Email Records

Mr. Johnston,

The Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) received your Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request dated December 21, 2019 and assigned it tracking number FY20-47. Please cite this number in any future communications with our office regarding your request.

We are unable to begin processing your request at this time because we cannot determine precisely which records you are seeking. If you are still interested, we will need you to provide us with more specific information to describe the records sought so that they can be located with a reasonable amount of effort (15 CFR 2004.3(b)), e.g.,
1. What types of records;
2. Which USTR officials are the custodians of these records;
3. If you are interested in correspondence, please identify the relevant USTR officials and the names, organizations, and contact information (preferably email address) of the individuals with whom they were communicating; and
4. Please identify specific trade topics.

Please note: this is not an exhaustive list.

We cannot proceed further with your request until we receive additional written clarification from you.

If we do not hear from you within 30 calendar days from the date of this email, we will assume that you are no longer interested in pursuing your request, and we will close our files on the request.

If you have any questions or would like help refining your search, please contact me or my colleague Janice Kaye at FOIA@ustr.eop.gov or 202-395-3419.

Thank you,
Monique

Monique T. Ricker
FOIA Program Manager/Attorney

EXECUTIVE OFFICE OF THE PRESIDENT
OFFICE OF THE UNITED STATES TRADE REPRESENTATIVE
WASHINGTON DC 20508

Mr. Johnston,

On December 26, 2019, USTR received your answers to our questions regarding FOIA request FY20-47. Our office will provide you with a determination on or before January 24, 2020.

Thank you,
Monique

Monique T. Ricker
FOIA Program Manager/Attorney

EXECUTIVE OFFICE OF THE PRESIDENT
OFFICE OF THE UNITED STATES TRADE REPRESENTATIVE
WASHINGTON DC 20508

Mr. Johnston,

The search for and review of records responsive to Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request no. FY20-47 submitted on December 23, 2019 is underway.

Because your request requires the FOIA office to search for and collect records from separate offices, we require at least an additional ten working days to process due to "unusual circumstances."

If you have any questions or wish to discuss how to limit the scope of your request, please contact me or my colleague Janice Kaye at FOIA@ustr.eop.gov or 202-395-3419. Additionally, you may contact the Office of Government Information Services (OGIS) at the National Archives and Records Administration to inquire about the FOIA mediation services they offer. The contact information for OGIS is as follows: Office of Government Information Services, National Archives and Records Administration, 8601 Adelphi Road-OGIS, College Park, Maryland 20740-6001; e-mail at ogis@nara.gov; telephone at 202-741-5770; toll free at 1-877-684-6448; or facsimile at 202-741-5769.

Thank you,
Monique

Monique T. Ricker
FOIA Program Manager/Attorney
EXECUTIVE OFFICE OF THE PRESIDENT
OFFICE OF THE UNITED STATES TRADE REPRESENTATIVE
WASHINGTON DC 20508

Mr. Johnston,

Thank you for your email. I am not sure how familiar you are with USTR's FOIA office, but we are a small team of two attorneys that are responsible for all administrative legal issues, not only FOIA. We process FOIA requests on a multi-track, "first-in, first-out" basis. There are currently seven complex requests ahead of your request for records pertaining to the U.S.-UK Trade and Investment Working Group on the following topics: Financial services; digital trade; intellectual property rights (IPR); regulatory issues related to trade; and Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises. In fiscal year 2019, we processed complex requests on average within 193 business days.
Please keep in mind that the information you seek may be classified information which is exempt from release under FOIA Exemption 1. You may review the confidentiality agreement between the U.S. and UK in the USTR FOIA Library<https://ustr.gov/about-us/reading-room/freedom-information-act-foia/foia-library>.
We will keep you posted as records become available. You are also welcome to narrow the scope of your search further.
Thank you,
Monique

Monique T. Ricker
FOIA Program Manager/Attorney

EXECUTIVE OFFICE OF THE PRESIDENT
OFFICE OF THE UNITED STATES TRADE REPRESENTATIVE
WASHINGTON DC 20508

Mr. Johnston,

Unfortunately, I do not have an update for you at this time. As my email dated January 29, 2020 stated, there are seven complex requests ahead of yours and our average processing time in fiscal year 2019 was 193 business days.

We will keep you posted on our progress and will release records as they become available.

Thank you,
Monique

Monique T. Ricker
FOIA Program Manager/Attorney

EXECUTIVE OFFICE OF THE PRESIDENT
OFFICE OF THE UNITED STATES TRADE REPRESENTATIVE
WASHINGTON DC 20508

Mr. Johnston,

This email is the final response of the Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) to Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) No. FY20-47 submitted on December 23, 2019 requesting any records pertaining to a trade deal with the UK from September 2019 until the submission of this request.

After a search of our files utilizing eDiscovery software, we have located 101 pages of responsive documents which we are releasing in part. Because of the size of the file, we have uploaded it to a shared server: https://drive.max.gov/share/aebadf1667980690

We redacted portions of the documents because we reasonably foresee that disclosure would harm an interest protected by FOIA Exemptions 5 or 6. Exemption 5 protects from disclosure "inter-agency or intra-agency memorandums or letters which would not be available by law to a party other than an agency in litigation with the agency." The materials are exempt under the deliberative process privilege, which protects the decision-making processes of the executive branch in order to safeguard the quality and integrity of governmental decisions. The deliberative process privilege protects materials that are both pre-decisional and deliberative. The privilege covers records that reflect the give-and-take of the consultative process, e.g., internal analysis, negotiating strategy, and briefing materials such as the 33 page information memorandum we withheld in full. The documents reflect the personal opinions of the writer rather than the policy of the agency. We also redacted non-public contact information pursuant to Exemption 6, which protects personal information the release of which would not shed light on the performance of the agency's statutory duties.

This constitutes a complete response to your request. You may contact me or my colleague Janice Kaye by email at FOIA@ustr.eop.gov or 202-395-3419 for any further assistance and to discuss any aspect of your request. Additionally, you may contact the Office of Government Information Services (OGIS) at the National Archives and Records Administration to inquire about the FOIA mediation services they offer. The contact information for OGIS is as follows: Office of Government Information Services, National Archives and Records Administration, 8601 Adelphi Road-OGIS, College Park, Maryland 20740-6001, e-mail at ogis@nara.gov; telephone at 202-741-5770; toll free at 1-877-684-6448; or facsimile at 202-741-5769.

If you are not satisfied with the response to this request, you may also administratively appeal by writing to: FOIA Office, GSD/RDF; ATTN: Janice Kaye, Anacostia Naval Annex, Bldg. 410/Door 123, 250 Murray Lane, S.W., Washington, D.C. 20509.

Your appeal must be postmarked or electronically transmitted within 90 days of the date of the response to your request. Both the letter and the envelope should be clearly marked: "Freedom of Information Act Appeal" and should include a reference to the FOIA Case File number listed above. Heightened security in force may delay mail delivery; therefore we suggest that you also email any such appeal to foia@ustr.eop.gov.

In the event you are dissatisfied with the results of any such appeal, judicial review will thereafter be available to you in the United States District Court for the judicial district in which you reside or have your principal place of business, or in the District of Columbia, where we searched for the records you requested.

Thank you,
Monique

Monique T. Ricker
FOIA Program Manager/Attorney

EXECUTIVE OFFICE OF THE PRESIDENT
OFFICE OF THE UNITED STATES TRADE REPRESENTATIVE
WASHINGTON DC 20508