URBAN AIR INITIATIVE, INC. et al v. ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY and 11 other new FOIA lawsuits, plus case descriptions

We have added 78 documents from 12 FOIA cases filed between August 16, 2015 and August 22, 2015. 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. URBAN AIR INITIATIVE, INC. et al v. ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY (filed Aug 17, 2015)
   The Urban Air Initiative and the Energy Future Coalition submitted a FOIA request to the EPA for records concerning the EPAct Gasoline Fuel Effects Study. The EPA told the organizations that there were 83,000 potentially responsive records and that fees were estimated at $24,000. The agency encouraged the organizations to narrow their request. After narrowing their request, the agency still indicated that there were 36,000 potentially responsive records with a fee estimate of $18,000. The organization committed to paying legitimate costs, but the agency released only three documents and insisted that it could not respond entirely until 2016. The agency insisted that the organizations would not be given appeals rights until the completion of their request. The organizations then filed suit.
   Issues: Adequacy – Search, Determination, Failure to respond within statutory time limit, Litigation – Attorney’s fees
2. KELLOGG BROWN & ROOT SERVICES, INC. v. DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE (filed Aug 17, 2015)
   Kellogg Brown & Root Services submitted a FOIA request to the Department of Defense for records concerning the company’s performance of two contracts that involved work in Iraq and Afghanistan. The company identified several databases of documents it believed would have responsive records. The request went to a number of agencies within DOD, but after none of them responded to its request, Kellogg Brown & Root filed suit.
   Issues: Failure to respond within statutory time limit, Litigation – Attorney’s fees
3. GRAY v. CALDWELL et al (filed Aug 17, 2015)
   Robert Gray filed suit against Sara Caldwell, clerk of the Centerville Municipal Court, claiming a violation of the Privacy Act for failure to correct allegedly inaccurate records. His only federal claim is under the Privacy Act, which would not apply to a state institution, and he does not cite to the FOIA.
   Issues: FOIA not mentioned
4. Board of County Commissioners of the County of Garfield, Colorado, The v. United States Department of the Interior (filed Aug 18, 2015)
   The Board of County Commissioners of Garfield County, CO, submitted a FOIA request to the Department of the Interior for records concerning land use plan amendments for the greater sage grouse. The county also requested expedited processing. The agency contacted the county and said it did not process such requests. After hearing nothing further from the agency, the county filed suit.
   Issues: Failure to respond within statutory time limit, Litigation – Attorney’s fees
5. PUBLIC EMPLOYEES FOR ENVIRONMENTAL RESPONSIBILITY v. UNITED STATES ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY OFFICE OF THE INSPECTOR GENERAL (filed Aug 18, 2015)
   PEER submitted a FOIA request to the Office of the Inspector General at the EPA for records concerning the actions it took in response to materials provided by the General Counsel for the U.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board pertaining to the use of personal email accounts of CSHIB employees to conduct agency business. The agency acknowledged receipt of the request, but after hearing nothing further from the agency, PEER filed suit.
   Issues: Failure to respond within statutory time limit, Litigation – Attorney’s fees
6. Gelb v. United States Department of Homeland Security et al (filed Aug 18, 2015)
   Bernard Gelb submitted FOIA requests to a number of components of the Department of Homeland Security for records of a list of unclaimed money collected by the agency. Each component referred Gelb’s request to another component. Gelb filed an administrative appeal, which the agency denied. Gelb then filed suit.
   Issues: Adequacy – Search, Failure to respond within statutory time limit, Litigation – Attorney’s fees
7. Electronic Frontier Foundation v. Department of Justice (filed Aug 19, 2015)
   The Electronic Frontier Foundation submitted a FOIA request to the FBI for records concerning updates to the capabilities of CODIS, which stores DNA profiles from across the country in a series of local, state and national databases, from 2012 to the present. The FBI broke up EFF’s multi-part request into four separate requests and indicated that it was unable to find any records. EFF appealed the decision to the Office of Information Policy, but after hearing nothing further substantively about its appeal, EFF filed suit.
   Issues: Adequacy – Search, Failure to respond within statutory time limit, Litigation – Attorney’s fees
8. PUBLIC EMPLOYEES FOR ENVIRONMENTAL RESPONSIBILITY v. UNITED STATES CONSUMER PRODUCT SAFETY COMMISSION (filed Aug 19, 2015)
   PEER submitted a FOIA request to the Consumer Product Safety Commission for records pertaining to three unpublished studies on consumer exposure to carbon monoxide that had been referenced in reports the agency sent to Congress. PEER also requested information on why the studies had not been published. After hearing nothing further from the agency, PEER filed suit.
   Issues: Failure to respond within statutory time limit, Litigation – Attorney’s fees
9. PUBLIC EMPLOYEES FOR ENVIRONMENTAL RESPONSIBILITY v. UNITED STATES ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY OFFICE OF THE INSPECTOR GENERAL (filed Aug 19, 2015)
   PEER submitted a FOIA request to the EPA Office of Inspector General concerning the actions it took in response to allegations of scientific misconduct in carbon monoxide exposure studies submitted through three EPA hotline complaints. The agency acknowledged receipt of the request, but after hearing nothing further from the agency, PEER filed suit.
   Issues: Failure to respond within statutory time limit, Litigation – Attorney’s fees
10. CF INDUSTRIES SALES, LLC et al v. UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF LABOR et al (filed Aug 19, 2015)
    CF Industries Sales submitted two FOIA requests to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration for records concerning the investigation of a 2013 fire and explosion at the West Fertilizer Company fertilizer distribution facility in West, Texas. The agency disclosed some records, but withheld others under Exemption 7 (law enforcement records). CF Industries Sales appealed the decision, but after hearing nothing further from the agency, CF Industries Sales filed suit.
    Issues: Failure to respond within statutory time limit, Litigation – Attorney’s fees
11. BAUER v. DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE (filed Aug 20, 2015)
    Shane Bauer, an investigative reporter, submitted a FOIA request to the FBI for records concerning Corrections Corporation of America, a company that operates prison facilities. Bauer also requested a fee waiver. The FBI separated Bauer’s multi-part request into a number of separate requests. The agency indicated that it could not find records for some parts of Bauer’s request and Bauer appealed those responses. The agency finally told Bauer that there were 36,500 pages of responsive records and that he would need to pay $1,090 in duplication costs. Bauer then filed suit.
    Issues: Failure to respond within statutory time limit, Litigation – Attorney’s fees, Public Interest Fee Waiver
12. Scott v. Branham (filed Aug 21, 2015)
    Marquis Scott requested a transcript of proceedings in his case in Arapahoe County court. He alleged that he paid for the transcript, but the records he received were not those he had requested. He eventually filed suit against Charla Branham, the Clerk of the Arapahoe County court.
    Issues: FOIA not mentioned