Houston CCS and Labor Emails (Department of Labor, Wage and Hour Division)

Mr. Kuznetz,
Your letter is addressed to the Wage and Hour Division of the U.S. Department of Labor. This is to inquire as to whether you are separately seeking any records that may exist from the Office of Labor Management Standards, as indictated in the body of your request. The U.S. Department of Labor's Office of Labor-Management Standards (OLMS) administers and enforces most provisions of the Labor-Management Reporting and Disclosure Act of 1959 (LMRDA).  The LMRDA primarily promotes union democracy and financial integrity in private sector labor unions through standards for union officer elections and union trusteeships and safeguards for union assets. Additionally, the LMRDA promotes labor union and labor-management transparency through reporting and disclosure requirements for labor unions and their officials, employers, labor relations consultants, and surety companies.  More information concerning OLMS and the LMRDA is available on the OLMS website at: www.dol.gov/olms It is highly unlikely that we would have communications with a named individual from Exxon Mobil, unless they had issues arising with a union representing their employees. Denise Diminuco, OLMS FOIA Coordinator

Mr. Kutznez, I plan to close this request for administrative reasons within 5 days if you do not respond to my previous request for clarification. If you do indeed seek a search of OLMS records, please indicate which field offices, or in which region or state(s), that we would ask our staff to search. _ Denise Diminuco, US DOL OLMS, FOIA Coordinator

Hello:

This acknowledges the receipt of your Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request, in which you requested the following records sent or received during the months of April, May, and June of 2021:

* All emails between Deanna Archuleta, an employee of ExxonMobil, and any staff at the Wage and Hour Division, Office of the Secretary, and Office of Labor Management Standards.

* Any agendas or notes associated with any meetings between Deanna Archuleta, an employee of ExxonMobil, and any staff at the Wage and Hour Division, Office of the Secretary, and Office of Labor Management Standards.

Your request was received in our office on 4/19/22 and assigned FOIA tracking number 2022-F-07901.

This letter is to inform you the Office of the Secretary is unable to respond to your request within the time limits established by the FOIA. Our ability to process your request is delayed because we are experiencing a backlog of requests. Please be advised, however, that your request is being handled as equitably as possible and that all documents that can be released will be made available at the earliest possible date. We will keep you informed of our progress. We expect to complete processing your request on or before 40 days from the date of this acknowledgment.

The Department of Labor has transitioned to a new data platform and the interface of the FOIA Portal has changed. By using the tracking number above, you may track the status of your FOIA request online at https://efoia.dol.gov/app/CheckStatus.aspx. Case files numbers must be entered exactly as provided. For example, FOIAXpress assigns alpha numeric tracking numbers (2020-F-00001), while SIMS-FOIA assigns six digit tracking numbers (887686). If you have been assigned an SIMS-FOIA tracking number, you can check the status of your FOIA request by clicking on the “legacy case search portal<https://www.dol.gov/foia>” link.

If you need to contact OSEC about it for any reason, please submit your inquiry via email at OSEC-FOIA@DOL.GOV<mailto:OSEC-FOIA@DOL.GOV>. In addition, it would be helpful to include the tracking number in the Subject line of any submission made.

Sincerely,

Toya A. Peets
U.S. Department of Labor
Office of the Secretary
(202) 693-6112

Dear Mr. Kusnetz,

This letter responds to your Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request of March 29, 2022 in which you requested the following records sent or received during the months of April, May, and June of 2021:

* All emails between Deanna Archuleta, an employee of ExxonMobil, and any staff at the Wage and Hour Division, Office of the Secretary, and Office of Labor Management Standards.
* Any agendas or notes associated with any meetings between Deanna Archuleta, an employee of ExxonMobil, and any staff at the Wage and Hour Division, Office of the Secretary, and Office of Labor Management Standards.

Your request was received in our office on April 19, 2022 and assigned FOIA tracking number 2022-F-07901. A search for responsive records of the Office of the Secretary (OSEC) was conducted based on your request. Results from the search presented the below attached responsive records:

* 9 pages are being released without redactions, and
* 15 pages which have been redacted in part under to 5 U.S.C. § 522(b)(6) which permits the withholding of personnel, medical and similar files when disclosure of such information would constitute a clearly unwarranted invasion of personal privacy.

If you have questions about this response, you may contact the Office of the Secretary (OSEC) FOIA point of contact at OSEC-FOIA@dol.gov<mailto:OSEC-FOIA@dol.gov> or the DOL FOIA Public Liaison, Thomas Hicks, at 202-693-5427 or by email at hicks.thomas@dol.gov<mailto:hicks.thomas@dol.gov>. Alternatively, you may contact the Office of Government Information Services (OGIS), within the National Archives and Records Administration, to inquire about the 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, College Park, MD 20740-6001. You can also reach that office by e-mail at ogis@nara.gov<mailto:ogis@nara.gov>, by phone at 202-741-5770, by fax at 202-741-5769, or by calling toll-free at 1-877-684-6448.

Additionally, if you are not satisfied with the response to this request, you may administratively appeal by writing to the Solicitor of Labor within 90 days from the date of this letter. The appeal must state in writing the grounds for the appeal, and it may include any supporting statements or arguments, but such statements are not required. In order to facilitate processing of the appeal, please include your mailing address and daytime telephone number, as well as a copy of the initial request and copy of this letter. The envelope and letter of the appeal should be clearly marked “Freedom of Information Act Appeal.” Any amendment to the appeal must be made in writing and received prior to a decision. The appeal should be addressed to the Solicitor of Labor, Division of Management and Administrative Legal Services, U.S. Department of Labor, 200 Constitution Avenue, NW, Room N2420, Washington, DC 20210. Appeals may also be submitted by email to foiaappeal@dol.gov<mailto:foiaappeal@dol.gov>. Appeals submitted to any other email address will not be accepted.

Sincerely,

Toya A. Peets
U.S. Department of Labor
Office of the Secretary
(202) 693-6112