View source for Schedule and Travel of Department of Labor Secretary Hilda Solis FOIA Request

January 14,2009

Attention: FOIA Request

Office of the Solicitor

Division of Legislation and Legal Counsel

Department of Labor

Room N-2428

200 Constitution Avenue, NW

Washington, DC 20210

Via email to: foiarequest@dol.gov

Re: Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) Request

Dear FOIA Officer:

Pursuant to the federal Freedom of Information Act, 5 USC § 552 et seq., I request on behalf of Americans for Limited Government (ALG) copies of the federal records described below. These records pertain to the travel and activities of Sec. Hilda Solis.

Please provide copies of records that exist in any of the following categories and that
were created on or after January 20, 2009:
 
#All records relating to daily schedules including attendees at meetings held by and attended by Sec. Hilda Solis;
#All records relating to travel performed by Sec. Hilda Solis on behalf of the Department including disbursements issued to her or on her behalf for such travel;
#All records relating to travel performed by Department personnel, excluding personnel from the Office of Inspector General, accompanying or providing advance work for the travel of Sec. Hilda Solis on behalf of the Department including disbursements issued to or on behalf of Department personnel for such travel; and
#All records relating to speeches given on behalf of the Department by Sec. Hilda Solis including the text of any speeches given.

Further Definition of Records Sought

The term" record" should be construed to mean any written, recorded, or graphic
matter of any nature whatsoever, regardless of how recorded, and whether original or
copy, including, but not limited to, the following: memoranda, reports, expense reports,
books, manuals, instructions, financial reports, working papers, records, notes, letters,
notices, confirmations, telegrams, receipts, appraisals, pamphlets, magazines,
newspapers, prospectuses, interoffice and intra-office communications, electronic mail
(e-mail), contracts, cables, notations of any type of conversation, telephone calls,
meetings or other communications, bulletins, printed matter, computer printouts,
teletypes, invoices, transcripts, diaries, analyses, returns, sunul1aries, minutes, bills,
accounts, estimates, projections, comparisons, messages, correspondence, press releases,
circulars, financial statements, reviews, opinions, offers, studies and investigations,
questio1U1aires and surveys, and work sheets (and all drafts, preliminary versions,
alterations, modifications, revisions, changes, and amendments of any of the foregoing,
as well as any attachments or appendices thereto), and graphic or oral records or
representations of any kind (including without limitation, photographs, charts, graphs,
voicemails, microfiche, microfilm, videotape, recordings and motion pictures), and
electronic and mechanical records or representations of any kind (including, without
limitation, tapes, cassettes, disks, computer server files, computer hard drive files, CDs,
DVDs, memory sticks, and recordings) and other written, printed, typed, or other
graphic or recorded matter of any kind of nature. A record bearing any notation not a
part of the original text is to be considered a separate record. A draft of a non-identical
copy is to be construed as a separate record.

The term "relating" and "regarding" with respect to any given subject, should be
construed to mean anything that constitutes, contains, embodies, reflects, identifies,
states, refers to, deals with or is in any manner whatsoever pertinent to that subject.
The inclusion and description of particular records in this request should not be
construed to eliminate other records that are not described in particular detail if they
should exist in another format.

Procedure Regarding Records Exempt from Disclosure

Given the nature of the records requested I anticipate that the vast majority of any
responsive records will be of the type required to be released under FOIA. However, in
the event that records exist that FOIA does not require to be released I request that they
be released regardless unless the failure to release such records can be justified based
upon sound reasoning related to one of the statutory exemptions or exceptions in FOIA
and there is a patently manifest danger of significant harm that would occur from
release of such records, e.g., danger to health or safety of an individual.
Further, the Department should be reminded of the policy in favor of disclosure
mandated by President Barack Obama on January 26, 2009. President Obama
instructed the executive departments and agencies to operate with a presumption
towards disclosure. On this point the President stated as follows:

A democracy requires accountability, and accountability requires
transparency. As Justice Louis Brandeis wrote, "sun-light is said to be the
best of disinfectants." In our democracy, the Freedom of Information Act
(FOIA), which encourages accountability through transparency, is the
most prominent expression of a profound national commitment to
ensuring an open Government. At the heart of that commitment is the
idea that accountability is in the interest of the Government and the
citizenry alike.

The Freedom of Information Act should be administered with a clear
presumption: In the face of doubt, openness prevails. The Government
should not keep information confidential merely because public officials
might be embarrassed by disclosure, because errors and failures might be
revealed, or because of speculative or abstract fears. Nondisclosure should
never be based on an effort to protect the personal interests of
Government officials at the expense of those they are supposed to serve.
In responding to requests under the FOIA, executive branch agencies
(agencies) should act promptly and in a spirit of cooperation, recognizing
that such agencies are servants of the public. Freedom of Information Act,
Memorandum for the Heads of Executive Departments and Agencies, 74
Fed. Reg. 4683 (January 26, 2009.)

These instructions from the President were followed up by further instructions from
Attorney General Eric Holder on March 19, 2009. The Attorney General stated as
follows:

First, an agency should not withhold information simply because it may
do so legally. I strongly encourage agencies to make discretionary
disclosures of information. An agency should not withhold records
merely because it can demonstrate, as a technical matter, that the records
fall within the scope of a FOIA exemption.

Second, whenever an agency determines that it cannot make full
disclosure of a requested record, it must consider whether it can make
partial disclosure. Agencies should always be mindful that the FOIA
requires them to take reasonable steps to segregate and release nonexempt
information. Even if some parts of a record must be withheld, other parts
either may not be covered by a statutory exemption, or may be covered
only in a technical sense unrelated to the actual impact of disclosure. The
Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), Attorney General Memorandum for
Heads of Executive Departments and Agencies, March 19, 2009.

Based on this policy I believe that there will be no records sought that the Department
will withhold. However, in the event that records are withheld I request to be provided
with the following information:

#Reason each record is not being produced;
#Type of record withheld;
#Subject matter of record withheld; and
#Date, author, and addressee, if applicable of the record.

Further, I request that the above information be indexed by individual record and
comply with Vaugh v. Rosen, 484 F.2d 820 (D.C Cir. 1973), by providing information
sufficient for a reasonable person to be able to ascertain whether the record sought is
actually exempt from disclosure.

Request for Waiver of Fees

The information sought by ALG in this FOIA request will be used to better the public's
understanding of how the Department is spending the taxpayers' money. As such the
public good that will occur in disclosing the information sought in and of itself weighs
strongly in favor of a fee waiver. Further, the information sought is "in the public
interest because it is likely to contribute significantly to public understanding of the
operations or activities of the government and is not primarily in the commercial
interest of the requester." 5 U.s.C § 552(a)(4)(A)(iii). ALG regularly publishes
information on the activities, structure, and operations of the federal government. This
information is distributed to a large number of diverse individuals across the entire
nation. The records sought are of the type which ALG regularly provides to the public
through its publications and website, www.gctliberty.org. As such granting the request
to waive fees is in the public interest. Further, "Congress intended that the public
interest standard be liberally construed and that fees not be used as an obstacle to
disclosure of requested information." (Emphasis added.) Eudey v. Central Intelligence
Agency, 478 F.5upp. 1175 (D.D.C 1979). (Internal citations omitted.) The central focus of
the analysis in determining whether the fee waiver is in the public interest is whether
the public rather than the requestor is the primary beneficiary of the release of the
information. "The statute indicates that the issue to be considered by the agency is
whether furnishing the information will primarily benefit the public at large or whether
any benefit will inure primarily to the specific individual requesting the documents."
ld. In the instant case the records sought will be used to further the public's
understanding of the operations of the Department. The records sought will be
disseminated widely to parties interested in the workings of the government and as
such will not inure primarily to the benefit of the requestor. Therefore the request for
waiver of fees should be granted pursuant to 5 U.s.C § 552(a)(4)(A)(iii).
In the event that a fee waiver is not granted, please inform me before taking any action
that would result in the incurrence of fees by ALG.

Conclusion


Pursuant to 5 U.s.c. § 552(a)(6)(A)(i) please provide the requested documents within 20
days. If for some reason all of the requested documents cannot be provided within 20
days I request that documents that are available within the 20 day time period be
provided first and that when the remaining documents subsequently become available
that they be provided at that time.

I request that any records disclosed pursuant to this request be indexed, to the extent
feasible, in such a way as to enable the reader to readily ascertain to which number
listed above the responsive records relate. If reasonably possible I request that
responsive records be provided in electronic form on either unencrypted CDs or DVDs.
If you have any questions as to the medium on which responsive records are to be
provided please contact me in advance to sending the medium.

If my request is denied in whole or part, I ask that you justify all deletions by reference
to specific exemptions of the act. I will also expect you to release all segregable portions
of otherwise exempt material. I, of course, reserve the right to appeal your decision to
withhold any information or to deny a waiver of fees.

Please send the requested records to the following address:

Nathan Paul Mehrens

Counsel

Americans for Limited Government

9900 Main Street

Suite 303

Fairfax, V A 22031

If you have any questions regarding this FOIA request please contact Nathan Paul
Mehrens at 703.383.0880.

I look forward to your reply within 20 business days, as the statute requires. In the
event that processing this request will take longer than 10 business days I request that
you immediately provide me with an individualized tracking number for my request.
Thank you in advance for your assistance.

Sincerely,

William Wilson

President