USDA Appeal Response 111309

8/14/2019 USDA Appeal Response 111309

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Mr. Christopher-Earl Strunkwithholding or refers to particular types of matters to be withheld." Section 2276 meets bothprongs of Exemption 3 in that it leaves no discretion, it establishes particular criterion forwithholding, and it refers to particular types of matters to be withheld.You may seek judicial review of this decision in the appropriate U.S. D istrict Court pursuant to5 U.S.C. 552(a)(4).


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593 Vanderbilt Avenue - #281Brooklyn, New York 1 1238Telephone: (845) 90 1-6767Email: [email protected]: Strunk6n esseCynthia Z.F. C lark, Ad ministrato rU.S. Dep artment of AgricultureUSDA N ational Agricultural Statistics ServiceRoom 4 117, South Building1400 Independence Avenue, SWWashington DC 20250-300 Subject: APPEAL from the denial of the Request fo r all the Addresses ofNew Yo rk's Fa m terl Farm demographic used in statistics with F.O.I.A.Tracking No. 09-159.Appeal Panel, I am the FOIA petitioner, Christopher-Earl: Stnmk6m esse, and make this statetrrentunder penalty of perjury with 28 USC 1746.This is an app eal as of right to the total denial of any information requested(') with the abovetracking number, to wit Valerie Herberger on September 30 ,20 09 cited the5 U.S.C. 552(b)(3)exemption by other federal statutes (seeExhibit A), as if my request exceeds 7 U.S.C. $2276(a)(2) and 7USC 2276(b)(2) and were to applyas if it were violative, and to wit I ask for reconsideration in that myrequest would not be in violation of the cited requirements.That the denial is overly broad in its interpretation thereby infn'nges my U.S. Constitution Firstamendm ent right to speech, assembly and association, as well as 5 ,9' and 10" Amendment rightswithin New York, also m h e s ith state action at the A lbany Airport,as if an interstate commercematter which it isn't; and a s such petitioner is entitled not to have any law interpreted ina fashion thatwould co nstrue Congressional intent to abridge my substan tive rights as with the First, Fifth, 9&and 10&Amendments and U.S. Co nstitution in its entirety and you would agree shall always beprotected.Declarant emphasizes that the FOIA did not request any nam es but just addresses, there was norequest for any s tatistics that would app ly to the those addresses; and therefore, there is no release thatwould be at cross purposewith the intentof the law. Otherwise, the denial would be deemed faciallyunconstitutionally overbroad with the intent of the law, and thereby sub ject to judicial review.Any communication with a occupant at that add ress only, if the occu pant were in fact still a farmermuch has ch an ged , puts in div id ual re sp on sib ility fo r th e ~ p e ~ ctatistics if an y at the address with theown er in keeping with the law- otherwise a overbroad law wouldbe prohibited as a catch twenty-two.If this matter goes the Judicial review route a s if the Ad ministrator interpretation of law is overlybroad there would be consid erable expense and punitive damages sou ght with state action also; however,if upon reconsideration there are anyfees for searching for, reviewing, or copyin g the records, please letme know before you task my request fo r addresses only.

Brooklyn New YorAttachmentcc: NYS Departmen t of Ag riculture& Markets

' production of electronic data and or access to the m ailing addresses of all the current demographic ofNew York Farmers enumerated in the current statistics for the state of New York from 2007 thru thepresent; and furthermore d l he addresses of the prior demographic of New York's Farmers/ Farmsenumerated in the prior dem ographic and statistics from 196 7 thru the present, however, dropped from thecurren t New York statistic enumeration for whatever reason.


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United States Department of AgricultureResearch, E ducation and EconomicsAgricultural Research S ervice

September 30 ,200 9Mr. Christopher-Earl Strunk593 Vanderbilt A venue, #28 1Brooklyn, New York 11238-3512Dear Mr. Strunk:This is in response to your September 15 ,20 09 , Freedom of Information Act (FOIA ) requestaddressed to the Associate Adm inistrator, National A gricultural Statistics Service (NA SS),U.S. Department of Agriculture (USD A), seeking all addresses of New York's farmers and farmdemographics used in statistics. This office is responsible for administering the FO IA for NA SS;therefore, your request was forwarded to us for a direct response. We received your request onSeptember 22,20 09 , and assigned it FOIA Tracking No. 09-159.You specifically requested "production of electronic data and o r access to the mailing addressesof all the current demographic of New York farmers enumerated in the current statistics for theSta te of New York f rom 2007 t h he present; and all addresses of prior dem ographic of NewYork's farmerslfarms enumerated in the prior demographic and statistics from 1967 thru thepresent, however, dropped from the current New York statistics enumeration for whateverreason."The information you are requesting regarding mailing addresses is confidential information thatis protected from disclosure pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 552(b)(3) of the FOIA. Exem ption 3 of theFOIA protects information specifically exem pted from disclosure by statute. The controllingstatute in this case is 7 U.S.C. 2276, wh ich requires U SDA to maintain the confidentiality of thisinformation. In addition, the statute prohibits disclosure of any of the information inunaggregated form. It provides that the Department of Agriculture may not "...disclose suchinformation to the public, unless such information h as been transformed into statistical oraggregate fo rm that does not allow the identification o f the person wh o su pplies particularinformation" [7 U.S.C. 2276(a)(2)]. It further provides that such information "...sh all beimmune from mandatory disclosure of any type including legal process.. ." [7 U.S.C.2276(b)(2)]. This language leaves us no discretion to attempt to define som e portions a s exemptand others as non-exem pt. As far as the statute is concerned, all portions in unaggregated formare exempt from disclosure.Based on the above, your request for all mailing addresses of New York's farmerslfarmdemo graphics used in statistics is being denied in full. You ha ve a right to appeal the denial of

Office of the Director, Information Staff5601 Sunnyside Ave., Bldg. 1-2248, Beltsville, MD 20705-5128Voice: 301-504-1640 Fax: 301-504-1647 E-mail: [email protected] Equ al Opportunity Employer


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Mr. Christopher-Earl Strunk 2the requested information by writing to the A dministrator, NASS, USDA , Room 41 17, SouthBuilding, 1400 Independence Avenue, SW , Washington, DC 20250-0300. That office mustreceive the appeal within 45 days of the date of this letter. The phrase "FOIA APPEAL" shouldappear on the front of the envelope containing the appeal.The cost to process your request was minimal and has been waived.If you have any questions regarding our response, please feel free to contact us at 301-504-1640.Sincerely,

Valerie HerbergerFreedom of Information Actand Privacy Act Officer


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Christopher-Earl : Strunk in esse

593 Vanderbilt Avenue - #281

Brooklyn, New York 11238

September 15, 2009

Certified w/ return receipt request

Joe Reilly, Associate Administrator

U.S. Department of Agriculture

USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service

Room 5041A, South Building

1400 Independence Avenue, SW

Washington DC 20250

Subject: Freedom of Information Law Request for all the Addresses

of New Yorks Farmer / Farm demographic used in statistics.

Dear Mr. Reilly,

As of right under the Freedom of Information Act with 5 USC 552, I

hereby request production of electronic data and or access to the mailing

addresses of all the current demographic of New York Farmers enumerated

in the current statistics for the state of New York from 2007 thru the present;

and furthermore all the addresses of the prior demographic of New Yorks

Farmers / Farms enumerated in the prior demographic and statistics from

1967 thru the present, however, dropped from the current New York statistic

enumeration for whatever reason. The State of New York Department of

Agriculture and Markets states that USDA National Agricultural Statistics

Service have authority over those records.

If there are anyfees for searching for, reviewing, or copying the

records, please let me know before you task my request.

If you deny all or any part of this request, please cite each specific

Exemption you think justifies your refusal to release the information andnotify me of appeal procedures and of a waiver available under the law for

immediate litigation as time is of the essence.

Sincerely yours, /s/

_____________________Christopher-Earl : Strunk in esse


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STATE OF NEW YORKDEPARTMENT OFAGRICULTURE AND MARKETS10B AIRLINE DRIVEALBANY, NEW YORK 12235

September 9,2009

Mr. Christopher-Earl593 Vanderbilt Avenue, #281Brooklyn, NY 11238Dear Mr. Earl:

The Department of Agriculture and Markets acknowledges receipt of your recent Freedom oflnformation request mailing address of all current demographic of New York farmers enumerated inthe current NYS statistics from 2007 to the present, and addresses of the prior demographic of NewNY's farmerslfarms enumerated in the prior demographic statistics from 1967 to the present.

Those records are not kept in this Department. They may be located at the USDA, NationalAgricultural Statistics Service, Joe Reilly, Associate Administrator, Room 5041A, South Building,1400 Independence Avenue, SW, Washington DC 20250.

If you have any further questions in this matter, do not hesitate to contact us.Sincerely,- /--?Rebecca SmithFreedom of Information Officer


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Christopher-Earl : Strunk in esse

593 Vanderbilt Avenue - #281

Brooklyn, New York 11238

August 25, 2009

Certified w/ return receipt request

Patrick Hooker Commissioner of the

NYS Department of Agriculture & Markets

10B Airline Drive

Albany New York 12235

Attention: the F.O.I.L. Officer

Subject: Freedom of Information Law Request for all the Addresses

of New Yorks Farmer / Farm demographic used in statistics.

The F.O.I.L. Officer,

As of right under the Freedom of Information Law (F.O.I.L.), I hereby

request production and or access to the mailing addresses of all the current

demographic of New York Farmers enumerated in the current statistics for

the state of New York from 2007 thru the present; and furthermore all the

addresses of the prior demographic of New Yorks Farmers / Farms

enumerated in the prior demographic and statistics from 1967 thru the

present, however, dropped from the current New York statistic enumeration

for whatever reason.

If there are anyfees for searching for, reviewing, or copying the

records, please let me know before you task my request.

If you deny all or any part of this request, please cite each specific

Exemption you think justifies your refusal to release the information and

notify me of appeal procedures available under the law.

Sincerely yours, /s/

_____________________Christopher-Earl : Strunk in esse


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Complete items l , 2 , and 3. Also completeitem 4 if RestrictedDeliveryis desired.Print your name and address on the r evepso that we can return the card to you.8 Attach this card to the back of the mailpiece,1. Article Addressed to:

A. Sianature

. eceived by (Pn edN&) IFaren bubas 'fl-"oTD. Isdeliveryaddressd&mt from item17 Yes'IfYES, enter deliveryaddressbelow. NO ,

47w &LC w p / w Yes2. A rMe Number( r im - - 7009 Lb8O O O O L 8558 7522

,PS Form 3811, February2004 DomestbReturn Receipt 102695~-M-1540;-1


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so hat we can return the card to you.rn Attach this card to the backof the mallpiece,or on the front if spacepmits. Q. Isdelhreryaddmad b m t hm-~tem17 Yes1. ArticleAddressedb If YES, enterdelhrery addreasMw: No

Complete tems1.2, and 3.Also completeitem4 if Restricted Delivery isdesired.Print your name and address on the reverse

B W ~ H ~h m a 1 n 2

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USDA Appeal Response 111309