FOIA News: FOIA logs reveal Democratic opposition research strategies

The DNC Goes Fishing – What Will it Catch?

By John A Jenkins, Law Street Media, Aug. 30, 2023

FOIAengine Examines Political Opposition Research

A few weeks ago, Politico’s Florida Playbook ran a story revealing what “hundreds of people, groups, and journalists” in the state were asking for:  “texts, emails, calendars, letters, and receipts” to or from Florida’s governor, presidential candidate Ron DeSantis. 

In Politico’s telling, many of the requesters were affiliated with the Democratic Party,  making demands under the state’s open-records law to get “damning material against political enemies.”  And, in DeSantis’ case, Florida’s public records certainly marked the best starting point to look for muck.  The list that Politico received of requesters targeting DeSantis in his home state was 222 pages long.

“Unsurprisingly, mostly Democratic-aligned groups asked for dirt on DeSantis and his inner circle,” Politico wrote.  “Oddly, no one tied to Trump – or other 2024 candidates – asked for such records, though it’s possible that GOP campaigns used an untraceable proxy to avoid angering a future Republican president.”

Why didn’t the Trump campaign file such requests?  Steven Cheung, a Trump campaign spokesperson, bluntly told Politico:  “We have information that no opposition researcher can ever find.”

Read more here.

FOIA News: USTR finalizes FOIA revision

On July 25, 2023, the U.S. Trade Representative issued an interim amendment to its expedited FOIA processing regulations. Today, the agency adopted that amendment as final after having received no public comments within the 30-day comment period.

FOIA News: FAA grounds FOIA request for VIP flight data

FAA accused of stonewalling demand for Buttigieg private flight data

By Josh Christenson, NY Post, Aug. 30, 2023  

The Department of Transportation is refusing to hand over private flight records for Secretary Pete Buttigieg, according to a conservative watchdog group suing for the files.

Americans for Public Trust (APT) said Wednesday that the Federal Aviation Administration has repeatedly missed deadlines to share Buttigieg’s flight logs and passenger records since the group first sought them this past November.

Fox News first reported the FAA’s foot-dragging.

APT also sent follow-up requests in January for the names of members of Congress and the White House or other Biden administration officials who flew on FAA planes and for a list of the agency’s jets, The Post has confirmed.

Read more here.

Court opinion issued Aug. 29, 2023

Human Rights Def. Ctr. v. U.S. Park Police (D.D.C.) -- finding that: (1) agency properly relied on Exemption 6 to withhold names of tort claimants, and—invoking the court’s inherent powers—ordering plaintiff not to use or disseminate names of claimants that agency inadvertently disclosed; and (2) agency properly relied on Exemption 6 to withhold names of police officers involved in same tort claims, noting that disclosure would reveal “little more about Park Police’s conduct than what has already been disclosed,” e.g., settlement amounts and officers’ employment status.

Summaries of all published opinions issued since April 2015 are available here.

FOIA News: Media requesters tracked in the United Kingdom

UK Ministry of Justice found tracking journalists who make information requests

By Samara Baboolal, Jurist, Aug. 28, 2023

A Times investigation revealed on Saturday that the Ministry of Justice has been tracking journalists who make information requests. In the UK, the right to request and access recorded information held by public authorities is protected under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 (FOIA) and Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act. By law, UK public authorities must respond to any requests for information. According to the Times’ report, a Times reporter made a subject access request and discovered the documents of background profiles on journalists that make freedom of information requests, which was compiled by Ministry of Justice officials.

Read more here.

[Note: The application of extra scrutiny to certain FOIA requests is not uncommon in the United States. See notable examples here.]

Court opinion issued Aug. 25, 2023

Found. for Gov't Accountability v. DOJ (M.D. Fla.) -- in case concerning DOJ’s strategic plan to promote voter registration and participation in response to Executive Order 14019, determining that: (1) DOJ properly withheld some, but not all, disputed emails pursuant to Exemption 5’s deliberative process privilege; and (2) DOJ improperly relied on the deliberative process privilege to withhold the final version of DOJ’s strategic plan because it was not pre-decisional; and (3) ordering in camera review of DOJ’s strategic plan to evaluate DOJ’s presidential communications claim, noting that DOJ’s sworn statements “lack sufficient detail and are contradicted by the record evidence.”

Summaries of all published opinions issued since April 2015 are available here.

FOIA News: NARA to use artificial intelligence for FOIA requests

National Archives discloses planned AI uses for record management

The records agency wants to use AI systems for auto filling metadata and responding to FOIAs, according to an inventory of the technology.

By Madison Alder & Rebecca Heilweil, FedScoop, Aug. 25, 2023

The National Archives and Records Administration revealed that it plans to use several forms of AI to help manage its massive trove of records in an inventory published earlier this month.

In its 2023 AI use case inventory, the agency charged with managing U.S. government documents disclosed it wants to use an AI-based system to autofill metadata for its archival documents. Similar to some other agencies, the National Archives also disclosed its interest in using the technology to help respond to FOIA requests.

While NARA shared these planned applications, it did not include any current, operational use cases of AI.

Read more here.

FOIA News: OIP issues guidance on SOPs

On the last Friday of August, the Department of Justice’s Office of Information Privacy issued guidance on “Standard Operating Procedures for FOIA Offices.”

Move over best-selling beach books.

Court opinion issued Aug. 24, 2023

Thompson v. DOJ (W.D.N.C.) -- denying government’s motion to dismiss plaintiff’s claim that the Environmental & Natural Resources Division had adopted a pattern or practice of delaying responses to plaintiff’s FOIA requests; rejecting government’s argument that because all of plaintiff’s requests had received a response, plaintiff’s pattern-or practice claim was moot; noting government’s delays in responding to plaintiff’s requests and to other FOIA requesters, as indicated in DOJ’s annual FOIA reports.

Summaries of all published opinions issued since April 2015 are available here.

FOIA News: Army Athletics denies being a federal agency, but agrees to fulfill FOIA request following lawsuit

ARMY ATHLETICS TURNS OVER FINANCIAL RECORDS FOLLOWING FOIA SUIT

By Daniel Limit & Eben Novy-Williams, Sportico, Aug. 24, 2023

Army West Point Athletic Association, the legal entity that administers the military academy’s Division I sports programs, has begun turning over the first batch of what could eventually be thousands of pages of financial and contractual records that it has previously refused to make public.

The academy’s intercollegiate sports arm had long snubbed Freedom of Information Act requests, claiming it is not subject to federal disclosure laws.

Army’s change in position follows a Sportico reporter’s FOIA lawsuit in February against West Point and the AWPAA, after the entities denied requests for numerous categories of athletic department records including NCAA revenue and expense reports, employee contracts and the athletic association’s agreements with third parties like Learfield and Nike.

Read more here.