Records requests Arthur West agreed to withdraw for $192,000
| Tracking # |
15-01-106 |
| Submitted | Jan. 17, 2015 |
| Est. Completion | None |
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Communications
From: Phil Mocek
To Whom It May Concern:
Gene Johnson of Associated Press [reported][1] on January 15, 2015, that after a Thurston County judge found Washington's board of alcohol and cannabis trade to have committed 17 violations of the Washington Open Public Meetings Act (while members Sharon Foster, Chris Marr, and Ruthann Kurose traveled around the state holding public hearings about development of the legal marijuana rules, they repeatedly violated the law by holding closed-door meetings with local police, other government staff, and drug use prevention groups, obscuring from the public some of the information the board worked with as they developed the rules), the board agreed to pay Arthur West $192,000 to withdraw all of his public records requests and legal actions, and that West agreed not to file any future records requests or lawsuits relating to the board's oversight of the medical or non-medical marijuana markets.
[1]: <http://www.thenewstribune.com/2015/01/15/3589707_liquor-board-pays-192000-to-public.html>
Pursuant to RCW Ch. 42.56 (Public Records Act), I hereby request all records requests received by Washington's board of alcohol and cannabis trade from Arthur West, related communication with Mr. West, administrative tracking files for those requests, other internal communications about those requests, and associated metadata.
I also request that, if appropriate, fees be waived as I believe this request is in the public interest. The requested documents will be made available to the general public free of charge as part of the public information service at MuckRock.com, processed by a representative of the news media/press and is made in the process of news gathering and not for commercial usage.
In the event that fees cannot be waived, 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. Please do not create new records by printing and digitizing electronic records, but rather provide the electronic records themselves.
Thank you in advance for your anticipated cooperation in this matter. I look forward to receiving your response to this request within 5 business days, as the statute requires.
Sincerely,
Phil Mocek
From: Norton, Melissa K (LCB)
Dear Mocek:
The Washington State Liquor Control Board (WSLCB) received the public records request seen below from you on January 20, 2015. This letter responds to your request under RCW 42.56.520 and WAC 314-60-085. Please use the above Request ID# when contacting us about this request.
You asked for copies of the following records: “I hereby request all records requests received by Washington's board of alcohol and cannabis trade from Arthur West, related communication with Mr. West, administrative tracking files for those requests, other internal communications about those requests, and associated metadata.
I also request that, if appropriate, fees be waived as I believe this request is in the public interest. The requested documents will be made available to the general public free of charge as part of the public information service at MuckRock.com, processed by a representative of the news media/press and is made in the process of news gathering and not for commercial usage.
In the event that fees cannot be waived, 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. Please do not create new records by printing and digitizing electronic records, but rather provide the electronic records themselves.”
We estimate it will take up to 60 work days or until about April 21, 2015, to find, review, and copy any available records.
We will contact you again when we have found the records and tell you of any charges. If records can be gathered and provided electronically there is no charge. However, under WAC 314-60-090, we may charge 15 cents per page for regular copies plus postage or 5 cents per page for scanned records provided electronically. If there is a charge, we will send you the records after we receive a check made out to WSLCB for the amount due. You may also review the records free of charge at our office if you prefer.
If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me. Thank you.
Sincerely,
Missy Norton
Records Manager
Office - 360-664-1693/Fax - 360-664-9689
mka@liq.wa.gov<mailto:mka@liq.wa.gov>
From: MuckRock.com
To Whom It May Concern:
I wanted to follow up on the following Freedom of Information request, copied below, and originally submitted on Jan. 17, 2015. Please let me know when I can expect to receive a response, or if further clarification is needed. You had assigned it reference number #15-01-106.
Thank you for your help.
From: MuckRock.com
To Whom It May Concern:
I wanted to follow up on the following Freedom of Information request, copied below, and originally submitted on Jan. 17, 2015. Please let me know when I can expect to receive a response, or if further clarification is needed. You had assigned it reference number #15-01-106.
Thank you for your help.
From: MuckRock.com
To Whom It May Concern:
I wanted to follow up on the following Freedom of Information request, copied below, and originally submitted on Jan. 17, 2015. Please let me know when I can expect to receive a response, or if further clarification is needed. You had assigned it reference number #15-01-106.
Thank you for your help.
From: MuckRock.com
To Whom It May Concern:
I wanted to follow up on the following Freedom of Information request, copied below, and originally submitted on Jan. 17, 2015. Please let me know when I can expect to receive a response, or if further clarification is needed. You had assigned it reference number #15-01-106.
Thank you for your help.
From: MuckRock.com
To Whom It May Concern:
I wanted to follow up on the following Freedom of Information request, copied below, and originally submitted on Jan. 17, 2015. Please let me know when I can expect to receive a response, or if further clarification is needed. You had assigned it reference number #15-01-106.
Thank you for your help.
From: Norton, Melissa K (LCB)
Dear Mocek:
The Washington State Liquor Control Board (WSLCB) received the public records request seen below from you on January 20, 2015. We last wrote to you regarding your request on January 27, 2015.
The records we found in response to your request are available for you to download at the following link: https://lcb.box.com/s/cirx2fu7fh0r09vw83918cei77k7w7pd
These records will be available for you to download for the next 30 days. We have not redacted or deleted any part of these records. Please accept this as a first installment of records to your request. We estimate it will take up to 20 work days or until about May 19, 2015, to review, and copy any available records.
If you have any questions, please contact me. Thank you.
Sincerely,
Missy Norton
Records Manager
Office - 360-664-1693/Fax - 360-664-9689
mka@liq.wa.gov<mailto:mka@liq.wa.gov>
From: Liquor Control Board
A first set of responsive documents from the agency, with more to be sent at a specified date.
There are too many files to display on this communication. See all files
From: Norton, Melissa K (LCB)
Dear Mr. Mocek:
The Washington State Liquor Control Board (WSLCB) received the public records request seen below from you on January 20, 2015. We last wrote to you regarding your request on April 21, 2015, and provided you with an installment of records at that time.
The additional records we found in response to your request are available for you to download at the following link: https://lcb.box.com/s/wzd7ymwngqdj31t9leenb6b9wsdfjjqw
These records will be available for you to download for the next 30 days. We have not redacted or deleted any part of these records. Please accept this as a second installment of records to your request. We estimate it will take up to 20 work days or until about June 17, 2015, to review, and copy any additional records.
If you have any questions, please contact me. Thank you.
Sincerely,
Missy Norton
Records Manager
Office - 360-664-1693/Fax - 360-664-9689
mka@liq.wa.gov<mailto:mka@liq.wa.gov>
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Second Release
From: Norton, Melissa K (LCB)
Dear Mr. Mocek:
The Washington State Liquor Control Board (WSLCB) received the public records request seen below from you on January 20, 2015. We last wrote to you regarding your request on May 19, 2015, and provided you with an installment of records at that time.
The additional records we found in response to your request are available for you to download at the following link: https://lcb.box.com/s/4w93r1w3lzm2kpia9tqs3bthnlayiwve
These records will be available for you to download for the next 30 days. We have not redacted or deleted any part of these records. I am providing you with a third installment of records. We continue to review records and we estimate it will take up to 30 work days or until about July 30, 2015, to review, and copy any additional records.
We regret that at this time that based upon the potential lack of budget appropriation and potential government shutdown after June 30, 2015, we will not be able to process public records requests while the office is closed. When the office re-opens, more time will be needed to process requests because we anticipate there will be a backlog of pending requests as well as new requests that may have been submitted. This notification is provided to you to give the fullest assistance to requesters. RCW 42.56.100.
Public records requesters who have requests that are being processed if and when the agency shuts down (and which requests were previously acknowledged) are hereby notified that their requests will continue to be processed after the office re-opens. However, the office will need more time to process those requests. If requesters were awaiting further information or records from the office, they are advised that within 15 business days of the office re-opening or the date of the last communication from the office (whichever is later), requesters will be informed of the status of their requests or receive other information about their requests. This is an estimate of time. The office anticipates it will inform requesters if this estimate needs to be revised.
If you have any questions, please contact me. Thank you.
Sincerely,
Missy Norton
Records Manager
Office - 360-664-1693/Fax - 360-664-9689
mka@liq.wa.gov<mailto:mka@liq.wa.gov>
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Retrieved Documents.
From: Liquor Control Board
A first set of responsive documents from the agency, with more to be sent at a specified date.
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Partial Responsive Documents
From: Phil Mocek
Hello- could you please make the second release reavailable for download? There was a technical error.
From: Norton, Melissa K (LCB)
Dear Mr. Mocek:
Thank you for your email.
You asked: “Hello- could you please make the second release reavailable for download? There was a technical error.”
Here is a link to download records previously provided to you in a second installment of records under RequestID#15-01-106. https://lcb.box.com/s/ywqcfqzm1xn1kgbangcg1x97bam5l1bo. These records will be available for you to download for the next 30 days.
This completes our response to this request.
If you have any questions, please contact me. Thank you.
Sincerely,
Missy Norton
Records Manager
Office - 360-664-1693/Fax - 360-664-9689
mka@liq.wa.gov<mailto:mka@liq.wa.gov>
From: Phil Mocek
That worked. Thank you!
From: Liquor Control Board
A first set of responsive documents from the agency, with more to be sent at a specified date.
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If I'm not mistaken .msg
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10 16 13 Cash Log.msg
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1074279 OTRS Stats (1).msg
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2013 October Cash Log (15).msg
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2013 October Cash Log (16).msg
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1074279 OTRS Stats.msg
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2013 October Cash Log (1).msg
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2013 October Cash Log (10).msg
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2013 October Cash Log (11).msg
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2013 October Cash Log (12).msg
There are too many files to display on this communication. See all files
From: Norton, Melissa K (LCB)
Dear Mr. Mocek:
The Washington State Liquor Control Board (WSLCB) received the public records request seen below from you on January 20, 2015. We last wrote to you regarding your request on June 17, 2015, and provided you with an installment of records at that time.
The additional records we found in response to your request are available for you to download at the following link: https://lcb.box.com/s/c52vmb41136y1wdy5shgnt00pljifc37
These records will be available for you to download for the next 30 days. We have not redacted or deleted any part of these records. I am providing you with a fourth installment of records. We continue to review the large number of results received through our search, and the amount of information that we need to review in each email for possible redactions, we will continue to process this request by means of installments. We estimate your next installment will be ready to be sent on or by September 10, 2015.
If you have any questions, please contact me. Thank you.
Sincerely,
Missy Norton
Records Manager
Office - 360-664-1693/Fax - 360-664-9689
mka@liq.wa.gov<mailto:mka@liq.wa.gov>
From: Norton, Melissa K (LCB)
Dear Mr. Mocek:
The Washington State Liquor Control Board (WSLCB) received the public records request seen below from you on January 20, 2015. We last wrote to you regarding your request on July 30, 2015, and provided you with an installment of records at that time.
The additional records we found in response to your request are available for you to download at the following link: https://lcb.box.com/s/0ir6xrkwwr28bdtvewyxp6c6hflltbpc
These records will be available for you to download for the next 30 days. We have not redacted or deleted any part of these records. I am providing you with a fifth installment of records. There are approximately 13,389 records requiring review and redactions applied to all exempt material and data as required by law (RCW 42.56). We estimate that it will take us 30 additional business days to complete the approximately 13,389 remaining records. Accordingly, we estimate that it will take until about, October 22, 2015 based upon our current workload to complete the processing of this request.
If you have any questions, please contact me. Thank you.
Sincerely,
Missy Norton
Records Manager
Office - 360-664-1693/Fax - 360-664-9689
mka@liq.wa.gov<mailto:mka@liq.wa.gov>
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Responsive
From: Norton, Melissa K (LCB)
Dear Mr. Mocek:
This letter further responds to your public records request. The Washington State Liquor and Cannabis Board (WSLCB) received the enclosed public records request from you on January 20, 2015. We last wrote to you about your request on September 10, 2015, and provided you with an installment of record at that time.
WSLCB estimated needing until October 22, 2015 to complete the response to this request. Responding is taking longer than anticipated and we need additional time to process your request and to review, and produce available records. We need to extend the time for our response 5 working day or until October 29, 2015.
We will contact you again when the records are ready. If you have questions, please feel free to contact me. Thank you.
Sincerely,
Missy Norton
Records Manager
Office - 360-664-1693/Fax - 360-664-9689
mka@liq.wa.gov<mailto:mka@liq.wa.gov>
From: Norton, Melissa K (LCB)
Dear Mr. Mocek:
This letter further responds to your public records request. The Washington State Liquor and Cannabis Board (WSLCB) received the enclosed public records request from you on January 20, 2015. We last wrote to you about your request on October 22, 2015, and extended our response to October 29, 2015 to review records requiring extensive review for possibly exempt materials. During our review we have identified 15,688 additional records requiring extensive review for possible exempt materials. Those pages must be reviewed and redactions applied to all exempt material and data as required by law (RCW 42.56). We estimate that it will take us 376 additional business days to complete the approximately 15,688 remaining records, or 1,000 pages per 30 day installment. Accordingly, we estimate that it will take until about, December 10, 2015 based upon our current workload to complete the processing of this request to provide you the next installment of records. If you would like to add a date range in an effort to narrow the scope of your request thereby allowing us to process your request quicker, please let us know by return email within 10 business days or by November 12, 2015.
Also if for any reason you would like to withdraw your request, please also let us know by November 12, 2015, so that state resources are not expended unnecessarily. We will continue processing your request by providing installments unless we receive a notice from you stating that you would like to withdraw this request.
If these records are not what you requested or if you had any other questions please feel free to contact me. Thank you.
Sincerely,
Missy Norton
Records Manager
Office - 360-664-1693/Fax - 360-664-9689
mka@liq.wa.gov<mailto:mka@liq.wa.gov>
From: Phil Mocek
Dear Ms. Norton:
I received your e-mail of October 29. In it, you stated that you have almost 16,000 responsive records to review. I wonder if you misunderstood my request. I requested "all records requests received by [your agency] from Arthur West, related communication with Mr. West, administrative tracking files for those requests, other internal communications about those requests, and associated metadata." I expected that this would include a few e-mails or letters from Mr. West (his records requests), any records you already sent to him (i.e., those which were already prepared for public release and communicated to him prior to his agreement to drop open requests), and maybe several dozen internal e-mails (e.g., discussion of how to respond to his requests, questions to colleagues about where to find records, etc.). Can you explain to me roughly what these 16,000 records consist of?
Cordially,
Phil Mocek
From: Norton, Melissa K (LCB)
Dear Mr. Mocek:
Thank you for your email and for your clarification of your request.
Based upon your clarification of your initial request we have had an opportunity to again review your request for the following records: “Pursuant to RCW Ch. 42.56 (Public Records Act), I hereby request all records requests received by Washington's board of alcohol and cannabis trade from Arthur West, related communication with Mr. West, administrative tracking files for those requests, other internal communications about those requests, and associated metadata.”
In our initial interpretation we were interpreting the phrase “external emails” relating to Mr. West to include an extensive amount of attorney-client correspondence as the matter was in litigation. As a result, not only was the number of documents identifies as being potentially responsive larger, there would also have been an extensive redactions which would have been necessary after a lengthy review of attorney-client exempt materials.
It is now clear to us that you are requesting solely “internal communications” which you then refined to “e.g., discussion of how to respond to his requests, questions to colleagues about where to find records…” This will certainly narrow the scope of your request significantly; however there may still be exempt materials and data contained in those internal communications which will require some time for us to review. We estimate needing an additional 15 working days from today’s date or until December 1, 2015, to identify those records that we discover that now meet your clarified scope and to review those records for any exempt materials.
Thank you again for your correspondence, and please feel free to contact me if you have any further questions or comments regarding this request.
Sincerely,
Missy Norton
Records Manager
Office - 360-664-1693/Fax - 360-664-9689
mka@liq.wa.gov<mailto:mka@liq.wa.gov>
From: MuckRock.com
To Whom It May Concern:
I wanted to follow up on the following Freedom of Information request, copied below, and originally submitted on Jan. 17, 2015. Please let me know when I can expect to receive a response, or if further clarification is needed. You had assigned it reference number #15-01-106.
Thanks for your help, and let me know if further clarification is needed.
From: MuckRock.com
To Whom It May Concern:
I wanted to follow up on the following Freedom of Information request, copied below, and originally submitted on Jan. 17, 2015. Please let me know when I can expect to receive a response, or if further clarification is needed. You had assigned it reference number #15-01-106.
Thanks for your help, and let me know if further clarification is needed.
From: Norton, Melissa K (LCB)
Dear Mr. Mocek:
The Washington State Liquor Control Board (WSLCB) received the public records request seen below from you on January 20, 2015. We last wrote to you regarding your request on November 10, 2015 needing additional time to process your clarified request.
The additional records we found in response to your request are available for you to download at the following link: https://lcb.box.com/s/u240v1jx5em9hgl7ycva735b53ev7fdj
These records will be available for you to download for the next 30 days. We have not redacted or deleted any part of these records. We are interpreting your request to be for “internal communications” which you then refined to “e.g., discussion of how to respond to his requests, questions to colleagues about where to find records…” If you feel we have interpreted your request incorrectly, please clarify the specific public records you are seeking. This mailing completes our response to your request. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me.
If you have any questions, please contact me. Thank you.
Sincerely,
Missy Norton
Records Manager
Office - 360-664-1693/Fax - 360-664-9689
mka@liq.wa.gov<mailto:mka@liq.wa.gov>
Files
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