| Date Filed | Doc # | Docket Text |
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| 2019-10-01 | 1 | COMPLAINT against All Defendants ( Filing fee $ 400 receipt number 0090-6410773) filed by AMERICANS FOR PROSPERITY. (Attachments: # 1 Exhibit 1, # 2 Exhibit 2, # 3 Exhibit 3, # 4 Exhibit 4, # 5 Exhibit 5, # 6 Civil Cover Sheet, # 7 Summons Ex-Im, # 8 Summons Treasury, # 9 Summons U.S. Att'y Gen., # 10 Summons USAO Civil Process Clerk)(Mulvey, Ryan) (Entered: 10/01/2019) |
| 2019-10-01 | 2 | LCvR 26.1 CERTIFICATE OF DISCLOSURE of Corporate Affiliations and Financial Interests by AMERICANS FOR PROSPERITY (Mulvey, Ryan) (Entered: 10/01/2019) |
| 2019-10-01 | | Case assigned to Judge Timothy J. Kelly. (zmc) (Entered: 10/01/2019) |
| 2019-10-01 | 3 | SUMMONS (4) Issued Electronically as to EXPORT-IMPORT BANK OF THE UNITED STATES, U.S. DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY, U.S. Attorney and U.S. Attorney General (Attachment: # 1 Notice and Consent)(zmc) (Entered: 10/01/2019) |
| 2019-10-03 | 4 | RETURN OF SERVICE/AFFIDAVIT of Summons and Complaint Executed as to the United States Attorney. Date of Service Upon United States Attorney on 10/2/2019. Answer due for ALL FEDERAL DEFENDANTS by 11/1/2019. (Mulvey, Ryan) (Entered: 10/03/2019) |
| 2019-10-03 | 5 | RETURN OF SERVICE/AFFIDAVIT of Summons and Complaint Executed on United States Attorney General. Date of Service Upon United States Attorney General 10/03/2019. (Mulvey, Ryan) (Entered: 10/03/2019) |
| 2019-10-03 | 6 | RETURN OF SERVICE/AFFIDAVIT of Summons and Complaint Executed. U.S. DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY served on 10/3/2019 (Mulvey, Ryan) (Entered: 10/03/2019) |
| 2019-10-10 | 7 | RETURN OF SERVICE/AFFIDAVIT of Summons and Complaint Executed. EXPORT-IMPORT BANK OF THE UNITED STATES served on 10/3/2019 (Mulvey, Ryan) (Entered: 10/10/2019) |
| 2019-11-01 | 8 | NOTICE of Change of Address by Ryan Patrick Mulvey (Mulvey, Ryan) (Entered: 11/01/2019) |
| 2019-11-01 | 9 | NOTICE of Appearance by Daniel Patrick Schaefer on behalf of All Defendants (Schaefer, Daniel) (Entered: 11/01/2019) |
| 2019-11-01 | 10 | ANSWER to Complaint by EXPORT-IMPORT BANK OF THE UNITED STATES, U.S. DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY.(Schaefer, Daniel) (Entered: 11/01/2019) |
| 2019-11-04 | | MINUTE ORDER: Before the Court in this FOIA case are a complaint and an answer. It is hereby ORDERED that the parties shall meet, confer, and file a joint proposed schedule for disclosure or briefing by December 2, 2019. Signed by Judge Timothy J. Kelly on 11/4/19. (lctjk2) (Entered: 11/04/2019) |
| 2019-11-04 | | Set/Reset Deadlines: Joint proposed schedule for disclosure or briefing due by 12/2/2019. (zkh) (Entered: 11/04/2019) |
| 2019-12-02 | 11 | Joint STATUS REPORT by AMERICANS FOR PROSPERITY. (Mulvey, Ryan) (Entered: 12/02/2019) |
| 2019-12-03 | | MINUTE ORDER: Upon consideration of the parties' 11 joint status report, it is hereby ORDERED that the parties shall file a further joint status report no later than January 15, 2020. Signed by Judge Timothy J. Kelly on 12/3/19. (lctjk2) (Entered: 12/03/2019) |
| 2019-12-04 | 12 | NOTICE of Appearance by Russel James Valvo, III on behalf of AMERICANS FOR PROSPERITY (Valvo, Russel) (Entered: 12/04/2019) |
| 2020-01-15 | 13 | Joint STATUS REPORT by AMERICANS FOR PROSPERITY. (Attachments: # 1 Text of Proposed Order)(Mulvey, Ryan) (Entered: 01/15/2020) |
| 2020-01-15 | | MINUTE ORDER: Upon consideration of the parties' 13 joint status report, it is hereby ORDERED that the parties shall file a further joint status report no later than February 19, 2020. Signed by Judge Timothy J. Kelly on 1/15/20. (lctjk2) (Entered: 01/15/2020) |
| 2020-02-19 | 14 | Joint STATUS REPORT by AMERICANS FOR PROSPERITY. (Attachments: # 1 Text of Proposed Order)(Mulvey, Ryan) (Entered: 02/19/2020) |
| 2020-02-20 | | MINUTE ORDER: Upon consideration of the parties' 14 joint status report, it is hereby ORDERED that the parties shall file a further joint status report no later than March 27, 2020. Signed by Judge Timothy J. Kelly on 2/20/20. (lctjk2) (Entered: 02/20/2020) |
| 2020-03-27 | 15 | Joint STATUS REPORT by AMERICANS FOR PROSPERITY. (Attachments: # 1 Text of Proposed Order)(Mulvey, Ryan) (Entered: 03/27/2020) |
| 2020-03-27 | | MINUTE ORDER: Upon consideration of the parties' 15 joint status report, it is hereby ORDERED that the parties shall file a further joint status report, including, if necessary, a proposed briefing schedule report by April 30, 2020. Signed by Judge Timothy J. Kelly on 3/27/20. (lctjk2) (Entered: 03/27/2020) |
| 2020-04-30 | 16 | Joint STATUS REPORT by AMERICANS FOR PROSPERITY. (Attachments: # 1 Text of Proposed Order)(Mulvey, Ryan) (Entered: 04/30/2020) |
| 2020-04-30 | | MINUTE ORDER: Upon consideration of the parties' 16 joint status report, it is hereby ORDERED that the parties shall file a further joint status report no later than May 29, 2020. Signed by Judge Timothy J. Kelly on 4/30/20. (lctjk2) (Entered: 04/30/2020) |
| 2020-05-29 | 17 | Joint STATUS REPORT by AMERICANS FOR PROSPERITY. (Attachments: # 1 Text of Proposed Order)(Mulvey, Ryan) (Entered: 05/29/2020) |
| 2020-05-29 | | MINUTE ORDER: Upon consideration of the parties' 17 joint status report, it is hereby ORDERED that the parties shall file a further joint status report, including, if necessary, a proposed briefing schedule, no later than June 30, 2020. Signed by Judge Timothy J. Kelly on 5/29/20. (lctjk2) (Entered: 05/29/2020) |
| 2020-06-30 | 18 | Joint STATUS REPORT by EXPORT-IMPORT BANK OF THE UNITED STATES, U.S. DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY. (Attachments: # 1 Text of Proposed Order)(Schaefer, Daniel) (Entered: 06/30/2020) |
| 2020-06-30 | | MINUTE ORDER: Upon consideration of the parties' 18 joint status report, it is hereby ORDERED that the parties shall file a further joint status report, including, if necessary, a proposed briefing schedule, no later than July 30, 2020. Signed by Judge Timothy J. Kelly on 6/30/20. (lctjk2) (Entered: 06/30/2020) |
| 2020-07-30 | 19 | Joint STATUS REPORT by EXPORT-IMPORT BANK OF THE UNITED STATES, U.S. DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY. (Attachments: # 1 Text of Proposed Order)(Schaefer, Daniel) (Entered: 07/30/2020) |
| 2020-07-30 | | MINUTE ORDER: Upon consideration of the parties' 19 joint status report, it is hereby ORDERED that the parties shall file a further joint status report no later than September 3, 2020. Signed by Judge Timothy J. Kelly on 7/30/20. (lctjk2) (Entered: 07/30/2020) |
| 2020-09-03 | 20 | Joint STATUS REPORT by EXPORT-IMPORT BANK OF THE UNITED STATES, U.S. DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY. (Attachments: # 1 Text of Proposed Order)(Schaefer, Daniel) (Entered: 09/03/2020) |
| 2020-09-08 | | MINUTE ORDER: Upon consideration of the parties' 20 joint status report, it is hereby ORDERED that the parties shall file a further joint status report no later than November 9, 2020. Signed by Judge Timothy J. Kelly on 9/8/20. (lctjk2) (Entered: 09/08/2020) |
| 2020-09-23 | 21 | NOTICE OF SUBSTITUTION OF COUNSEL by Brenda A Gonzalez on behalf of EXPORT-IMPORT BANK OF THE UNITED STATES, U.S. DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY Substituting for attorney Dan Schaefer (Gonzalez, Brenda) (Entered: 09/23/2020) |
| 2020-11-06 | 22 | Joint STATUS REPORT by EXPORT-IMPORT BANK OF THE UNITED STATES, U.S. DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY. (Gonzalez-Horowitz, Brenda) (Entered: 11/06/2020) |
| 2020-11-07 | | MINUTE ORDER: Upon consideration of the parties' 22 Joint Status Report, it is hereby ORDERED that the parties shall file a further joint status report, including, if necessary, a proposed briefing schedule, no later than December 4, 2020. Signed by Judge Timothy J. Kelly on 11/7/20. (lctjk2) (Entered: 11/07/2020) |
| 2020-11-09 | | Set/Reset Deadlines: Joint Status Report due by 12/4/2020. (zkh) (Entered: 11/09/2020) |
| 2020-12-04 | 23 | Joint STATUS REPORT by EXPORT-IMPORT BANK OF THE UNITED STATES, U.S. DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY. (Gonzalez-Horowitz, Brenda) (Entered: 12/04/2020) |
| 2020-12-07 | | MINUTE ORDER: Upon consideration of the parties' 23 Joint Status Report, it is hereby ORDERED that the parties shall file a further joint status report, including, if necessary, a proposed briefing schedule, no later than February 2, 2021. Signed by Judge Timothy J. Kelly on 12/7/20. (lctjk2) (Entered: 12/07/2020) |
| 2021-02-02 | 24 | Joint STATUS REPORT by EXPORT-IMPORT BANK OF THE UNITED STATES, U.S. DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY. (Gonzalez-Horowitz, Brenda) (Entered: 02/02/2021) |
| 2021-02-02 | | MINUTE ORDER: Upon consideration of the parties' 24 Joint Status Report, it is hereby ORDERED that the parties shall file a further joint status report, including, if necessary, a proposed briefing schedule, no later than March 5, 2021. Signed by Judge Timothy J. Kelly on 2/2/21. (lctjk2) (Entered: 02/02/2021) |
| 2021-03-05 | 25 | Joint STATUS REPORT by EXPORT-IMPORT BANK OF THE UNITED STATES, U.S. DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY. (Gonzalez-Horowitz, Brenda) (Entered: 03/05/2021) |
| 2021-03-08 | | MINUTE ORDER: Upon consideration of the parties' 25 Joint Status Report, it is hereby ORDERED that the parties shall file a further joint status report, including, if necessary, a proposed briefing schedule, no later than April 5, 2021. Signed by Judge Timothy J. Kelly on 3/8/21. (lctjk2) (Entered: 03/08/2021) |
| 2021-04-05 | 26 | Joint STATUS REPORT by EXPORT-IMPORT BANK OF THE UNITED STATES, U.S. DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY. (Gonzalez-Horowitz, Brenda) (Entered: 04/05/2021) |
| 2021-04-12 | | MINUTE ORDER: Upon consideration of the parties' 26 Joint Status Report, it is hereby ORDERED that the parties shall file a further joint status report, including, if necessary, a proposed briefing schedule, no later than May 5, 2021. Signed by Judge Timothy J. Kelly on 4/12/21. (lctjk2) (Entered: 04/12/2021) |
| 2021-05-05 | 27 | Joint STATUS REPORT by EXPORT-IMPORT BANK OF THE UNITED STATES, U.S. DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY. (Gonzalez-Horowitz, Brenda) (Entered: 05/05/2021) |
| 2021-05-10 | | MINUTE ORDER: Upon consideration of the parties; 27 Joint Status Report, it is hereby ORDERED that the parties shall file a further joint status report, including, if necessary, a proposed briefing schedule, no later than June 5, 2021. Signed by Judge Timothy J. Kelly on 5/10/21. (lctjk2) (Entered: 05/10/2021) |
| 2021-06-04 | 28 | Joint STATUS REPORT by EXPORT-IMPORT BANK OF THE UNITED STATES, U.S. DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY. (Gonzalez-Horowitz, Brenda) (Entered: 06/04/2021) |
| 2021-06-07 | | MINUTE ORDER: Upon consideration of the parties' 28 Joint Status Report, it is hereby ORDERED that the parties shall file a further joint status report, including, if necessary, a proposed briefing schedule, no later than June 15, 2021. Signed by Judge Timothy J. Kelly on 6/7/21. (lctjk2) (Entered: 06/07/2021) |
| 2021-06-15 | 29 | Joint STATUS REPORT by EXPORT-IMPORT BANK OF THE UNITED STATES, U.S. DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY. (Gonzalez-Horowitz, Brenda) (Entered: 06/15/2021) |
| 2021-06-17 | | MINUTE ORDER: Upon consideration of the parties' 29 Joint Status Report, it is hereby ORDERED that (1) Defendant shall file its motion for summary judgment by September 10, 2021; (2) Plaintiff shall file his combined opposition and cross-motion for summary judgment by October 11, 2021; (3) Defendant shall file its combined opposition and reply by October 25, 2021; and (4) Plaintiff shall file any reply by November 8, 2021. Signed by Judge Timothy J. Kelly on 6/17/21.(lctjk2) (Entered: 06/17/2021) |
| 2021-06-17 | | Set/Reset Deadlines: Summary Judgment motions due by 9/10/2021. Response to Motion for Summary Judgment due by 10/11/2021. Cross Motions due by 10/11/2021. Reply to Motion for Summary Judgment due by 10/25/2021. Response to Cross Motions due by 10/25/2021. Reply to Cross Motions due by 11/8/2021. (zcal) (Entered: 06/17/2021) |
| 2021-09-10 | 30 | MOTION for Summary Judgment by EXPORT-IMPORT BANK OF THE UNITED STATES, U.S. DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY. (Attachments: # 1 Statement of Facts, # 2 Declaration of Anthony Ieronimo, # 3 Treasury Vaughn Index, # 4 Declaration of Lennell Jackson, # 5 Declaration of Isabel Galdiz, # 6 EXIM Vaughn Index)(Gonzalez-Horowitz, Brenda) (Entered: 09/10/2021) |
| 2021-10-11 | 31 | Cross MOTION for Summary Judgment by AMERICANS FOR PROSPERITY. (Attachments: # 1 Memorandum in Support, # 2 Statement of Facts Pl.'s SUMF, # 3 Statement of Facts Pl.'s Resp. to Defs.' SUMF, # 4 Declaration of Ryan P. Mulvey, # 5 Declaration of Kevin M. Schmidt, # 6 Text of Proposed Order)(Mulvey, Ryan) (Entered: 10/11/2021) |
| 2021-10-11 | 32 | Memorandum in opposition to re 30 MOTION for Summary Judgment filed by AMERICANS FOR PROSPERITY. (Mulvey, Ryan) (Entered: 10/11/2021) |
| 2021-10-20 | 33 | Unopposed MOTION to Modify Summary Judgment Briefing Schedule by EXPORT-IMPORT BANK OF THE UNITED STATES, U.S. DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY. (Gonzalez-Horowitz, Brenda) (Entered: 10/20/2021) |
| 2021-10-20 | | MINUTE ORDER granting 33 Unopposed Motion to Modify Briefing Schedule. It is hereby ORDERED, for good cause shown, that Defendants' 33 Motion is granted. Defendants shall file their combined opposition/reply by November 15, 2021. Plaintiff shall file its reply by December 6, 2021. Signed by Judge Timothy J. Kelly on 10/20/2021. (lctjk2) (Entered: 10/20/2021) |
| 2021-10-21 | | Set/Reset Deadlines: Reply to Motion for Summary Judgment and Response to Cross Motion due by 11/15/2021. Reply to Cross Motion due by 12/6/2021. (zkh) (Entered: 10/21/2021) |
| 2021-11-15 | 34 | Memorandum in opposition to re 31 Cross MOTION for Summary Judgment filed by EXPORT-IMPORT BANK OF THE UNITED STATES, U.S. DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY. (Attachments: # 1 Response to Plaintiff's Statement of Facts, # 2 Supplemental Declaration of Tony Ieronimo, # 3 Supplemental Declaration of Isabel Galdiz, # 4 Exhibit 1, # 5 Exhibit 2, # 6 Exhibit 3, # 7 Exhibit 4, # 8 Exhibit 5)(Gonzalez-Horowitz, Brenda) (Entered: 11/15/2021) |
| 2021-11-15 | 35 | REPLY to opposition to motion re 30 MOTION for Summary Judgment filed by EXPORT-IMPORT BANK OF THE UNITED STATES, U.S. DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY. (Attachments: # 1 Response to Plaintiff's Statement of Facts, # 2 Supplemental Declaration of Tony Ieronimo, # 3 Supplemental Declaration of Isabel Galdiz, # 4 Exhibit 1, # 5 Exhibit 2, # 6 Exhibit 3, # 7 Exhibit 4, # 8 Exhibit 5)(Gonzalez-Horowitz, Brenda) (Entered: 11/15/2021) |
| 2021-12-06 | 36 | REPLY to opposition to motion re 31 Cross MOTION for Summary Judgment filed by AMERICANS FOR PROSPERITY. (Mulvey, Ryan) (Entered: 12/06/2021) |
| 2022-09-01 | | MINUTE ORDER granting in part Defendants' 30 Motion for Summary Judgment and denying in part Plaintiff's 31 Cross-Motion for Summary Judgment. In this FOIA case, the parties have cross-moved for summary judgment as to the propriety of certain redactions Defendants made under FOIA Exemption 5. See 5 U.S.C. § 552(b)(5). Exemption 5 protects inter-agency or intra-agency memorandums or letters that would not be available by law to a party other than an agency in litigation with the agency. Here, the parties dispute Defendants' invocation of the deliberative process privilege, which protects "documents reflecting advisory opinions, recommendations and deliberations comprising part of a process by which governmental decisions and policies are formulated." Reps. Comm. for Freedom of the Press v. FBI , 3 F.4th 350, 357 (D.C. Cir. 2021) (cleaned up). To withhold documents under the privilege, the agency must show that the documents "are both predecisional and deliberative." Id. at 362. It also must provide "a focused and concrete demonstration of why disclosure of the particular type of material at issue will, in the specific context of the agency action at issue, actually impede those same agency deliberations going forward." Id. at 370. Of the five documents identified in Defendants' motion, they have met their burden for two Treasury Department briefing memorandums -- the first for Undersecretary Sheets in anticipation of a call with the Deputy National Security Advisor on a proposal the United States delegation was considering, and the second for Secretary Mnuchin about two potential reforms to Export-Import Bank ("Ex-Im") policy. For both documents, Defendants have detailed "the 'who,' i.e., the roles of the document drafters and recipients and their places in the chain of command; the 'what,' i.e., the nature of the withheld content; the 'where,' i.e., the stage within the broader deliberative process in which the withheld material operates; and the 'how,' i.e., the way in which the withheld material facilitated agency deliberation." Jud. Watch, Inc. v. DOJ, 20 F.4th 49, 56 (D.C. Cir. 2021). Both were drafted by Treasury staff for Treasury leadership. The first details an interagency disagreement on a policy proposal and staff's views on their preferred approach. ECF No. 34-2 ¶¶ 22-25. The second outlines staff's assessments of and recommendations for two specific Ex-Im policy reforms that staff thought would address public criticisms of Ex-Im. See ECF No. 30-2 ¶¶ 60-68; ECF No. 34-2 ¶¶ 26-29. The documents squarely qualify as predecisional and deliberative, and Plaintiff fails to cast doubt on that conclusion by cherry-picking parts of the record and second-guessing Defendants' (very) detailed declarations. Defendants have also sufficiently shown that reasonably foreseeable harm would follow the release of these two documents. They describe how releasing the first document's withholdings could threaten the United States' foreign policy efforts and logically explain how that threat "would necessarily affect the willingness of Treasury staff to provide fulsome and candid advice to decisionmakers." ECF No. 34-2 ¶ 36; see ECF No. 30-1 ¶ 59. They also detail the reasonable potential for confusing 'portions of the private sector' -- which closely follow Treasury's actions -- if information in the second document were released, ECF No. 34-2 ¶ 39, and how release of the same "would likely have a chilling effect on the information" staff would share with Treasury leadership given the threat release would pose to "the working relationship [they] maintain with [Ex-Im] staff," ECF No. 30-2 ¶ 70. Finally, Defendants have shown through very detailed declarations that they "fulfilled [their] obligation to segregate" non-exempt materials. Khatchadourian v. DIA , No. 16-cv-311 (RCL), 2022 WL 971206, at *5 (D.D.C. Mar. 31, 2022) (cleaned up). For these reasons, it is hereby ORDERED that Defendants' 30 Motion for Summary Judgment is GRANTED IN PART as to the two Treasury documents described above, and Plaintiff's 31 Cross-Motion is DENIED IN PART as to the same. Signed by Judge Timothy J. Kelly on 9/1/2022. (lctjk1) (Entered: 09/01/2022) |
| 2022-09-01 | | MINUTE ORDER granting in part Defendants' 30 Motion for Summary Judgment. Plaintiff does not challenge Defendants' withholding in part the draft document analyzing Ex-Im's congressional mandates. ECF No. 31-1 at 12 n.2. So the Court will grant Defendants summary judgment as to that withholding. See Elec. Privacy Info. Ctr. v. Transp. Sec. Admin. , 928 F. Supp. 2d 156, 163 n.7 (D.D.C. 2013). Accordingly, it is hereby ORDERED that Defendants' 30 motion is also GRANTED IN PART with respect to that document. Signed by Judge Timothy J. Kelly on 9/1/2022. (lctjk1) (Entered: 09/01/2022) |
| 2022-09-01 | | MINUTE ORDER denying without prejudice in part Defendants' 30 Motion for Summary Judgment and Plaintiff's 31 Cross-Motion. The Court will deny without prejudice the parties' cross-motions as to the Exemption 5 withholdings in two remaining documents: (1) a Treasury briefing memorandum for Undersecretary Sheets in anticipation of a call with the Ex-Im Chairman, including an attachment, and (2) an Ex-Im document analyzing its congressional mandates. Defendants have largely met their burden to withhold the Treasury document. They explain that staff drafted it to provide "recommendations and reactions to" a specific Ex-Im request, as well as "summaries and assessments of various proposals then being discussed within the International Working Group on Export Credits." ECF No. 30-2 ¶ 33. And they describe how staff speech would be "chill[ed]" if staff "could not express candor to Treasury leaders for fear that confidential communications from foreign counterparts or interagency disputes would be revealed and thereby weaken the negotiating position of the United States." Id. ¶ 48. But there are two problems. First, Defendants describe one specific redaction as withholding the "the reasoning that certain matters were anticipated to be included on a joint fact sheet." ECF No. 34-2 ¶ 13. But the sentence preceding that redaction suggests that the relevant parties already decided what to include on the fact sheet. See ECF No. 31-4 at 116. If so, it seems like the redaction is an after-the-fact explanation of a decision -- which is not usually protected by the deliberative process privilege. Second, the Court cannot decide the propriety of withholding the attachment on this record. "Assessing whether a record is pre-decisional or deliberative necessarily requires identifying the...decisional process[] to which the record pertains." Citizens for Resp. & Ethics in Washington v. DOJ , No. 21-5113, 2022 WL 3569241, at *6 (D.C. Cir. Aug. 19, 2022). And Defendants have not done that for the attachment. They describe it as a "summary report" prepared by Ex-Im for Treasury as "part of an ongoing discussion" between the two about the International Working Group, a specific congressional mandate, and a recent union meeting. ECF No. 34-3 at 7-8. But such a broad, nebulous description of the deliberative process involved is insufficient. See, e.g. , Ctr. for Investigative Reporting v. CBP , 436 F. Supp. 3d 90, 102 (D.D.C. 2019). It is also unclear "how" or "where" the attachment operated in any deliberative process. Jud. Watch, Inc. v. DOJ , 20 F.4th 49, 56 (D.C. Cir. 2021). And Defendants never say that disclosing the withheld information would "harm the agency's decision-making." Pavement Coatings Tech. Council v. U.S. Geological Surv. , 995 F.3d 1014, 1022 (D.C. Cir. 2021). The Court faces similar problems with the Ex-Im document analyzing its congressional mandates. Defendants describe it as "an educational background document" drafted by Ex-Im staff "for new 'front office' political appointees." ECF No. 30-5 ¶ 14. They say it "sets forth perspectives on a framework for consideration of an array of policy issues affecting export financing support provided by [Ex-Im.]" ECF No. 34-3 ¶ 3. But this does not sufficiently identify the relevant deliberative process. See Am. Oversight v. USPS , No. 20-cv-2580 (RC), 2021 WL 4355401, at *8 (D.D.C. Sept. 23, 2021) (citing cases). In fact, this description suggests that -- to the extent the document is not 'more akin to a 'resource' opinion," Coastal States Gas Corp. v. DOE , 617 F.2d 854, 868 (D.C. Cir. 1980) -- it "pertain[s] to a litany of subsidiary decisions that [D]efendants fail to acknowledge," Ctr. for Investigative Reporting , 436 F. Supp. 3d at 102. And without information about the decision-making process at issue, the Court cannot determine whether the deliberative process privilege applies, nor whether reasonably foreseeable harm would follow the documents release. Id. at 107. Rather than order in camera review as Plaintiff requests, the Court will provide Defendants the opportunity to provide supplemental declarations to address these flaws and justify the withholdings. See Elec. Frontier Found. v. DOJ , 826 F. Supp. 2d 157, 175 (D.D.C. 2011). But given the above, it is hereby ORDERED that Defendants' 30 motion for Summary Judgment and Plaintiffs' 31 Cross-Motion for Summary Judgment are DENIED WITHOUT PREJUDICE IN PART as to these two documents. The Court will reserve ruling on the segregability requirement for these documents until Defendants supplement their declarations. It is further ORDERED that the parties shall file a joint status report by September 22, 2022, updating the Court on how they intend to proceed and proposing a schedule for further proceedings. Signed by Judge Timothy J. Kelly on 9/1/2022. (lctjk1) (Entered: 09/01/2022) |
| 2022-09-22 | 37 | Joint STATUS REPORT by EXPORT-IMPORT BANK OF THE UNITED STATES, U.S. DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY. (Gonzalez Horowitz, Brenda) (Entered: 09/22/2022) |
| 2022-09-23 | | MINUTE ORDER: Upon consideration of the parties' 37 Joint Status Report, it is hereby ORDERED that the parties shall file another joint status report, including, if necessary, a proposed briefing schedule, by October 7, 2022. Signed by Judge Timothy J. Kelly on 09/23/2022. (lctjk2) (Entered: 09/23/2022) |
| 2022-10-05 | 38 | STIPULATION of Dismissal by EXPORT-IMPORT BANK OF THE UNITED STATES, U.S. DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY. (Gonzalez Horowitz, Brenda) (Entered: 10/05/2022) |
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