American Civil Liberties Union of Nebraska v. United States Department of Homeland Security et al

We have added 61 documents from 11 FOIA cases filed between August 7, 2022 and August 13, 2022. Note that there can be delays between the date a case is filed and when it shows up on PACER. If there are filings from this period that have yet to be posted on PACER, this FOIA Project list may not be complete.

Click on a case title below to view details for that case, including links to the associated docket and complaint documents.

1. American Civil Liberties Union of Nebraska v. United States Department of Homeland Security et al (filed Aug 8, 2022)
   The ACLU of Nebraska submitted a FOIA request to the Department of Homeland Security for records concerning the Inspector General’s report of an investigation of a raid by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcements agents in O’Neill, NE. The ACLU of Nebraska also requested a fee waive. The agency acknowledged receipt of the request. After hearing nothing further from the agency, the ACLU of Nebraska filed suit.
   Issues: Failure to respond within statutory time limit, Litigation – Attorney’s fees, Adequacy – Search
2. AMERICAN TRANSPARENCY v. U.S. DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES (filed Aug 8, 2022)
   American Transparency submitted a FOIA request to the National Institute of Health for records concerning communications to or from a list of six named staff members. The agency acknowledged receipt of the request but after hearing nothing further from the agency, American Transparency filed suit.
   Issues: Failure to respond within statutory time limit, Adequacy – Search, Litigation – Vaughn index, Litigation – Attorney’s fees
3. PROTECT THE PUBLIC'S TRUST v. U.S. ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY (filed Aug 9, 2022)
   Project the Public’s Trust submitted a FOIA request to the EPA for records concerning an ethics complaint filed against Joseph Goffman. PPT also requested a fee waiver. The agency acknowledged receipt of the request but after hearing nothing further from the agency, PPT filed suit.
   Issues: Failure to respond within statutory time limit, Litigation – Vaughn index, Litigation – Attorney’s fees
4. FUNCTIONAL GOVERNMENT INITIATIVE v. U.S. DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH & HUMAN SERVICES et al (filed Aug 10, 2022)
   Functional Government Initiative submitted a FOIA request to the Department of Health and Human Services and the National Institute of Health for records concerning the efficacy of using a cloth mask to protect from COVID-19. The agency acknowledged receipt of request but after hearing nothing further from the agency, FGI filed suit.
   Issues: Failure to respond within statutory time limit, Litigation – Vaughn index, Litigation – Attorney’s fees
5. FUNCTIONAL GOVERNMENT INITIATIVE v. U.S. DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES (filed Aug 10, 2022)
   Functional Government Initiative submitted FOIA requests to the Department of Health and Human Services and the National Institute of Health for records concerning randomized controlled trials to determine what kind of mask offered the best protection from COVID-19. The agencies acknowledged receipt of the requests. After hearing nothing further from the agencies, FGI filed suit.
   Issues: Failure to respond within statutory time limit, Litigation – Vaughn index, Litigation – Attorney’s fees
6. KITLINSKI v. UNITED STATES COAST GUARD (filed Aug 12, 2022)
   Darek Kitlinski submitted a FOIA request to U.S. Coast Guard for records by USCG employees with the @uscg.mil domain from or to email addresses ending in the domain name @usdoj.gov containing information about himself. The agency acknowledged receipt of the request and told Kitlinski that his request was overly broad. Kitlinski told the agency it could be searched with eDiscovery tools and the agency provided an estimate of $1,919. Kitlinski narrowed his request and was charged $128. Kitlinski complained about the search and filed an administrative appeal. After hearing nothing further from the agency, Kitlinski filed suit.
   Issues: Failure to respond within statutory time limit, Adequacy – Search, Litigation – Attorney’s fees
7. Newman v. The Christina School District (filed Aug 10, 2022)
   Shantell Newman filed suit against the Christina School District for records pertaining to the contents of a time capsule that had been dug up and opened. This is not a FOIA case.
   Issues: FOIA not mentioned
8. Newman v. The Biden Administration (filed Aug 10, 2022)
   Shantell Newman filed suit against the Biden administration concerning an allegation that an accident occurred involving lab monkeys being transported to the Centers for Disease Control. This is not a FOIA case.
   Issues: FOIA not mentioned
9. BROWN v. PRIETO (filed Aug 10, 2022)
10. FLEGAL v. DEPARTMENT HEALTH HUMAN SERVICES (filed Aug 12, 2022)
    Katherine Flegal submitted a FOIA request to the Department of Health and Human Services for records relating to an article that appeared in Progress in Cardiovascular Diseases. The agency acknowledged receipt of the request and told Flegal it was transferring her request to the National Institute of Health for response. After hearing nothing further from the agency, Flegal filed suit.
    Issues: Failure to respond within statutory time limit, Adequacy – Search, Litigation – Attorney’s fees
11. SHERVEN v. PRIVACY AND CIVIL LIBERTIES OVERSIGHT BOARD (filed Aug 13, 2022)