July 24, 2024 FOIA Meeting. OGIS Ombuds Reports, Litigation Costs, America First Legal v. Archivist. Jackson

Hello, this is Jackson.

The Archivist and OGIS Director impermissibly refuse to respond to requests
for ADA reasonable accommodation to allow members of the public – including
hearing and speech impaired persons – to participate contemporaneously in
today’s discussions through the YouTube chat, where unfiltered and
time-stamped comments would be preserved for the thousands who will view the
YouTube video of this meeting live, and later.

OGIS False Ombuds Reports.

Despite numerous prior complaints, OGIS continues to knowingly submit
materially false reports that do not comport with the FOIA statute, which
mandates that OGIS report: “The number of times each agency -engaged in,
Dispute resolution, with the assistance of the Office of - Government
Information Services or the FOIA Public Liaison.” OGIS instead -
impermissibly - reports, “5,400 requests for assistance.” 18 U.S.C.
Section 1001 defines a false official statement as whomever “falsifies,
conceals, or covers up by any trick, scheme, or device a material fact.”
Does 18 U.S.C. Section 1001 apply here?

OGIS is also tasked with FOIA oversight compliance, yet OGIS did not conduct
any compliance reviews in 2023. Such reviews in prior years were
statistically insignificant.

On the issue of exploding litigation costs and fees, agencies have only
themselves to blame for prolonging litigation hoping that litigants will run
out of money and other obdurate, or bad behavior. Litigation costs should
consider DOJ costs of individual employee legal representation related to a
case.

On Civilian Employee Individual Legal Representation.

If you were an agency employee or a DOJ attorney involved in a messy
litigation where someone may have helped with or persuaded inaccurate sworn
declarations submitted in evidence and relied upon – and/or where records
were altered, or where records were destroyed - you may seek immediate, free,
individual DOJ legal representation in a closed case before a Plaintiff files
a fee petition with the court.

Before a fee petition is submitted to the Court where award of attorney fees
may trigger referral to a Special Counsel, should DOJ notify all agency
persons and DOJ attorneys who may have been implicated by an agency counsel
who obtained separate DOJ legal representation for himself, implicating
others, thereby creating a conflict of interest? DOJ OIP? U.S. Associate
Attorney General Mizer? Should agency employees and DOJ attorneys in doubt
seek to be shown any such correspondence?

On the issue of destruction of FOIA records, agency records managers who may
have been given and then submitted inaccurate information to NARA regarding
complaints of unauthorized destruction or alteration of records may also seek
individual legal representation due to conflicts of interest and to correct
such falsities. See the America First Legal case concerning unauthorized
records disposition cases involving the Archivist of the United States. Case
Number. 1:24-cv-1092 in the District Court of Columbia. See Demands for
Relief in that case.

Thank you.