DHS document preservation (United States Customs and Border Protection)

This message is to confirm your request submission to the FOIAonline application: View Request. Request information is as follows: (https://www.foiaonline.gov/foiaonline/action/public/submissionDetails?trackingNumber=CBP-2021-010913&type=request)

* Tracking Number: CBP-2021-010913
* Requester Name: Felipe De La Hoz
* Date Submitted: 11/15/2020
* Request Status: Submitted
* Description:
To Whom It May Concern:

Pursuant to the Freedom of Information Act, I hereby request the following records:

Directives, policy notices, memoranda, and email communications created or disseminated to agency personnel since November 3, 2020 and referencing "document preservation," "document destruction," "document production," or which otherwise functioning as agency policy regarding the preservation and cataloguing of agency documentation.

If any deletions, redactions, or withholdings are deemed appropriate, please include an explanation.

The requested documents will be made available to the general public, and this request is not being made for commercial purposes.

In the event that there are fees, I would be grateful if you would inform me of the total charges in advance of fulfilling my request. I would prefer the request filled electronically, by e-mail attachment if available or CD-ROM if not.

Thank you in advance for your anticipated cooperation in this matter. I look forward to receiving your response to this request within 20 business days, as the statute requires.

Sincerely,

Felipe De La Hoz

Upload documents directly: https://https://www.muckrock.comhttps://www.muckrock.com/

Felipe De La Hoz
MuckRock News DEPT MR 104833
411A Highland Ave
Somerville, MA, 02144
12/04/2020
CBP-2021-010913
Dear Felipe De La Hoz:
This notice acknowledges receipt of your Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request to U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) received on 11/15/2020.     Please use the following unique FOIA tracking number CBP-2021-010913 to track the status of your request.  If you have not already done so, you must create a FOIAonline account at https://foiaonline.gov.  This is the only method available to check the status of your pending FOIA request. (https://foiaonline.regulations.gov/)
Provisions of the Act allow us to recover part of the cost of complying with your request.  We shall charge you for records in accordance with the DHS FOIA regulations outlined on the DHS website, https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2016/11/22/2016-28095/freedom-of-information-act-regulations. By submitting your request, you have agreed to pay up to $25.00 in applicable processing fees, if any fees associated with your request exceed this amount, CBP shall contact you; however, the first 100 pages are free. (https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2016/11/22/2016-28095/freedom-of-information-act-regulations)
Due to the increasing number of FOIA requests received by this office, we may encounter some delay in processing your request.  Consistent with 6 C.F.R. Part 5 § 5.5(a) of the DHS FOIA regulations, CBP processes FOIA requests according to their order of receipt.  Although CBP’s goal is to respond within 20 business days of receipt of your request, FOIA does permit a 10-day extension of this time period in certain circumstances pursuant to 6 C.F.R. Part 5 § 5.5(c).  [As your request seeks documents that will require a thorough and wide-ranging search, CBP will invoke a 10-day extension for your request pursuant to 6 C.F.R. Part 5 § 5.5(c). If you would like to narrow the scope of your request, please contact our office.  We will make every effort to comply with your request in a timely manner.] OR [As your request seeks a voluminous amount of separate and distinct records, CBP will invoke a 10-day extension for your request pursuant to  6 C.F.R. Part 5 § 5.5(c).  If you would like to narrow the scope of your request, please contact our office.  We will make every effort to comply with your request in a timely manner.] OR [As the subject matter of your request is of substantial interest to two or more components of CBP or of substantial interest to another agency, we will need to consult with those entities before we issue a final response.  Due to these unusual circumstances, CBP will invoke a 10-day extension for your request pursuant to 6 C.F.R. Part 5 § 5.5(c). If you would like to narrow the scope of your request, please contact our office.  We will make every effort to comply with your request in a timely manner.]
CBP’s FOIA Division is working hard to reduce the amount of time necessary to respond to FOIA requests.  We truly appreciate your continued patience.
For additional information please consult CBP FOIA website please click on FOIA Act Resources or visit (http://www.cbp.gov/site-policy-notices/foia) http://www.cbp.gov/site-policy-notices/foia. (http://www.cbp.gov/site-policy-notices/foia)
Sincerely,
U.S. Customs and Border Protection

The FOIA request CBP-2021-010913 has had its Tracking Number changed to CBP-OC-2021-010913. This is normally due to the request being transferred to another agency (for example, EPA to Dept. of Commerce) or to a sub-agency to process it. Additional details for this request are as follows:

* Old Tracking Number:
CBP-2021-010913
* New Tracking Number:
CBP-OC-2021-010913
* Requester Name:
Felipe De La Hoz
* Date Submitted:
11/15/2020
* Long Description:
To Whom It May Concern:

Pursuant to the Freedom of Information Act, I hereby request the following records:

Directives, policy notices, memoranda, and email communications created or disseminated to agency personnel since November 3, 2020 and referencing "document preservation," "document destruction," "document production," or which otherwise functioning as agency policy regarding the preservation and cataloguing of agency documentation.

If any deletions, redactions, or withholdings are deemed appropriate, please include an explanation.

The requested documents will be made available to the general public, and this request is not being made for commercial purposes.

In the event that there are fees, I would be grateful if you would inform me of the total charges in advance of fulfilling my request. I would prefer the request filled electronically, by e-mail attachment if available or CD-ROM if not.

Thank you in advance for your anticipated cooperation in this matter. I look forward to receiving your response to this request within 20 business days, as the statute requires.

Sincerely,

Felipe De La Hoz

Upload documents directly: https://https://www.muckrock.comhttps://www.muckrock.com/

The FOIA request CBP-OC-2021-010913 has had its Tracking Number changed to CBP-2021-010913. This is normally due to the request being transferred to another agency (for example, EPA to Dept. of Commerce) or to a sub-agency to process it. Additional details for this request are as follows:

* Old Tracking Number:
CBP-OC-2021-010913
* New Tracking Number:
CBP-2021-010913
* Requester Name:
Felipe De La Hoz
* Date Submitted:
11/15/2020
* Long Description:
To Whom It May Concern:

Pursuant to the Freedom of Information Act, I hereby request the following records:

Directives, policy notices, memoranda, and email communications created or disseminated to agency personnel since November 3, 2020 and referencing "document preservation," "document destruction," "document production," or which otherwise functioning as agency policy regarding the preservation and cataloguing of agency documentation.

If any deletions, redactions, or withholdings are deemed appropriate, please include an explanation.

The requested documents will be made available to the general public, and this request is not being made for commercial purposes.

In the event that there are fees, I would be grateful if you would inform me of the total charges in advance of fulfilling my request. I would prefer the request filled electronically, by e-mail attachment if available or CD-ROM if not.

Thank you in advance for your anticipated cooperation in this matter. I look forward to receiving your response to this request within 20 business days, as the statute requires.

Sincerely,

Felipe De La Hoz

Upload documents directly: https://https://www.muckrock.comhttps://www.muckrock.com/

CBP-2021-010913
02/04/2023
Felipe De La Hoz
MuckRock News DEPT MR 104833
411A Highland Ave
Somerville, MA, 02144

RE: Freedom of Information Act Request CBP-2021-010913
Dear Felipe De La Hoz
After careful review of your FOIA request, CBP-2021-010913, we have determined that your request is too broad in scope or did not specifically identify the records which you are seeking.  FOIA is not a search mechanism. Records must be described in reasonably sufficient detail to enable government employees who are familiar with the subject area to locate records without placing an unreasonable burden upon the agency.  For this reason, §5.3(b) of the DHS regulations, 6 C.F.R. Part 5, require that you describe the records you are seeking with as much information as possible to ensure that our search can locate them with a reasonable amount of effort.
Specifically, you requested email communications created or disseminated to agency personnel since November 3, 2020 and referencing "document preservation," "document destruction," "document production," or which otherwise functioning as agency policy regarding the preservation and cataloguing of agency documentation. Thank you for providing specific keywords of interest. In order to conduct a search for the email communications portion of your request, please provide the of interest.  CBP has several thousands employees and conducting a search of all CBP employee mailboxes could result in an overabundance of non-responsive content. Providing the title and/or names will significantly reduce the processing time. title and/or name of the CBP employee(s)
If you are willing to modify the scope of your request, please respond to this email by contacting the FOIA Division via FOIA Online or for best results via email to cbpfoiapublicliaison@cbp.dhs.gov.  Please be sure to include the following information in the subject line of your email:  Request to narrow CBP-2021-010913.  Although an email to the above address is the best means to contact the office, you may also call (202) 325-0150 and leave a message, we will return your call as soon as possible. Or write to:
CBP FOIA Division
90 K St, NE MS 1181
Washington, DC  20229
We will stop the clock on your request while we await your response.  Please note, email requests currently take 12 months to four years to process.  The FOIA Public Liaison may further assist in advising on the requirements for submitting a request, and narrowing the scope of a request, advising the requester on the type of records to request, suggesting agency offices that may have responsive records, and receive questions or concerns about the agency’s FOIA process.
We sincerely apologize for the delay you are experiencing and appreciate your continued patience while we work together to clarify and narrow the scope of your request.
Sincerely,

FOIA Division
U.S. Customs and Border Protection

07/03/2024

CBP-2021-010913

Dear Felipe Hoz,

FOIA request CBP-2021-010913 has been closed as it is a duplicate of an earlier FOIA request that you submitted. Your earlier FOIA request will be processed in the order it was received. All travel (including entry/exit and I94 records) and border apprehension/incident records, should they exist, will be provided to you at that time.

The CBP FOIA office has a significant backlog of FOIA requests. If you do not receive a response to your FOIA request within 20 business days, please do not resubmit the same FOIA request as it creates further delays. We are working very hard to clear the FOIA backlog and thank you in advance for your cooperation.

Please note that this message has been sent from an unmonitored e-mail account. Any messages sent to this account will not be read.
Sincerely,
U.S. Customs and Border Protection

07/03/2024

CBP-2021-010913

Dear Felipe Hoz,

FOIA request CBP-2021-010913 has been closed as it is a duplicate of an earlier FOIA request that you submitted. Your earlier FOIA request will be processed in the order it was received. All travel (including entry/exit and I94 records) and border apprehension/incident records, should they exist, will be provided to you at that time.

The CBP FOIA office has a significant backlog of FOIA requests. If you do not receive a response to your FOIA request within 20 business days, please do not resubmit the same FOIA request as it creates further delays. We are working very hard to clear the FOIA backlog and thank you in advance for your cooperation.

Please note that this message has been sent from an unmonitored e-mail account. Any messages sent to this account will not be read.
Sincerely,
U.S. Customs and Border Protection

07/03/2024

CBP-2021-010913

Dear Felipe Hoz:

Your FOIA request was reviewed as a third-party request and did not include authorization that information on this individual, or business, can be released to you. All third party FOIA requests must include a signed G-28 or G-639 form, or a signed statement from the individual verifying that his/her information may be released to you. Or, if requesting records pertaining to a business or company, a signed statement on company letterhead. Due to privacy concerns, CBP cannot confirm nor deny the existence of records on this individual or business.

Your FOIA request has been closed as insufficient. Please be advised that this action is not a denial of your request and will not preclude you from filing other requests in the future. Please resubmit your FOIA request, along with the required information, by logging into your existing SecureRelease account.

Please note that this message has been sent from an unmonitored e-mail account. Any messages sent to this account will not be read.

Sincerely,

U.S. Customs and Border Protection

07/03/2024

CBP-2021-010913

Dear Felipe Hoz:

Your FOIA request was reviewed as a third-party request and did not include authorization that information on this individual, or business, can be released to you. All third party FOIA requests must include a signed G-28 or G-639 form, or a signed statement from the individual verifying that his/her information may be released to you. Or, if requesting records pertaining to a business or company, a signed statement on company letterhead. Due to privacy concerns, CBP cannot confirm nor deny the existence of records on this individual or business.

Your FOIA request has been closed as insufficient. Please be advised that this action is not a denial of your request and will not preclude you from filing other requests in the future. Please resubmit your FOIA request, along with the required information, by logging into your existing SecureRelease account.

Please note that this message has been sent from an unmonitored e-mail account. Any messages sent to this account will not be read.

Sincerely,

U.S. Customs and Border Protection

03/26/2025

Request Number: CBP-2021-010913

Dear Felipe Hoz:

Please use the following link to navigate to your documents. This link will be available for 365 days.

To retrieve the records associated with this request use this link Released Documents for Request CBP-2021-010913 or enter https://www.securerelease.us/request-details/592442A4-B2DE-4EF3-9F87-A6F67A8931E1/2 in your browser’s address bar. (https://www.securerelease.us/request-details/592442A4-B2DE-4EF3-9F87-A6F67A8931E1/2)
Please login or create a new user account using the email address associated with your records request: requests@muckrock.com

Felipe Hoz
MuckRock News DEPT MR 104833
411A Highland Ave
Somerville, Massachusetts 02144

"Dear Felipe Hoz:
A search of CBP databases produced records responsive to your Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request CBP-2021-010913, requesting directives, policy notices, memoranda, and email communications created or disseminated to agency personnel since November 3, 2020 and referencing ""document preservation,"" ""document destruction,"" ""document production,"" or which otherwise functioning as agency policy regarding the preservation and cataloguing of agency documentation.

Please note, some records are publicly available:

1. https://www.cbp.gov/sites/default/files/assets/documents/2016-Apr/icp027_3.pdf

2. https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-19/chapter-I/part-163

3. https://www.law.cornell.edu/cfr/text/19/163.4

CBP has determined that the responsive records are partially releasable, pursuant to Title 5 U.S.C. § 552 and have applied the appropriate exemptions notated below:

Exemption Summary:

(b)(6) (b)(7)(C)

Pursuant to exemption (b)(6) (b)(7)(C), 0 pages have been withheld in full and 3 pages in part.

Permits withholding of records and information about individuals when disclosure would be a clearly unwarranted invasion of personal privacy.

Permits withholding of records when an unwarranted invasion of personal privacy could reasonably be expected.

(b)(7)(E)

Pursuant to exemption (b)(7)(E), 0 pages have been withheld in full and 1 pages in part.

Permits withholding of records when techniques and procedures for law enforcement investigations or process would be disclosed or provided such disclosure could reasonably be expected to risk circumvention of law.

Pursuant to DHS Instruction 262-11-004, FOIA Officers at DHS have been instructed to withhold personally identifiable information (PII) and sensitive personally identifiable information (SPII) of DHS personnel unless a determination is made that the disclosure does not raise security or privacy concerns, or if those concerns are outweighed by any public interest in that information. This policy is available online. Under this policy, the names of senior leaders, spokespersons, and political appointees are generally releasable. With respect to this FOIA request, DHS may have applied FOIA Exemption 6 to protect PII of DHS employees, including names and contact information. To the extent that has DHS withheld employee PII within these records, it has been determined that the employee(s) has/have substantial and legitimate privacy interests and that these interests are not outweighed by any public interest in the operations of the Department.

For your information, Congress excluded three discrete categories of law enforcement and national security records from the requirements of the FOIA. See 5 U.S.C. 552(c). This response is limited to those records that are subject to the requirements of the FOIA. This is a standard notification that is given to all our requesters and should not be taken as an indication that excluded records do, or do not, exist.

You may notice a recent date on the attached records. This is the date our processor queried the record in response to your FOIA request. For clarity, it is not the date the agency first created the record.

This completes the CBP response to your request. You may contact CBP's FOIA Public Liaison, Charlyse Hoskins, by sending an email via your SecureRelease account, mailing a letter to 1300 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW MS 1181, Washington DC, 20229 or by calling 202-325-0150. (If you need telecommunication relay service (TRS) assistance to communicate with the CBP FOIA Office and you are in the United States, please dial 711 to obtain TRS assistance and notify the Communications Assistant that you want to contact the CBP FOIA Office at the telephone number (202) 325-0150). The FOIA Public Liaison is able to assist in advising on the requirements for submitting a request, assist with narrowing the scope of a request, assist in reducing delays by advising the requester on the type of records to request, suggesting agency offices that may have responsive records and receive questions or concerns about the agency’s FOIA process. Please notate file number CBP-2021-010913 on any future correspondence to CBP related to this request.

If you are not satisfied with the response to this request, you have a right to appeal the final disposition. Should you wish to do so, you must file your appeal within 90 days of the date of this letter following the procedures outlined in the DHS regulations at Title 6 C.F.R. §5.8. Please include as much information as possible to help us understand the grounds for your appeal. You should submit your appeal via your SecureRelease account . If you do not have computer access, you may send your appeal and a copy of this letter to: FOIA Appeals, Policy and Litigation Branch, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, 90 K Street, NE, 10th Floor, Washington, DC 20229-1177. Your envelope and letter should be marked "FOIA Appeal." Copies of the FOIA and DHS regulations are available at www.dhs.gov/foia. Additional information can be found at the following link https://www.cbp.gov/sites/default/files/assets/documents/2019-Dec/definitions-exemptions-foia_0.pdf.

Additionally, you have a right to seek dispute resolution services from the Office of Government Information Services (OGIS) which mediates disputes between FOIA requesters and Federal agencies as a non-exclusive alternative to litigation. If you are requesting access to your own records (which is considered a Privacy Act request), you should know that OGIS does not have the authority to handle requests made under the Privacy Act of 1974. You may contact OGIS 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. Please note that contacting the CBP FOIA Public Liaison or OGIS does not stop the 90-day appeal clock and is not a substitute for filing an administrative appeal.

Please note that this message has been sent from an unmonitored e-mail account. Any messages sent to this account will not be read.

Sincerely,

U.S. Customs and Border Protection "