Inspector General closed cases 2017 (Department of Defense, Office of the Inspector General)

Your request for Fee Waiver for the FOIA request DODOIG-2019-000781 has been determined to be not applicable as the request is not billable.
* Fee Waiver Original Justification: As my primary purpose is to inform about government activities by reporting on it and
making the raw data available, I request that fees be waived.
* Fee Waiver Disposition Reason: N/A

Your request for Fee Waiver for the FOIA request DODOIG-2019-000780 has been fully granted.
* Fee Waiver Original Justification: I am a member of the news media and request classification as such. I have previously
written about the government and its activities, with some reaching over 100,000
readers in outlets such as Gizmodo, MuckRock, Motherboard, Property of the People,
Unicorn Riot, and The Outline, among others. As such, as I have a reasonable
expectation of publication and my editorial and writing skills are well established. In
addition, I discuss and comment on the files online and make them available through
non-profits such as the library Internet Archive and the journalist non-profit MuckRock,
disseminating them to a large audience. While my research is not limited to this, a great
deal of it, including this, focuses on the activities and attitudes of the government itself.
As such, it is not necessary for me to demonstrate the relevance of this particular
subject in advance.
Further, case law states that “proof of the ability to disseminate the released information
to a broad cross- section of the public is not required.” Judicial Watch, Inc. v. Dep’t of
Justice, 365 F.3d 1108, 1126 (D.C. Cir. 2004); see Carney v. U.S. Dep’t of Justice, 19 F.
3d 807, 814-15 (2d Cir. 1994). Further, courts have held that "qualified because it also
had “firm” plans to “publish a number of . . . ‘document sets’” concerning United States
foreign and national security policy." Under this criteria, as well, I qualify as a member of
the news media.
Additionally, courts have held that the news media status "focuses on the nature of the
requester, not its request. The provision requires that the request be “made by” a
representative of the news media. Id. § 552(a)(4)(A)(ii)(II). A newspaper reporter, for
example, is a representative of the news media regardless of how much interest there is
in the story for which he or she is requesting information." As such, the details of the
request itself are moot for the purposes of determining the appropriate fee category.
I request that fees be waived.
* Fee Waiver Disposition Reason: N/A

The FOIA request - DODOIG-2019-000781 description has been modified. Additional details for this item are as follows:
* Tracking Number: DODOIG-2019-000781
* Requester: Emma Best
* Submitted Date: 06/11/2019
* Description: To Whom It May Concern:

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

a copy of the list or printout or database listing of Inspector General investigations closed/reports completed during calendar year 2017. If the list is organized by FY rather than calendar year, the FY 2017 list is sufficient for this request. If no central list or database exists, then I request that the equivalent information be provided in the form of copies of the cover sheet or first page of each IG report completed during calendar year 2017.

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,

Emma Best

Attachments:

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Dear Ms. Best,

Attached please find the final response to your Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request, DODOIG-2019-000781.

Very Respectfully,

DoD OIG FOIA Team

This e-mail is from the Office of the Inspector General, Department of Defense, and may contain information that is "Law Enforcement Sensitive" {LES} or "For Official Use Only" {FOUO} or otherwise subject to the Privacy Act and/or legal and or other privileges that restrict release without appropriate legal authority.

Your request for Fee Waiver for the FOIA request DODOIG-2019-000779 has been determined to be not applicable as the request is not billable.
* Fee Waiver Original Justification: As my primary purpose is to inform about government activities by reporting on it and
making the raw data available, I request that fees be waived.
* Fee Waiver Disposition Reason: N/A