ICE 2019 Telephone Survey of Central Americans
| Tracking # |
2021-ICAP-01016 2019-ICFO-28730 |
| Submitted | Jan. 17, 2019 |
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Communications
From: Nicholas Marritz
To Whom It May Concern:
Pursuant to the Freedom of Information Act, I hereby request the following records:
Since January 2019, ICE has been conducting a telephonic survey of people from Central America "to assist in the agency's programmatic development."
A. RECORDS REQUESTED
I request all records related to
(1) this survey;
(2) its creation and development;
(3) its advertising and promotion to the targeted community;
(4) its methodology;
(5) all of its intended and/or permitted uses or purposes;
(6) responses to the survey; and
(7) collection and use of data received in response to the survey
B. REQUEST FOR FEE WAIVER
The FOIA provides for requests of fee waiver when the disclosure of the information is in the public interest and not primarily in the commercial interest of the requester.
Public Interest:
The subject concerns the operations or activities of the U.S. Government, because it seeks records related to the federal government's collection of information from people it is attempting to remove from the country. The disclosure is likely to contribute to the public understanding about the operations and activities of the U.S. Government, because the requested documents will be made available to the general public. The disclosure will contribute significantly to the public understanding, because there is no other source from which this information can be obtained.
Not Primarily in the Commercial Interest of the Requester:
I have no commercial interest in this request, and this request is not being made for commercial purposes.
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,
Nicholas Marritz
From: Immigration and Customs Enforcement
February 21, 2019 Nicholas Marritz Muckrock News 411A Highland Ave Dept MR 67532 Somerville, MA 02144 RE: ICE FOIA Case Number 2019-ICFO-28730 Dear Mr. Marritz: This acknowledges receipt of your Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), dated January 17, 2019, and to your request for a waiver of all assessable FOIA fees. Your request was received in this office on February 21, 2019. Specifically, you requested all records related to a telephonic survey that ICE has been conducting since January 2019 of people from Central America "to assist in the agency's programmatic development."A. RECORDS REQUESTEDI request all records related to(1) this survey;(2) its creation and development;(3) its advertising and promotion to the targeted community;(4) its methodology;(5) all of its intended and/or permitted uses or purposes;(6) responses to the survey; and(7) collection and use of data received in response to the survey. Due to the increasing number of FOIA requests received by this office, we may encounter some delay in processing your request. Per Section 5.5(a) of the DHS FOIA regulations, 6 C.F.R. Part 5, ICE processes FOIA requests according to their order of receipt. Although ICE’s goal is to respond within 20 business days of receipt of your request, the FOIA does permit a 10- day extension of this time period. As your request seeks numerous documents that will necessitate a thorough and wide-ranging search, ICE will invoke a 10-day extension for your request, as allowed by Title 5 U.S.C. § 552(a)(6)(B). If you care to narrow the scope of your request, please contact our office. We will make every effort to comply with your request in a timely manner. ICE evaluates fee waiver requests under the legal standard set forth above and the fee waiver policy guidance issued by the Department of Justice on April 2, 1987, as incorporated into the Department of Homeland Security’s Freedom of Information Act regulations [1] . These regulations set forth six factors to examine in determining whether the applicable legal standard for fee waiver has been met. I have considered the following factors in my evaluation of your request for a fee waiver: (1) Whether the subject of the requested records concerns “the operations or activities of the government”; (2) Whether the disclosure is “likely to contribute” to an understanding of government operations or activities; (3) Whether disclosure of the requested information will contribute to the understanding of the public at large, as opposed to the individual understanding of the requestor or a narrow segment of interested persons; (4) Whether the contribution to public understanding of government operations or activities will be "significant"; (5) Whether the requester has a commercial interest that would be furthered by the requested disclosure; and (6) Whether the magnitude of any identified commercial interest to the requestor is sufficiently large in comparison with the public interest in disclosure, that disclosure is primarily in the commercial interest of the requestor. Upon review of your request and a careful consideration of the factors listed above, I have determined to grant your request for a fee waiver. ICE has queried the appropriate program offices within ICE for responsive records. If any responsive records are located, they will be reviewed for determination of releasability. Please be assured that one of the processors in our office will respond to your request as expeditiously as possible. We appreciate your patience as we proceed with your request.
Your request has been assigned reference number 2019-ICFO-28730. Please refer to this identifier in any future correspondence. To check the status of an ICE FOIA/PA request, please visit . Please note that to check the status of a request, you must enter the 2019-ICFO-XXXXX tracking number. If you need any further assistance or would like to discuss any aspect of your request, please contact the FOIA office. You may send an e-mail to ice-foia@ice.dhs.gov, call toll free (866) 633-1182, or you may contact our FOIA Public Liaison, Fernando Pineiro, in the same manner. Additionally, you have a right to right to seek dispute resolution services from the Office of Government Information Services (OGIS) which mediates disputes between FOIA requesters and Federal agencies as a non-exclusive alternative to litigation. If you are requesting access to your own records (which is considered a Privacy Act request), you should know that OGIS does not have the authority to handle requests made under the Privacy Act of 1974. You may contact OGIS as follows: Office of Government Information Services, National Archives and Records Administration, 8601 Adelphi Road-OGIS, College Park, Maryland 20740-6001, e-mail at ogis@nara.gov; telephone at 202-741-5770; toll free at 1-877-684-6448; or facsimile at 202-741-5769. (http://www.dhs.gov/foia-status) http://www.dhs.gov/foia-status
Regards,
ICE FOIA Office
Immigration and Customs Enforcement
Freedom of Information Act Office
500 12th Street, S.W., Stop 5009
Washington, D.C. 20536-5009
Telephone: 1-866-633-1182
Visit our FOIA website at www.ice.gov/foia
[1] 6 CFR § 5.11(k).
From: Nicholas Marritz
Subject: ICE FOIA Request 2019-ICFO-28730
Dear FOIA Office:
I am writing for two reasons:
First, thank you for granting a fee waiver in my case (FOIA Request 2019-ICFO-28730). It is much appreciated.
Second, I would appreciate an update on FOIA Request 2019-ICFO-28730. I submitted the request on January 17, 2019. The DHS FOIA Status Check website originally showed an estimated delivery date of March 26, but no documents were produced by that date. The website now shows an estimated delivery date of April 9, but no documents were produced by that date either. And while the website claims that "status of requests are updated nightly," the status of my request has not been updated in over a month. Please let me know when I can expect to receive all documents responsive to my request.
Thanks very much for all your work.
My best,
Nick Marritz
From: Immigration and Customs Enforcement
Good afternoon,
Your request is currently in the queue to be processed by an analyst. Requests are processed on a first in, first out basis and timing can vary greatly depending on the volume of responsive documents and the date the request was received.
Sincerely,
ICE/FOIA
From: Nicholas Marritz
Subject: ICE FOIA Request 2019-ICFO-28730
Dear FOIA Office:
I would appreciate an update on FOIA Request 2019-ICFO-28730. I submitted the request on January 17 and have yet to receive any records in response. Please let me know when I can expect to receive the responsive records.
Most sincerely,
Nick Marritz
From: Nicholas Marritz
Subject: ICE FOIA Request 2019-ICFO-28730
Dear FOIA Office:
I would appreciate an update on FOIA Request 2019-ICFO-28730. I submitted the request on January 17 and have yet to receive any records in response. Your website says that my request was expected to be completed by April 9, which was over 7 months ago. And your status information for my request was last updated in June, which was nearly 5 months ago.
Please let me know when I can expect my request to be completed.
Most sincerely,
Nick Marritz
From: Nicholas Marritz
Subject: ICE FOIA Request 2019-ICFO-28730
Dear FOIA Office:
I would appreciate an update on FOIA Request 2019-ICFO-28730. I submitted the request on January 17 and have yet to receive any records in response. Please let me know when I can expect my request to be completed.
Most sincerely,
Nick Marritz
From: Nicholas Marritz
Dear ICE FOIA Office:
Subject: ICE FOIA Request 2019-ICFO-28730
Dear FOIA Office:
I would appreciate an update on FOIA Request 2019-ICFO-28730. I submitted the request in January 2019 and have yet to receive any records in response. Your website said that my request was expected to be completed by April 9, 2019 which was almost a year ago. Now it says that the documents were to be produced yesterday, March 24, 2020 but that date has come and gone as well. I realize that things may be delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but I would really appreciate a substantive update on where things stand with this records request. Thank you.
Sincerely,
Nicholas Marritz
Please let me know when I can expect my request to be completed.
Most sincerely,
Nick Marritz
From: Immigration and Customs Enforcement
Good Day,
In regards to your request 2019-ICFO-28730, it is currently in the queue to be processed by an analyst. Requests are processed on a first in, first out basis and timing can vary greatly depending on the volume of responsive documents received. Thank you for your continued patience.
Sincerely,
ICE/FOIA
From: Nicholas Marritz
Subject: ICE FOIA Request 2019-ICFO-28730
Dear FOIA Office:
My FOIA request has now been pending for over *two years*. I have not received any responsive documents. When can I expect this request to be completed?
Sincerely,
Nicholas Marritz
From: Nicholas Marritz
Subject: ICE FOIA Request 2019-ICFO-28730
Dear FOIA Office:
My FOIA request has now been pending for over *two years*. I have not received any responsive documents. When can I expect this request to be completed?
Sincerely,
Nicholas Marritz
From: Nicholas Marritz
Request for Dispute Resolution Services
ICE FOIA Request 2019-ICFO-28730
Dear OGIS:
In January 2019, I sent a FOIA request to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). It was assigned the Request Number 2019-ICFO-28730. ICE received the request on February 21, 2019. This FOIA request has now been pending for over two years, and I still have not received any responsive documents. Thus, I respectfully request OGIS's help in resolving this matter.
Sincerely,
Nicholas Marritz
From:
Thank you for contacting the Office of Government Information Services. This is an auto reply message.
If you requested our assistance with resolving a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) dispute and have not done so already, please send us a brief description of your dispute and copies of your FOIA request, the agency’s response to your request, your appeal letter (if you filed an appeal), and the agency's response to your appeal (if received a response).
Due to the COVID-19 outbreak, at present we can only receive and respond to inquiries via email. Please send materials as PDF attachments to ogis@nara.gov. Please note that there is an increased demand for our services; for this reason, there may be a delay in our response. We apologize for any inconvenience and look forward to assisting you.
Sincerely,
The OGIS Staff
--
OFFICE OF GOVERNMENT INFORMATION SERVICES
National Archives and Records Administration
Email: ogis@nara.gov
Phone: 202-741-5770
Website: https://www.archives.gov/ogis
Blog: http://foia.blogs.archives.gov/
From: Nicholas Marritz
Dear OGIS:
I recently requested dispute resolution services regarding a FOIA request to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, FOIA Request No. 2019-ICFO-28730. The request seeks records related to an ICE telephone survey of Central American immigrants. ICE has granted my request for a fee waiver. But they have been sitting on this request for over two years and have yet to produce a single record.
Per your request, I have attached copies of my FOIA request and my correspondence with the agency.
From: Immigration and Customs Enforcement
Dear Mr. Marritz,
Please see OGIS's response to this submission (21-1376), attached to this
email.
Sincerely,
The OGIS Staff
From: Nicholas Marritz
Re: Submission 21-1376
Dear OGIS:
In February of this year, I contacted OGIS to request mediation with regard to a FOIA request I had sent to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. (ICE assigned it FOIA Request No. 2019-ICFO-28730) Your email of March 15 indicated that ICE anticipated responding to my FOIA request by April 16.
It is now May 18, and I have yet to receive even a single page of records from ICE. Again, this FOIA request has been pending for over two years. I would greatly appreciate it if you would please contact ICE again and get a status update.
My sincere thanks,
Nicholas Marritz
From:
Thank you for contacting the Office of Government Information Services. This is an auto reply message.
If you requested our assistance with resolving a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) dispute and have not done so already, please send us a brief description of your dispute and copies of your FOIA request, the agency’s response to your request, your appeal letter (if you filed an appeal), and the agency's response to your appeal (if received a response).
Due to the COVID-19 outbreak, at present we can only receive and respond to inquiries via email. Please send materials as PDF attachments to ogis@nara.gov. Please note that there is an increased demand for our services; for this reason, there may be a delay in our response. We apologize for any inconvenience and look forward to assisting you.
Sincerely,
The OGIS Staff
--
OFFICE OF GOVERNMENT INFORMATION SERVICES
National Archives and Records Administration
Email: ogis@nara.gov
Phone: 202-741-5770
Website: https://www.archives.gov/ogis
Blog: http://foia.blogs.archives.gov/
From: Nicholas Marritz
Att: Amy Bennett, Public Liaison
Re: FOIA Request No. 2019-ICFO-28730
Dear Ms. Bennett:
In January 2019, I sent a FOIA request to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). It was assigned the Request Number 2019-ICFO-28730. ICE received the request on February 21, 2019. This FOIA request has now been pending for nearly two-and-a-half years, and I still have not received any responsive documents. In February of this year, I reached out to OGIS for mediation assistance. OGIS said that they spoke with ICE, and that ICE said that they would produce documents around April 16, 2021. That date has come and gone as well, so I reached out to OGIS for another update but never received any response.
Again, this request has been pending for nearly two-and-a-half years, and ICE has yet to produce even a single responsive record. Please let me know when I can expect this request to be completed in full. Otherwise I'm going to have to look at other remedies under the FOIA statute.
My thanks,
Nicholas Marritz
From: Immigration and Customs Enforcement
Good afternoon,
I apologize for the delay in our response to your request. While DHS and its Components make every effort to respond to requests in a timely fashion, the volume of requests processed and the complexity of the work often makes it difficult to respond as quickly as we would like.
I followed up with ICE to discuss your request. ICE let me know that they have received records from program offices that are potentially responsive to your request. ICE currently expects that they will be able to process the records and respond to you within the next few weeks. Please know that this is only an estimated date of completion and it may take longer to respond if the records are more complex than ICE initially assessed.
I hope that this information is useful to you.
Best,
Amy
Amy Bennett
FOIA Public Liaison
DHS Privacy Office
foia@hq.dhs.gov<mailto:foia@hq.dhs.gov>
202-343-1743 or 866-431-0486
-
image001
From: Nicholas Marritz
Thank you for the update, Ms. Bennett.
From: Immigration and Customs Enforcement
Dear Nicholas Marritz,
The password to open the responsive records delivered in a separate email for 2019-ICFO-28730 is listed below. If you do not receive the email containing the responsive documents within a reasonable timeframe please contact our office at foia-obim@hq.dhs.gov. (mailto:foia-obim@hq.dhs.gov)
Document Password: B421qjMb
Sincerely, OBIM FOIA Branch
From: Immigration and Customs Enforcement
Mr. Marritz,
ICE's final response to your FOIA request, 2019-ICFO-28730, for all records related to a telephonic survey that ICE has been conducting since January 2019 of people from Central America "to assist in the agency's programmatic development."A. RECORDS REQUESTEDI request all records related to(1) this survey;(2) its creation and development;(3) its advertising and promotion to the targeted community;(4) its methodology;(5) all of its intended and/or permitted uses or purposes;(6) responses to the survey; and(7) collection and use of data received in response to the survey is attached.
Please note that the attachment may be password protected. If you are prompted to enter a password when opening the attachment and you did not receive a password it may be in your junk/spam folder.
Sincerely,
ICE FOIA
-
2019-ICFO-28730
From: Nicholas Marritz
***FOIA APPEAL***
Dear DHS:
I hereby appeal DHS's response to my FOIA request No. 2019-ICFO-28730. I am appealing Department's request in its entirety: the adequacy of its search, the records produced, and the redactions made. I also want to call your attention to the following particular matters:
1. On Pages 4, 12, and 17, DHS has redacted portions of emails exchanged with a CNN producer. The reason for the redactions is given as "(b)(5)". However, Exemption 5 does not apply to communications sent to third parties (other than contractors, consultants, and advisors that the agency itself has retained). Department of Interior v. Klamath Water Users Protective Ass'n., 532 U.S. 1 (2001). Here, the CNN producer was not acting as DHS's contractor, consultant, or advisor. Therefore, DHS must un-redact these portions of its response.
2. Pages 24 & 27: several items are redacted under Exemption 5. These items are contained in emails between Vincent M. Picard (who at the time was an ICE Public Affairs officer) and an unknown person or persons. Again, Exemption 5 only applies to inter-agency or inter-agency communications. Without knowing who Mr. Picard was corresponding with, it's impossible for me to know if Exemption 5 was applied properly. Please review this.
3. Page 35: Again, it's not clear who Mr. Picard is corresponding with. Please review this.
Thank you for your consideration of this appeal.
Sincerely,
Nicholas Marritz
From: Immigration and Customs Enforcement
**Please Do Not Respond Directly -This email has been sent on behalf of ice-foia@dhs.gov**
We have received your Freedom of Information Act request for I am appealing Department's request in its entirety: the adequacy of its search, the records produced, and the redactions made. and have assigned it tracking number 2021-ICAP-01016. Please refer to the attached Acknowledgement Letter for more information.
ICE FOIA.
From: Immigration and Customs Enforcement
Mr. Marritz,
ICE's final response to your FOIA request, 2021-ICAP-01016, for I am appealing Department's request in its entirety: the adequacy of its search, the records produced, and the redactions made. is attached.
Please note that the attachment may be password protected. If you are prompted to enter a password when opening the attachment and you did not receive a password it may be in your junk/spam folder.
Sincerely,
ICE FOIA
From: Immigration and Customs Enforcement
Dear Mr. Marritz,
Please see OGIS's response to this submission (21-2485), attached to this
email.
Sincerely,
The OGIS Staff
From: Nicholas Marritz
Dear ICE FOIA Office:
This is a message regarding my FOIA Appeal, which is 2021-ICAP-01016, and the underlying FOIA case number, which is 2019-ICFO-28730. I filed this request THREE AND A HALF YEARS AGO. In July 2021, OPLA determined that ICE had over-redacted its response to my request and remanded the matter to the agency for reprocessing. That was over a year ago, and I have heard nothing from you since that time. Please let me know when I can expect the reprocessed records.
Sincerely,
Nicholas Marritz
From: Nicholas Marritz
Re: ICE FOIA Request 2019-ICFO-28730; Appeal 2021-ICAP-01016
Dear Ms. Bennett:
I am seeking help with a FOIA request I made to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) in January 2019. This simple request has now been pending for over three-and-a-half years.
TIMELINE
I filed my original request on 01/17/2019. The request sought records related to a telephone survey that ICE planned to conduct with people from Central America. After nearly two-and-a-half years (06/17/2021), the agency released 35 pages of records indicating that the survey was never actually conducted. The records contained numerous redactions. On 06/30/2021, I appealed ICE's response in its entirety and pointed out several specific improper redactions. On 7/16/2021, OPLA granted my appeal, determined that "information previously withheld may be releasable to you under FOIA," and remanded to ICE for reprocessing. More than a year has gone by since then, and I have received no further response from the agency.
Please let me know when I can expect to release the reprocessed records. It's been over three-and-a-half years.
Sincerely,
Nicholas Marritz
From: Immigration and Customs Enforcement
Hi Nicholas,
I touched based with ICE regarding the status of your request. ICE let me know that they expect to be able to complete re-processing the records and send you a final response before the end of this month.
I apologize for the delay in the response. As you may know, ICE is one of several DHS Components that regularly receives a very large volume of first-party requests and also handles a number of requests involving sensitive and complex issues. We are continuing to work with ICE and other DHS Components to improve our responsiveness and customer service.
Thank you for reaching out, and I hope that this update is useful to you.
Best,
Amy
Amy Bennett
FOIA Public Liaison
DHS Privacy Office
foia@hq.dhs.gov<mailto:foia@hq.dhs.gov>
202-343-1743 or 866-431-0486
-
~WRD0001
From: Nicholas Marritz
Thank you for the update, Ms. Bennett.
From: Immigration and Customs Enforcement
Dear Nicholas Marritz,
The password to open the responsive records delivered in a separate email for 2021-ICAP-01016 is listed below. If you do not receive the email containing the responsive documents within a reasonable timeframe please contact our office at foia-obim@hq.dhs.gov. (mailto:foia-obim@hq.dhs.gov)
Document Password: XA81ut2Z
Sincerely, OBIM FOIA Branch
From: Immigration and Customs Enforcement
Mr. Marritz,
ICE's final response to your FOIA request, 2021-ICAP-01016, for I am appealing Department's request in its entirety: the adequacy of its search, the records produced, and the redactions made. is attached.
Please note that the attachment may be password protected. If you are prompted to enter a password when opening the attachment and you did not receive a password it may be in your junk/spam folder.
Sincerely,
ICE FOIA
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2021-ICAP-01016
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