information generated by the USDA solely for the intended recipients. Any unauthorized interception of this message or the use or disclosure of the information it contains may violate the law and subject the violator to civil or criminal penalties. If you believe you have received this message in error, please notify the sender and delete the email immediately.
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