Court opinions issued Feb. 27 through Mar. 1, 2017

Mar. 1, 2017

Our Children's Earth Found. v. Nat'l Marine Fisheries Serv. (N.D. Cal.) -- determining that plaintiffs were eligible and entitled to attorney's fees and costs, but rejecting their request for $723,202.74 because of unreasonable hourly rates and excessive or redundant work. 

Feb. 28, 2017

Walston v. DOD (D.D.C.) -- concluding that:  (1) the Defense Information Systems Agency (DISA) failed to perform an adequate search for records concerning plaintiff's complaint to DISA's Inspector General; (2) DISA properly withheld one record pursuant to attorney-client privilege; and (3) DISA properly redacted identifying information of agency investigators pursuant to Exemption 6.  

Feb. 27, 2017

Broward Bulldog, Inc. v. U.S. Dep't of Justice (S.D. Fla.) -- in case involving Exemptions 1, 3, 5, 6, 7(A), 7(C), 7(D), and 7(E), granting in part and denying in part government's summary judgment motion with respect to four disputed documents concerning FBI investigation of a Saudi family in Florida after September 11, 2001.

Summaries of all opinions issued since April 2015 available here.

FOIA News: The DOJ’s Director of Public Affairs Used Gmail to Send a Work Email. Is That Legal?

The DOJ’s Director of Public Affairs Used Gmail to Send a Work Email. Is That Legal?

By Jacob Brogan, Slate, Mar. 2, 2017

On Wednesday, the Washington Post reported that Attorney General Jeff Sessions had spoken twice with Russian Ambassador Sergey Kislyak during the 2016 campaign. While Sessions’ objections to that news were mostly dubious, some were drawn to another aspect of his official response. On Twitter, Edward-Isaac Dovere, Politico’s chief political correspondent, noted that Sarah Isgur Flores, the Department of Justice’s director of public affairs, was using her personal Gmail account to reply to reporters.
…
In some cases, government officials may rely on such alternatives in an attempt to evade scrutiny. But as James Valvo, counsel and senior policy adviser for Cause of Action told me, the issue also remains widespread because it’s simply more convenient for government representatives to work through their personal accounts. “A lot of this is getting caught up in ease of response. But that’s no excuse,” he said.

Read more here.

FOIA News: FOIA March Madness 2017

FOIA March Madness 2017 brackets are now open

Beryl Lipton, MuckRock, Mar. 1, 2017

Greetings, FOIA fans! It’s March at MuckRock and around the globe, which means it’s time for a touch of Madness - FOIA March Madness, that is.

In four rounds - beginning with tip-off on Tuesday, March 14 and concluding with the champion announcement on Monday, April 10 - we’ll be facing 64 agencies against one another in a contest for the fastest, most complete Freedom of Information Act request response.

Read more here.

FOIA News: How to Force Government Transparency, Even Under Trump

How to Force Government Transparency, Even Under Trump

Rick Carp, Rolling Stone, Feb. 10, 2017

In the United States, the government is supposed to work for the people. It is, after all, in the people's name – and with their dollars – that everything is carried out, from tanks being transferred from military zones to American towns, to prisons being left to profit from mass incarceration, to soldiers being given secret, experimental treatments in an attempt to make them telepathically communicate. Since 1967, citizens have been allowed to request documentation of any government actions, thanks to a collection of laws known generally as the Freedom of Information Act.

Read more here.

FOIA News: Reason.com VIDEO - "The FBI Won't Accept Your Emailed FOIA Anymore"

The FBI Won't Accept Your Emailed FOIA Anymore

Paul Detrick, Reason, Mar. 1, 2017

Hey millennial FOIA nuts: Time to familiarize yourselves with the concept of a paper jam.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) has stopped accepting Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests by email. The agency wants requesters to use fax, standard mail, or the agency's online portal, FBI eFOIPA.

The goal seems to be "creating a lot of extra burden," says Adam Marshall, an attorney with the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press. "Everyone is used to emails. It creates a permanent record. It has a time-stamp on it. Everyone knows how to use it."

Read more here.

FOIA News: Trump's Budget Declares War on FOIA

Trump's Budget Declares War on FOIA

The FOIA Blog, Mar. 2, 2017

The Washington Post reports that the current administration plans to make huge cuts in all non defense agencies in its proposed budget.  These drastic cuts are clearly a declaration of war on a number of things that assist democracy, including an all out attack on the FOIA.  The FOIA is not a line item in agency budgets that are approved by Congress.  FOIA funds come out of regular operations of the agencies and the agencies allocate the resources based on what money they have coming in.  As such, FOIA operations, in the best of times need to fight to keep up with the number of requests entering the FOIA process.  Now, with some cuts at agencies reported to be up to 20% (EPA), agencies will be forced to cut their already bare bones FOIA operations - this will result in slower response times to requesters.  It is likely that in many cases, only those requesters who resort to the courts will get their FOIA requests processed in a somewhat timely manner.  Even if not its desired effect, this budget proposal is an all out assault on transparency.  Hopefully, bipartisan members of Congress, who came together in 2016 to pass amendments to the FOIA, will fight back over the draconian cuts that the proposed budget will bring to counter the administration's War On FOIA.

Read the original post here.

FOIA News: Posting records will not decrease requests, says OIP director

Justice Dept. fights uphill battle to improve FOIA disclosures

By David Thornton, Federal News Radio, Mar. 1, 2017

The Justice Department’s Office of Information Policy is constantly fighting an uphill battle to improve federal agencies’ responses to FOIA requests. Requests from the public rose by 19 percent in 2015, clearing 700,000 for the first time in history, with a total of 769,903 requests according to DoJ’s annual FOIA report published in March 2016.

While 2016’s numbers are expected in the near future, Melanie Pustay, director of the OIP, said that it was also a record-breaking year.

Read more here.

FOIA News: Enviros Settle FOIA Suit Over Groundwater Pollution Worries

Enviros Settle FOIA Suit Over Groundwater Pollution Worries

By Christine Powell, Law360, Feb. 28, 2017

An environmental group based on the Yakama Indian Reservation has settled a lawsuit against the Indian Health Service for failing to respond to records requests about groundwater nitrate pollution, according to a court document filed in Washington state federal court Monday.

Read more here. (Subscription)

FOIA News: Federal judge criticizes FBI for delays ahead of possible FOIA trial

U.S. judge cites ‘shameful’ FBI delays in making public 9/11 records

By Dan Christensen, FloridaBulldog.org, Mar. 1, 2017

A Miami federal judge Tuesday excoriated the FBI for what she called its “shameful” delays in making public certain records about the bureau’s 9/11 Review Commission.

“It is distressing to see the length to which a private citizen must go” to obtain records under the Freedom of Information Act [FOIA],” said U.S. District Judge Cecilia Altonaga. “It’s quite shocking frankly.”

At the same time, however, the judge gave the government two weeks to file a further summary judgment motion explaining why it believes the case brought by Florida Bulldog’s parent company should be dismissed. The ruling put off for now an unusual FOIA trial that had been scheduled to begin next week.

Read more here.

FOIA News: California legislature submits FOIA to DHS

California Demands Information About Immigration Raids

By Nick Cahill, Courthouse News Service, Feb. 28, 2017

California lawmakers on Monday demanded more information from federal immigration officials about a series of February deportation raids that fueled “confusion and fear” in the Golden State, home to an estimated 10 million immigrants.

Assembly Speaker Anthony Rendon and Senate President Pro Tem Kevin De Leon say they’ve received little information from Immigration and Customs Enforcement regarding deportation actions in California between Feb. 1 and Feb. 20.

The FOIA from the legislative leaders, who represent parts of Los Angeles County, seeks clarification about ICE policies on deportation activities near California schools, hospitals, courts and churches.

Read more here.