GSA presidential transition processing notes and FOIA records (2)

Kevin Li filed this request with the General Services Administration of the United States of America.
Tracking #

GSA-2021-000609

Est. Completion Feb. 4, 2022
Status
Fix Required

Communications

From: Kevin Li

To Whom It May Concern:

Pursuant to the Freedom of Information Act, I hereby request the following records:

(PART A)
For FOIA requests GSA-2021-000266, GSA-2021-000185, GSA-2021-000186, GSA-2021-000188, GSA-2021-000191, GSA-2021-000192, GSA-2021-000194, GSA-2021-000199: (I) processing notes for the request; (II) any other records relating to the request, including but not limited to emails or text messages relating to the request and calendar invites or meeting notes for meetings or calls at which the requests were discussed.

(PART B)
Any records relating to a greater-than-normal volume of FOIA requests following the 2020 presidential election on November 3, 2020.

(PART C)
For all FOIA requests submitted between November 3, 2020, and December 31, 2020, for which the requester requested expedited processing, (I) a copy of the FOIA request and (if in a separate document) the request for expedited processing, and (II) a copy of all correspondence from GSA to the requester, explicitly including any decision on expedited processing, and including the dates of all such correspondence.

(PART D)
For all FOIA appeals submitted between November 3, 2020, and the date of the search for this FOIA request, (I) a copy of the FOIA request, FOIA appeal, and other formal correspondence from the requester to GSA, and (II) a copy of all correspondence from GSA to the requester relating to both the request and the appeal, explicitly including any decision on appeal, and including the dates of all such correspondence.

For all parts, please conduct your search for all documents created between November 3, 2020, and the date of the search for documents responsive to this FOIA request.

The requested documents will be made available to the general public, and this request is not being made for commercial purposes.

I request categorization as an “educational institution” for fee purposes in accordance with 41 CFR § 105-60.801(d). As a student of public policy at Stanford University, I have an interest in obtaining the requested records in potential furtherance of scholarly purposes, including for possible publication or to support an academic thesis. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit has held that students filing FOIA requests should be classified as “educational institutions”. See Sack v. US Dept. of Defense, 823 F. 3d 687 (D.C. Cir. 2016) (“The statutory text and context lead us to this simple conclusion: If teachers can qualify for reduced fees, so can students.”).

Separately, I request a fee waiver because the release of these records would be in the public interest, as they relate to (a) potential political interference in the execution of freedom-of-information laws, (b) the rate of compliance with federal freedom-of-information laws by agencies subject to time limits, and (c) the peaceful transition of power.

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,

Kevin Li

From: General Services Administration

This message is to confirm your request submission to the FOIAonline application: View Request. Request information is as follows: (https://www.foiaonline.gov/foiaonline/action/public/submissionDetails?trackingNumber=GSA-2021-000609&type=request)

* Tracking Number: GSA-2021-000609
* Requester Name: Kevin Li
* Date Submitted: 01/31/2021
* Request Status: Submitted
* Description:
Please See attachment for description.

From: General Services Administration

Dear Mr. Li,
We have on file 2 FOIAs submitted by you, controlled as Case Numbers, GSA-2021-000266 and GSA-2021-000609, respectively.
Please give me a phone call at (202) 329-9361 to discuss both these FOIAs in more detail.  I am available until 3pm.
Thank you kindly.
Sincerely, Hyacinth Perrault
Lead Government Information Specialist

From: General Services Administration

Good Evening Kevin,
Thank you for responding to my original email  - I will be available on the February 8th between the hours of 6:30am  - 3:00pm via 202-329-9361. Kindly leave a message and a number to reach you in the event we miss each other.
Look forward to speaking with you then.  Thank you.

From: General Services Administration

Dear Kevin Li:
We received your request in the U.S. General Services Administration (GSA) Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) Office and assigned control GSA-2021-000609. Please refer to this number in all future correspondence concerning this request. Based on this, we anticipate response on or prior to 3/12/021.
We have twenty (20) workdays in which to respond (excluding weekends and Federal Holidays).   However, it may not always be possible to provide the documents within this time period. In some cases, we may take an extension and will advise you. Please be advised that your request may be subject to fees for search, review and reproduction costs. Should this be the case, you will be given an estimate of the costs. All estimates are developed in Good Faith and are based on our reasonable judgment. However, due to the unique nature of each request and complexity of documents involved, actual costs to search and review the material may vary. You will be notified of fees, time frames and any other issues prior to and throughout the process.
Additionally, please be advised that at any time, you can log into the FOIAonline, to access your original request and review the workflow associated with this-tracking number.   Should you have any further questions, feel free to contact this office at our Toll Free Number 1-855-675-FOIA or by email at gsa.foia@gsa.gov to inquire about the status of your request. If you have any concerns regarding the FOIA Requester Service Center, please contact Mr. Duane Smith, GSA’s FOIA Public Liaison at (202) 694-2934 or by email at (mailto:gsa.foia@gsa.gov) duane.smith@gsa.gov. (mailto:duane.smith@gsa.gov)
Respectfully,
Freedom of Information Act Requester Service Center
U.S General Service Administration
1800 F Street, Northwest, Room 7300
Washington, DC 20405
Toll Free number: (855)-675- FOIA
Fax number: (202) 501-2727

  • U.S. General Services Administration (GSA) Acknowledgement Notice Letter

From: General Services Administration

Your request for Fee Waiver for the FOIA request GSA-2021-000609 has been
partially granted.

* Fee Waiver Original Justification:
The requested documents will be made available to the general public, and this request is not being made for commercial purposes.

I request categorization as an “educational institution” for fee purposes in accordance with 41 CFR § 105-60.801(d). As a student of public policy at Stanford University, I have an interest in obtaining the requested records in potential furtherance of scholarly purposes, including for possible publication or to support an academic thesis. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit has held that students filing FOIA requests should be classified as “educational institutions”. See Sack v. US Dept. of Defense, 823 F. 3d 687 (D.C. Cir. 2016) (“The statutory text and context lead us to this simple conclusion: If teachers can qualify for reduced fees, so can students.”).

Separately, I request a fee waiver because the release of these records would be in the public interest, as they relate to (a) potential political interference in the execution of freedom-of-information laws, (b) the rate of compliance with federal freedom-of-information laws by agencies subject to time limits, and (c) the peaceful transition of power.
* Fee Waiver Disposition Reason:
N/A

From: General Services Administration

Dear Kevin Li:
The attached Continued Interest Letter is in response to your U.S. General Services Administration (GSA) Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) Request number GSA-2021-000609.
Please notify our office by responding to this correspondence whether you are still interested in receiving these records by 2/4/2022, otherwise we will interpret this as you are no longer interested in the matter, and your FOIA request will be canceled without further notification on our part. This action does not constitute a denial of your request nor does it affect your rights to submit future FOIA requests to this Agency. You can forward your response by email at gsa.foia@gsa.gov. For additional concerns, please contact the GSA FOIA Public Liaison, Seth Greenfeld at (202) 501-4560 or by email at seth.greenfeld@gsa.gov. (mailto:gsa.foia@gsa.gov)
We apologize for this inconvenience and look forward to hearing your response.
Thank you.
Sincerely,
Travis Lewis
FOIA Program Manager
Office of General Counsel
General Services Administration

From: Kevin Li

Dear Ms. Lewis:

I respectfully ask that the requests continue to be processed.

Sincerely,
Kevin Li

From: General Services Administration

Dear Kevin Li <requests@muckrock.com>,
Your password has been updated per your request. You can change your password in the future from your
profile page.
If you believe you received this email in error or need additional assistance, please contact the FOIAonline Help Desk. (mailto:foia.help@epa.gov)
Thank you!
FOIAonline Team (mailto:foia.help@epa.gov)

From: General Services Administration

GSA-2021-000609 has been processed with the following final disposition: Request Withdrawn.

From: Kevin Li

Dear GSA:

On January 12, 2022, I submitted a reply indicating my wish that the FOIA request continue to be processed. I assume there was a mistake in the closure of this request. Please restore the request to active status and write to confirm this status change.

Sincerely,
Kevin Li

From: General Services Administration

Good morning - GSA released our final response package to you on 9/14/2022.
Due to the size of the response package, we UPS'd it to the following
address (UPS Tracking #: 1Z Y49 E29 NT 1930 0560):

MuckRock News DEPT MR 105041
411A Highland Ave
Somerville, MA 02144

Respectfully,

U.S. General Services Administration

*Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) Requester Service Center (LG)*

*Office of the General Counsel *

*1800 F Street, Northwest Washington, DC 20405 Toll Free number:(855)
675-FOIA (3642)*

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