Jorjani Vignetto
| Tracking # |
SOL-2019-00166, 2020-039 SOL-2019-00166 |
| Submitted | April 29, 2019 |
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Communications
From: Jimmy Tobias
To Whom It May Concern:
Pursuant to the Freedom of Information Act, I hereby request the following records:
Any written or electronic communications, including email attachments, sent or received by Daniel Jorjani that contain one or more of the following words or phrases: "Villages at Vigneto Development Project", "Vigneto", "SPL-2003-00826", "El Dorado Holdings, Inc." and/or "El Dorado". This request pertains to records produced between June 1, 2017 and the date this request is processed. If possible, I would like to receive the records in electronic format.
I am a reporter for The Guardian and Pacific Standard.
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,
Jimmy Tobias
From: Department of Interior, Office of the Solicitor
Good afternoon Mr. Tobias,
Attached is the Solicitor's combined acknowledgment letter for your
requests received on April 29, 2019.
Sincerely,
Lance Purvis
Office of the Solicitor FOIA Officer
From: Muckrock Staff
To Whom It May Concern:
I wanted to follow up on the following Freedom of Information Act request, copied below, and originally submitted on April 29, 2019. Please let me know when I can expect to receive a response. You had assigned it reference number #SOL-2019-00166.
Thanks for your help, and let me know if further clarification is needed.
From: Department of Interior, Office of the Solicitor
Good afternoon Mr. Tobias,
Attached is the Solicitor's decision letter and responsive documents for
your request received on April 29, 2019.
Sincerely,
Lance Purvis
Office of the Solicitor FOIA Officer
From: Jimmy Tobias
To Whom It May Concern:
This is an appeal under the Freedom of Information Act, 5 U.S.C. § 552 in reference to the following FOIA request: SOL-2019-00166. The agency's final response to me is attached below. The released documents can be found earlier in this email thread or I can provide them to you via email.
The agency provided documents in response to this request on June 24, 2019. The responsive documents include numerous passages that have been redacted under Exemption 5. I am writing to appeal all of the redactions under Exemption 5 that concern communications between Faith Vander Voort and Daniel Jorjani. These redactions cover information concerning DOI Press Office's response to a reporter from the Arizona Daily Star. They do not pertain to litigation or to any "specific claims" that "have been made that make litigation probable." Therefore Exemption 5 is not warranted. Moreover, in responding to Faith Vander Voort in the applicable emails, Daniel Jorjani was effectively acting as a public relations officer, not an attorney, so his communications with Vander Voort do not merit attorney-client privilege. What's more, these redactions apply to a decision that has already been made -- specifically, the redactions were applied to information that informed the DOI Press Office's response to the Arizona Star reporter in question. DOI has since provided that reporter with the information he sought, thus there is no need to continue to conceal the relevant information from the public. I ask that these redactions be removed and the information in them fully released.
I trust that upon re-consideration, the DOI will reverse the decision denying me access to this material. However, if within twenty days I have not received a full response to my request, I will deem the appeal denied and explore initiating a lawsuit to compel disclosure on one or more of these requests.
As I have made this request in the capacity of a journalist and this information is of timely value, I would appreciate the DOI expediting the consideration of my appeal in every way possible. In any case, I will expect to receive the department's decision within 20 business days, as required by the statute.
Thank you again for your assistance and for the work that you do. I truly appreciate it.
Sincerely,
Jimmy Tobias
248-763-0088
From: Muckrock Staff
To Whom It May Concern:
This is an appeal under the Freedom of Information Act, 5 U.S.C. § 552 in reference to the following FOIA request: SOL-2019-00166. The agency's final response to me is attached below. The released documents can be found earlier in this email thread or I can provide them to you via email.
The agency provided documents in response to this request on June 24, 2019. The responsive documents include numerous passages that have been redacted under Exemption 5. I am writing to appeal all of the redactions under Exemption 5 that concern communications between Faith Vander Voort and Daniel Jorjani. These redactions cover information concerning DOI Press Office's response to a reporter from the Arizona Daily Star. They do not pertain to litigation or to any "specific claims" that "have been made that make litigation probable." Therefore Exemption 5 is not warranted. Moreover, in responding to Faith Vander Voort in the applicable emails, Daniel Jorjani was effectively acting as a public relations officer, not an attorney, so his communications with Vander Voort do not merit attorney-client privilege. What's more, these redactions apply to a decision that has already been made -- specifically, the redactions were applied to information that informed the DOI Press Office's response to the Arizona Star reporter in question. DOI has since provided that reporter with the information he sought, thus there is no need to continue to conceal the relevant information from the public. I ask that these redactions be removed and the information in them fully released.
I trust that upon re-consideration, the DOI will reverse the decision denying me access to this material. However, if within twenty days I have not received a full response to my request, I will deem the appeal denied and explore initiating a lawsuit to compel disclosure on one or more of these requests.
As I have made this request in the capacity of a journalist and this information is of timely value, I would appreciate the DOI expediting the consideration of my appeal in every way possible. In any case, I will expect to receive the department's decision within 20 business days, as required by the statute.
Thank you again for your assistance and for the work that you do. I truly appreciate it.
Sincerely,
Jimmy Tobias
248-763-0088
From: Muckrock Staff
To Whom It May Concern:
I wanted to follow up on the following Freedom of Information Act request, copied below, and originally submitted on April 29, 2019. Please let me know when I can expect to receive a response. You had assigned it reference number #SOL-2019-00166.
Thanks for your help, and let me know if further clarification is needed.
From: Department of Interior, Office of the Solicitor
Mr. Tobias: Thank you for your July 16, 2019, letter to the Department of
the Interior (“Department”) intending to file a Freedom of Information Act
(“FOIA”) appeal (“appeal”) to challenge the Office of the Solicitor's
("SOL") response to a FOIA request. Before the Department can accept this
matter for processing as an appeal, you must submit copies of all
correspondence between you and SOL regarding the FOIA request. *See 43
C.F.R. **§ 2.59* (copy attached). Since you did not provide the Department
with copies of all correspondence between you and SOL regarding the FOIA
request (for example, a copy of SOL's response), the Department cannot
accept this matter for processing as an appeal at this time.
Within 20 workdays from the date of this message, please provide the FOIA
Appeals Office with a copy of all correspondence between you and SOL
related to the FOIA request, including a copy of SOL's response, so that
the Department can accept this matter for processing. If the FOIA Appeals
Office does not receive all of this documentation from you within the 20
workday time frame, it will not consider your July 16, 2019, letter for
processing as an appeal.
You may e-mail a copy of SOL's response (and any other correspondence with
the bureau that you did not previously submit) to this e-mail address (
FOIA.Appeals@sol.doi.gov), fax the materials to (202) 208-6677, or mail
them to the following address:
Department of the Interior
FOIA & Privacy Act Appeals Office
1849 C St., N.W. - MS 6556
Washington, D.C. 20240
The Department will not take any further appellate action on this matter if
it does not receive the above materials from you within the 20 workday time
frame.
If you have any questions regarding this message, please call the FOIA
Appeals Office at (202) 208-5339. Thank you.
--
Darrell R. Strayhorn
FOIA & Privacy Act Appeals Officer
Department of the Interior
This e-mail (including attachments) is intended for the use of the
individual or entity to which it is addressed. It may contain information
that is privileged, confidential, or otherwise protected by applicable
law. If you are not the intended recipient or the employee or agent
responsible for delivery of this e-mail to the intended recipient, you are
hereby notified that any dissemination, distribution, copying, or use of
this e-mail or its contents is strictly prohibited. If you received this
e-mail in error, please notify the sender immediately and destroy all
copies.
From: Jimmy Tobias
Hello,
Thank you for the note concerning my appeal of #SOL-2019-00166.
In your letter, you ask that I provide all documentation of my correspondence with SOL before you can move forward with my appeal. You can find all of my correspondence with SOL, including relevant email attachments, at the link below.
Please let me know if you have any further questions. Thanks so much.
Jimmy Tobias
248-763-0088
From: Department of Interior, Office of the Solicitor
Mr. Tobias: Thank you for your reply. Unfortunately, I cannot visit
websites to download and compile the documents that the Department's FOIA
regulations require Appellants to submit in order to file FOIA appeals. If
you remain interested in pursuing this matter, please e-mail, fax, or mail
copies of the missing documents described in my previous message within the
time frame specified so that the Department can accept this matter for
processing as an appeal.
Thanks again.
--
Darrell R. Strayhorn
FOIA & Privacy Act Appeals Officer
Department of the Interior
(202) 208-5339
"[We all are] subject to some answering." -- [Redacted], 2015
-------------------
From: Jimmy Tobias
Hi Darrell,
Thank you for the note. My original appeal email to your office contained three attachments, including my previous correspondence with SOL regarding this matter. Is that not sufficient to move forward with this request?
Please let me know. Perhaps a phone call to sort this out would be easiest?
Jimmy Tobias
From: Muckrock Staff
To Whom It May Concern:
I wanted to follow up on the following Freedom of Information Act request, copied below, and originally submitted on April 29, 2019. Please let me know when I can expect to receive a response. You had assigned it reference number #SOL-2019-00166.
Thanks for your help, and let me know if further clarification is needed.
From: Muckrock Staff
To Whom It May Concern:
I wanted to follow up on the following Freedom of Information Act request, copied below, and originally submitted on April 29, 2019. Please let me know when I can expect to receive a response. You had assigned it reference number #SOL-2019-00166.
Thanks for your help, and let me know if further clarification is needed.
From: Muckrock Staff
To Whom It May Concern:
I wanted to follow up on the following Freedom of Information Act request, copied below, and originally submitted on April 29, 2019. Please let me know when I can expect to receive a response. You had assigned it reference number #SOL-2019-00166.
Thanks for your help, and let me know if further clarification is needed.
From: Muckrock Staff
To Whom It May Concern:
I wanted to follow up on the following Freedom of Information Act request, copied below, and originally submitted on April 29, 2019. Please let me know when I can expect to receive a response. You had assigned it reference number #SOL-2019-00166.
Thanks for your help, and let me know if further clarification is needed.
From: Department of Interior, Office of the Solicitor
Mr. Tobias: Thank you for speaking with me today regarding this matter. As
I noted in our conversation, my records do not reflect whether I followed
up with you regarding your request in your September 6, 2019, e-mail
message for a possible phone call to clarify the documentation the
Department needs in order to accept an appeal from you for processing in
this case. As a result, I have determined to exercise my discretion to
again extend the time limit for you to submit the documentation required by
the regulations in order to file an appeal.
If you remain interested in filing an appeal regarding this matter, the
FOIA Appeals Office must receive a copy of the response from the Office of
the Solicitor ("SOL") that you seek to challenge within 5 workdays from the
date of this e-mail message. You indicate in your original July 16, 2019,
e-mail message that SOL sent its response to you on June 24, 2019. Please
be aware that the Department cannot visit websites to download and compile
the documents that the regulations require Appellants to submit in order to
file FOIA appeals.
You may e-mail a copy of SOL's response to this e-mail address (
FOIA.Appeals@sol.doi.gov), fax the document to (202) 208-6677, or mail it
to the following address:
Department of the Interior
FOIA & Privacy Act Appeals Office
1849 C St., N.W. - MS 6556
Washington, D.C. 20240
The Department will not take any further appellate action on this matter if
it does not receive the above document from you within the newly set 5
workday time frame referenced above.
If you have any questions regarding this message, please call the FOIA
Appeals Office at (202) 208-5339. Thank you.
--
Darrell R. Strayhorn
FOIA & Privacy Act Appeals Officer
Department of the Interior
This e-mail (including attachments) is intended for the use of the
individual or entity to which it is addressed. It may contain information
that is privileged, confidential, or otherwise protected by applicable
law. If you are not the intended recipient or the employee or agent
responsible for delivery of this e-mail to the intended recipient, you are
hereby notified that any dissemination, distribution, copying, or use of
this e-mail or its contents is strictly prohibited. If you received this
e-mail in error, please notify the sender immediately and destroy all
copies.
-------------------
From: Jimmy Tobias
Thanks for the call today. Attached below are the relevant documents pertaining to this request. This is the second of two emails I have sent you. The other email I sent was over Gmail because the file was so large it wouldn't attach via MuckRock.
Please let me know if you have any questions.
Jimmy Tobias
From: Department of Interior, Office of the Solicitor
Thanks, Mr. Tobias. That's everything I need to proceed forward. For your
reference, the Department has assigned your appeal as *Appeal Number
2020-039* and I anticipate issuing a decision on this matter shortly.
--
Darrell R. Strayhorn
FOIA & Privacy Act Appeals Officer
Department of the Interior
(202) 208-5339
"[We all are] subject to some answering." -- [Redacted], 2015
-------------------
From: Jimmy Tobias
Thanks so much Ms. Strayhorn!
Jimmy
From: Department of Interior, Office of the Solicitor
Mr. Tobias--Thank you for clarifying that your challenge in the appeal to
"all of the redactions [that the Office of the Solicitor made in this case]
under Exemption 5" does not encompass the redactions it made, pursuant to
the commercial information privilege of exemption 5, of conference call
numbers and pass codes. The Department will review the remaining exemption
5 withholdings.
Thank you again for your time.
--
Darrell R. Strayhorn
FOIA & Privacy Act Appeals Officer
Department of the Interior
(202) 208-5339
"[We all are] subject to some answering." -- [Redacted], 2015
-------------------
From: Department of Interior, Office of the Solicitor
Mr. Tobias: The Department of the Interior ("Department") apologizes for the delay in reaching a decision on your July 16, 2019, Freedom of Information Act ("FOIA") appeal (copy attached), which you filed to challenge the Office of the Solicitor's response to your April 29, 2019, FOIA request. Attached is a copy of the Department's decision on the FOIA appeal.
If you have any questions regarding this matter, please e-mail them to the FOIA Appeals Office.
Darrell R. Strayhorn
FOIA & Privacy Act Appeals Officer
Department of the Interior
This e-mail (including attachments) is intended for the use of the individual or entity to which it is addressed. It may contain information that is privileged, confidential, or otherwise protected by applicable law. If you are not the intended recipient or the employee or agent responsible for delivery of this e-mail to the intended recipient, you are hereby notified that any dissemination, distribution, copying, or use of this e-mail or its contents is strictly prohibited. If you received this e-mail in error, please notify the sender immediately and destroy all copies.
