As we reported in our March roundup, the Chief FOIA Officers Council will meet on Wednesday, April 17, 2024. The agenda is here and the presentation slides are here. See the livestream on NARA’s YouTube channel starting at 10am.
FOIA News: IRS improves FOIA performance, finds TIGTA audit
FOIA News (2024)CommentOn April 11, 2024, the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration published an audit that was performed to determine whether the Internal Revenue Service properly withheld records pursuant to Exemption 7 or section 6103 of the Internal Revenue Code between October 1, 2022, and March 31, 2023. TIGTA found that the IRS properly invoked Exemption 7 in 98 of 99 requests sampled. TIGTA found no errors in 10 requests reviewed involving section 6103.
See the entire report here.
Jobs, jobs, jobs: Weekly report 4/15/24
Jobs jobs jobs (2024)CommentFederal positions closing in the next 10 days
Gov’t Info. Specialist, Dep’t of Energy/WAPA, GS 12-13, various locations, closes 4/15/24.
Gov’t Info. Specialist, Dep’t of Energy/WAPA, GS 12-13, various locations, closes 4/15/24 (non-public).
Sup. Gov’t Info. Specialist, DHS/FEMA, GS 14, Washington, D.C., closes 4/15/24 or first 100 applications.
Sup. Gov’t Info. Specialist, DHS/FEMA, GS 14, Washington, D.C., closes 4/15/24 or first 100 applications (non-public).
Gov’t Info. Specialist, Dep’t of Def./WHS, GS 9-13, Alexandria, VA, closes 4/16/24 (non-public).
Archivist, Nat’l Archives & Records Admin., GS 12-13, College Park, MD, closes 4/17/24 (non-public).
Gov’t Info. Specialist, Dep’t of the Air Force, GS 11, El Segundo, CA, closes 4/18/24 (non-public).
Attorney Advisor, Dep’t of Justice/OIP, GS 12-15, Washington, D.C., closes 4/18/24.
Gov’t Info. Specialist, U.S. Int’l Trade Comm’n, GS 12-13, Washington, D.C., closes 4/22/24.
Gov’t Info. Specialist, Dep’t of Housing & Urban Dev., GS 13, Washington, D.C., closes 4/22/24.
Gov’t Info. Specialist, Dep’t of Housing & Urban Dev., GS 13, Washington, D.C., closes 4/22/24 (non-public).
Sup. Gov. Info. Specialist, Dep’t of Housing & Urban Dev., GS 14, remote, closes 4/22/24 or first 250 applications.
Sup. Gov. Info. Specialist, Dep’t of Housing & Urban Dev., GS 14, remote, closes 4/22/24 or first 250 applications (non-public)
Attorney Adviser Int’l, Dep’t of State, GS 12-13, Washington, D.C., closes 4/22/24.
Attorney Advisor Int’l, Dep’t of State, GS 14-15, Washington, D.C., closes 4/22/24.
Sup. Gov’t Info. Specialist, U.S. Agency for Int’l. Dev, GS 14, Washington, D.C., closes 4/24/24 (non-public).
Sup. Gov’t Info. Specialist, Dep’t of Justice/ATF, GS 14, Washington, D.C., closes 4/24/24 (non-public).
Gov’t Info. Specialist, Dep’t of Housing & Urban Dev., GS 9-12, Washington, D.C., closes 4/25/24.
Gov’t Info. Specialist, Dep’t of Housing & Urban Dev., GS 9-12, Washington, D.C., closes 4/25/24 (non-public).
Sup. Gov’t Info. Specialist, Dep’t of Homeland Sec./FEMA, GS 14, Washington, D.C., closes 4/25/24 (non-public).
Federal positions closing on or after 4/26/24
Gov’t Info. Specialist, Dep’t of the Army/Nat’l Guard, GS 9, Colchester, VT, closes 4/26/24.
Court opinions issued Apr. 10, 2024
Court Opinions (2024)CommentMalone v. USPTO (E.D. Va.) -- ruling that: (1) plaintiff could not in litigation expand scope of his original request, which sought certain information about patent cases in which expanded panels were used or in which panels were advised by agency personnel to change their decisions; (2) plaintiff’s request would impermissibly require the agency to conduct research and create new records; and (3) agency was required to process one document concerning expanded panels that was partially responsive to plaintiff’s request.
Col. Wild Pub. Lands v. U.S. Forest Serv. (D.D.C.) -- dismissing case as moot, except with respect to matters relating to attorney’s fees and costs, because agency complied with court’s earlier decision to release certain records to plaintiff; refusing to consider plaintiff’s belated argument that agency has a “systemic policy of delaying the release of records”; and rejecting plaintiff’s various protests about how agency released records, remarking that “[b]y continuing to litigate, it seems [plaintiff] is having a hard time accepting ‘yes’ for an answer.”
Summaries of all published opinions issued in 2024 are available here. Earlier opinions are available here.
FOIA News: Peace Corps finalizes amendments to regulations
FOIA News (2024)CommentThe Peace Corps published a final rule in the Federal Register on April 11, 2024, which reflect amendments to the agency’s FOIA regulations. The agency considered public comments, adopting several and rejecting others. The amendments are effective May 13, 2024.
FOIA News: D.C. Circuit argument on Tuesday, April 9
FOIA News (2024)CommentAs we noted in our most recent monthly roundup, the D.C. Circuit will hear argument in the FOIA case in Connell v. CIA on April 9, 2024. The ACLU, which is representing the appellant, has issued a press release about the case. A live audio stream is available here.
Jobs, jobs, jobs: Weekly report, 4/8/24
Jobs jobs jobs (2024)CommentFederal positions closing in the next 10 days
Gov’t Info Specialist, Dep’t of Labor/MSHA, GS 13, Arlington, VA, closes 4/8/24.
Gov’t Info Specialist, Dep’t of Labor/MSHA, GS 13, Arlington, VA, closes 4/8/24 (non-public).
Sup. Gov’t Info Specialist, Dep’t of Def./DCSA, GS 14, Boyers, PA, closes 4/8/24 (non-public).
Gov’t Info Specialist, Dep’t of Def./Army, GS 12, Fort Liberty, NC, closes 4/10/24 (non-public).
Gov’t Info Specialist, Dep’t of the Treasury/IRS, GS 14, closes 4/10/24 (non-public).
Gov’t Info. Specialist, Dep’t of the Air Force, GS 12, Offut AFB, NE, closes 4/10/24 (non-public).
Gov’t Info Specialist, Dep’t of Def./Army, GS 12, Fort Meade, MD, closes 4/11/24.
Gov’t Info Specialist, Dep’t of Veterans Affairs/VBA, GS 13, location negotiable, closes 4/11/24 (non-public).
Gov’t Info. Specialist, DHS/FEMA, GS 9-11, Washington, D.C., closes 4/11/24 (non-public).
Gov’t Info. Specialist, DHS/FEMA, GS 9-11, Washington, D.C., closes 4/11/24.
Gov’t Info. Specialist, Dep’t of Veterans Affairs/VHA, GS 12, Asheville, NC, closes 4/12/24 (non-public).
Gov’t Info. Specialist, Dep’t of Veterans Affairs/VBA, GS 13, Overland, MO, closes 4/12/24 (non-public).
Gov’t Info. Specialist, Dep’t of Veterans Affairs/VHA, GS 12, Shreveport, LA, closes 4/12/24 (non-public).
Sup. Atty-Advisor, Dep’t of Justice/NSD, GS 15, Washington, D.C., closes 4/12/24.
Gov’t Info. Specialist, Dep’t of Justice/DEA, GS 7-9, Arlington, VA, closes 4/14/24 (non-public).
Gov’t Info. Specialist, Dep’t of Energy/WAPA, GS 12-13, various locations, closes 4/15/24.
Gov’t Info. Specialist, Dep’t of Energy/WAPA, GS 12-13, various locations, closes 4/15/24 (non-public).
Sup. Gov’t Info. Specialist, DHS/FEMA, GS 14, Washington, D.C., closes 4/15/24 or first 100 applications.
Sup. Gov’t Info. Specialist, DHS/FEMA, GS 14, Washington, D.C., closes 4/15/24 or first 100 applications (non-public)
Attorney Advisor, Dep’t of Justice/OIP, GS 12-15, Washington, D.C., closes 4/18/24.
Federal positions closing on or after April 19, 2024
Attorney Adviser Int’l, Dep’t of State, GS 12-13, Washington, D.C., closes 4/22/24.
Attorney Advisor Int’l, Dep’t of State, GS 14-15, Washington, D.C., closes 4/22/24.
Court opinion issued Apr. 4, 2024
Court Opinions (2024)CommentAbissi. v. USCIS (D. Md.) -- granting government’s motion to transfer case involving asylum records to the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia because only two of seven plaintiffs reside in Maryland and the responsive records are maintained in Missouri; rejecting plaintiff’s argument that venue could be established in Maryland based on the Maryland location of the agency’s Asylum Division headquarters.
Summaries of all published opinions issued in 2024 are available here. Earlier opinions are available here.
Court opinion issued Mar. 31, 2024
Court Opinions (2024)CommentCitizens for Responsibility & Ethics in Wash. v. DOJ (D.D.C.) -- on remand from the D.C. Circuit, holding that: (1) the names of federal contractors who supplied the Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) with pentobarbital qualified as commercial information under Exemption 4 because disclosure would reveal that “the contractors have sold a product and/or service to the government, thereby ‘actually reveal[ing] basic commercial operations” of the contractors.’”; (2) BOP established that the disputed contract terms were confidential under Exemption 4 by “showing how the contract terms at issue could be cross-referenced with public information to identify the contractors”; (3).BOP established that foreseeable harm would result from disclosure of the contractors’ names and contract terms by explaining that identified companies are “‘commonly subject to harassment, threats, and negative publicity leading to commercial decline’”; and (4) certain records needed to be reviewed in camera review to resolve whether DOJ had publicly shared withheld information.
Summaries of all published opinions issued in 2024 are available here. Earlier opinions are available here.
FOIA News: CNN sues DOJ for Biden interview recordings
FOIA News (2024)CommentCNN sues for access to tape of Biden’s interview with investigators in classified docs probe
By Katelyn Polantz & Hannah Rabinowitz, CNN, Apr. 4, 2024
CNN has sued for access to recordings of federal investigators’ interview with President Joe Biden in the now-closed probe over his handling of classified documents.
The interview has become one of the most notable and politically controversial parts of special counsel Robert Hur’s investigation, which concluded there wasn’t enough evidence to charge Biden with criminal mishandling of records after his vice presidency. In a final report, Hur called Biden, 81, “a sympathetic, well-meaning, elderly man with a poor memory.”
The Justice Department released transcripts of Biden’s interview after Hur’s report was made public in February, but the department also has recordings.
Read more here.