Mr. ZIP logos and design files
It is a clone of this request.
| Tracking # |
2019-FPRO-01354, 2019-APP-00108 2019-FPRO-01354 |
| Submitted | Aug. 30, 2019 |
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Communications
From: Ben Welsh
To Whom It May Concern:
Pursuant to the Freedom of Information Act, I hereby request the following records:
I request an electronic copy of all logos and illustrations of Mr. Zip, the U.S. Postal Service's cartoon representative for the ZIP Code, in SVG or EPS file format.
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,
Ben Welsh
From: United States Postal Service
An acknowledgement letter, stating the request is being processed.
From: United States Postal Service
The request has been rejected, with the agency stating that the information or document(s) requested are exempt from disclosure.
From: Ben Welsh
I am appealing this denial of my request.
First, the files I am requesting should clearly be seen as in the public domain and not any "trade secret." They were created by public officials, on public time, and should be assumed to be in the public domain and subject to FOIA, like any other creation of the agency. The logo is not in any way secret. It is routinely published and widely available on the Internet. If it can be published publicly in such a way, the files producing what is produced publicly can also be released.
Second, the USPS denial of my request is inconsistent with the behavior of numerous other federal agencies. There are numerous examples, but here are two, linked below. NASA's logo has been widely released for reuse. And the USGS recently fulfilled an identical request for a logo from one of their programs.
https://www.latimes.com/business/story/2019-07-19/nasa-logo-shirts-swimsuits-everything
https://www.muckrock.com/foi/united-states-of-america-10/anss-svg-files-76996/
https://www.muckrock.com/foi/los-angeles-county-358/la-metro-grand-ave-artsbunker-hill-logo-and-design-files-79019/
For these reasons, I ask you to overturn the denial of my request and instruct the agency to release the records.
From: United States Postal Service
A letter stating that the request appeal has been received and is being processed.
From: United States Postal Service
A letter stating that the request appeal has been rejected.
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