§ 303.11 - Responses to requests.

§ 303.11 Denials.

Cross Reference

Link to an amendment published at 89 FR 25525, Apr. 11, 2024.

Cross Reference

Link to an amendment published at 89 FR 25526, Apr. 11, 2024.

Cross Reference

Link to a correction of the above amendment published at 89 FR 40372, May 10, 2024.

(a) A denial of a written request for a record that complies with the requirements of § 303.8 shall be in writing and shall include, as applicable:

(1) A reference to the applicable exemption or exemptions in § 303.9(a) upon which the denial is based;

(2) An explanation of how the exemption applies to the requested records;

(3) A statement explaining why it is deemed unreasonable to provide segregable portions of the record after deleting the exempt portions;

(4) An estimate of the volume of requested matter denied unless providing such estimate would harm the interest protected by the exemption under which the denial is made, if other than the FOIA Officer;

(5) The name and title of the person or persons responsible for denying the request, if other than the FOIA Officer; and

(6) An explanation of the right to appeal the denial and the procedures for submitting an appeal, including the address of the official to whom appeals should be submitted.

(b) A partial deletion of a record made available to a requester shall be deemed a denial of a record for purposes of paragraph (a) of this section. All denials shall be treated as final opinions under § 303.5(b).

Responses to requests.

(a) In general. The Peace Corps, to the extent practicable, will communicate with requesters having access to the internet electronically, such as email or web portal.

(b) Acknowledgments of requests. The Peace Corps will acknowledge the request in writing and assign it an individualized tracking number if it will take longer than 10 working days to process. The Peace Corps will include in the acknowledgment a brief description of the records sought to allow requesters to more easily keep track of their requests.

(c) Estimated dates of completion and interim responses. Upon request, the Peace Corps will provide an estimated date by which the Peace Corps expects to provide a response to the requester. If a request involves a voluminous amount of material, or searches in multiple locations, the Peace Corps may provide interim responses, releasing the records on a rolling basis.

(d) Grants of requests. Once the Peace Corps determines it will grant a request in full or in part, it will notify the requester in writing. The Peace Corps will also inform the requester of any fees charged under § 303.16 and will disclose the requested records to the requester promptly upon payment of any applicable fees. The Peace Corps will inform the requester of the availability of its FOIA Public Liaison to offer assistance.

(e) Adverse determinations of requests. If the Peace Corps makes an adverse determination denying a request in any respect, it will notify the requester of that determination in writing. Adverse determinations, or denials of requests, include decisions that: the requested record is exempt, in whole or in part; the request does not reasonably describe the records sought; the information requested is not a record subject to the FOIA; the requested record does not exist, cannot be located, or has been destroyed; or the requested record is not readily reproducible in the form or format sought by the requester. Adverse determinations also include denials involving fees or fee waiver matters or denials of requests for expedited processing.

(f) Markings on released documents. The Peace Corps will release any reasonably segregable portion of a record after redaction of the exempt portions. The amount of information redacted and the exemption under which the redaction is made shall be indicated on the released portion of the record unless doing so would harm an interest protected by an applicable exemption. The location of the information redacted will also be indicated on the record, if technically feasible.

(g) Use of record exclusions.

(1) In the event that the Peace Corps identifies records that may be subject to exclusion from the requirements of the FOIA pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 552(c), the Peace Corps will confer with Department of Justice, Office of Information Policy (OIP), prior to application of the exclusion.

(2) The Peace Corps, when invoking an exclusion, should document its consultation with OIP.

[89 FR 25525, Apr. 11, 2024]