Transmitted: December 6, 2021
To: Kellie Robinson, Public Liaison, U.S. Department of State
Full Request: Department of State FOIA Status Request (PDF)
Re: Status of FOIA Request Reference Number F-2021-09684
SUMMARY
Empower Oversight wrote to with the Department of State (DOS) seeking an update to a previously filed FOIA request, from August that sought records containing information implicating American citizens’ exercise of their Second Amendment rights.
The DOS acknowledged receipt of the FOIA request, assigned it a reference number and rejected Empower Oversight’s request for expedited processing. The DOS said that it would be unable to reply to the FOIA request within the 20 days required under the law due to “unusual circumstances.” This was nearly 3 months ago.
Since the request, Empower Oversight has not received any indication of how many documents may be responsive to the request or when a response could be expected.
In August, Empower Oversight’s FOIA request sought documents related to the announcement of a ban on importing Russian ammunition to determine whether it was as a deceptive abuse of the sanctions process in order to pursue President Biden’s domestic gun control agenda and restrict Americans’ access to ammunition by administrative fiat. The DOS must provide the documents needed to establish whether the stated purpose for its action restricting the exercise of Americans’ Second Amendment rights was legitimate or merely a pretext to cover a gun control agenda. Empower Oversight litigates when unresponsive government agencies refuse to comply with federal FOIA law.
If you have first-hand information you’d like to disclose to assist Empower Oversight with these inquiries, please contact us confidentially here.