IA-86-379, Responds to Appeal Re Denial of FOIA Request for Documents Concerning Ofc of Investigations Rept 4-84-039.Appeal Denied.Documents Still Partially Withheld (Ref FOIA Exemption 6)

Responds to Appeal Re Denial of FOIA Request for Documents Concerning Ofc of Investigations Rept 4-84-039.Appeal Denied.Documents Still Partially Withheld (Ref FOIA Exemption 6)

ML20214W026
Person / Time
Issue date:	12/05/1986
From:	Stello V NRC OFFICE OF THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR FOR OPERATIONS (EDO)
To:	Garde B GOVERNMENT ACCOUNTABILITY PROJECT
References
FOIA-86-379, FOIA-86-A-200 NUDOCS 8612100052
Download: ML20214W026 (1)

Text

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1986 OEc 5 Billie Pirner Garde, Esquire Government Accountability Project Midwest Office IN RESPONSE REFER 3424 Marcos Lane TO F01A-86-A-200 Appleton, WI 54911 (F0IA-86-379)

Dear Ms. Garde:

This is in response to your letter dated October 18, 1986, which appealed Mr. Donnie H. Grimsley's letter dated October 1, 1986, which denied portions of four documents subject to your Freedom of Information Act (F0IA) request for documents generated in connection with 01 Investigation 4-84-039.

Acting on your appeal, I have carefully reviewed the record in this case and have determined that the previously withheld information will continue to be ,

withheld from public disclosure pursuant to Exemption (6) of the F0IA (5 U.S.C. 552(b)(6)) and 10 CFR 9.5(a)(6) of the Commission's regulations.

Your appeal is, therefore, denied.

As stated in Mr. Grimsley's October 1, 1986 letter, the withheld information consists of the name and other identifying information of an individual who provided information to the NRC concerning possible intimidation at the Comanche Peak nuclear power plant. I am unable to identify any legitimate public interest in the disclosure of this information which outweighs the privacy interest of the individual.

This is a final agency action. As set forth in the F0IA (5 U.S.C. 552(a)(4)(B)),

judicial review of this decision is available in a district court of the United States in the district in which you reside, have your principal place of business or in the District of Columbia.

Sincerely,

. .n ()

Victor Stello, Jr.

Executive Director for Operations 8612100052 861205 PDR FOIA CARDE86-A-2OO PDR

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wGO'vTANMENT ACCOUNTABlu1Y PROJECT 1555 Connecticut Awrnve. N.W Suite 202 Washington, D.C. 20036 (202)2324550 May 16, 1986

1. BWRMAT10N Director REQUEST office of Administration [CM -g. g U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission Washington, D.C. 20555 Re: FOIA Request

/ g To whom it may concern:

Pursuant to the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), 5 U.S.C.

552, as amended, the Government Accountability Project (GAP) requests copies of any and all agency records and information, including but not limited to notes, letters, memoranda, drafts, minutes, diaries, logs, calendars, tapes, transcripts, summaries, interview reports, procedures, instructions, engineering

. analyses, drawings, files, graphs, charts, maps, photographs, agreements, handwritten notes, studies, data sheets, notebooks, books, telephone messages, computations, voice recordings, computer runoffs, any other data compilations, interim and/or final reports, status reports, and any and all other records releyant to and/or generated in connection with OI Investigation 4-84-039, " Alleged Intimidation of QC Inspector," noticed in BN 86-14, April 4, 1986.

This request includes all agency records as defined in 10 i C.F.R. 9.3a(b) and the NRC Manual, Appendix 0211, Parts 1.A.2 and A.3 (approved October 8, 1980), whether they currently exist in the NRC official, " working", investigative, or other files, or at

l. any other location, including private residences.

If any records as defined in 10 C.F.R. 9.3a(b) and the NRC l Manual, supra, and covered by this request have been destroyed and/or removed, or are destroyed and/or removed after receipt of this request, please provide all surtounding records, including but not limited to a list of all records which have been or are destroyed and/or removed, a description of the action (s) taken relevant to, generated in connection with, and/or issued in order to implement the action (s).

GAP requests that fees be waived, because " finding the information can be considered as primarily benefitting the gene-ral public." 5 U.S.C. 552(a) (4) (A). GAP is a non-profit, nonpartisan public interest organization concerned with honest and open government. Through its citizens Clinic, GAP offers assistance to local public interest and citizens groups seeking to ensure the health and safety of their communities.

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. FOIA Request May 16, 1986 Page Two GAP is requesting the above information as part of an ongoing monitoring project on the adequacy of the NRC's efforts ,

to protecta public safety and health at nuclear power plants.

For any documents or portions of documents that you deny due l to a specific FOIA exemption, please provide an index itemizing and describing the documents or portions of documents withheld.

The index should provide a detailed justification of your grounds for claiming each exemption, explaining why each exemption is relevant to the document or portion of the document withheld.

This index is required under Vaughn v. Rosen III, 484 F. 2d 820 (D.C. Cir. 1973), cert. denied, 415 U.S. 977 (1974).

We look forward to your response to this request within ten days.

Respectfully, Oh \W Billie Pirner Garde

,, Ci,tizens Clinic Director 42117 l

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{, ' . ,I wash NoTON, D. C. 20555

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Billie Pirner Garde. Esquire Government Accountability Project Midwest Office IN RESPONSE REFER 3424 Marcos Lane TO F01A-86-379 AND Appleton, WI 54911 86-A-117

Dear Ms. Garde:

This is in further response to your letter dated May 16, 1986, in which you requested, pursuant to the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), all records generated in connection with 01 Investigation 4-84-039.

The documents listed on the enclosed Appendix B are subject to your request.

Portions of documents 1 through 4 are now being withheld from public disclosure pursuant to Exemption (6) of the F0IA (5 U.S.C. 552(b)(6)) and 10 CFR 9.5(a)(6)oftheCommission'sregulations. The withheld portions contain the name and other identifying infonnation regarding an individual who provided infctmation to the NRC concerning possible intimidation at the Comanche Peak nuclear plant. To disclose the name and other identifying information concerning this individual would constitute a clearly unwarranted invasion of personal privacy. The nonexempt portions of these four documents are being placed in the NRC Public Document Room (PDR) located at 1717 H Street, NW, Washington, DC 20555, in file folder F01A-86-379 under your name.

Documents 5 through 23 are components of Office of Investigations (01)

Report 4-84-039 and were addressed in our letter dated September 22, 1986, in response to your request F01A-86-180. The nonexempt portions of these documents and 8 additional documents released in their entirety are available at the PDR in file F01A-86-180 under your name.

Pursuant to 10 CFR 9.9 of the Comission's regulations, it has been determined that the information withheld in documents 1 through 4 is exempt from production or disclosure and that its production or disclosure is contrary to the public interest. The persons responsible for this denial are the undersigned and Mr. Robert D. Martin, Regional Administrator, NRC Region IV.

This denial may be appealed to the NRC's Executive Director for Operations within 30 days from the receipt of this letter. As provided in 10 CFR 9.11, any such appeal must be in writing, addressed to the Executive Director for Operations, U. S. Nuclear Regulatory Comission, Washington, DC 20555, and should clearly state on the envelope and in the letter that it is an " Appeal from an Initial F0IA Decision."

r 57 g.

4 Ms. Billie P. Garde -

2-l In light of this response, no further action will be taken on your July 16, 1986, letter appealing our lack of response to this F0IA request.

1 Sincerely, n .

-[M '

4I Donnie H. Grimsley, Director Division of Rules and Records Office of Administration

Enclosure:

As stated

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N j Re: F0!A-86-379'

. s APPENDIX B >

1. 10/12/84 Speed Letter from C. H. Welch to named individual (1 pag'e) x)

2. 10/12/84 Texas Utilities Generating ' Company' (.TUGCo) Office Memorandum (1 page)  ;' .

• l 1  ; ,

3. 10/18/84 Memorandum f tco James Cummins to Thomas Westerman (1 page)

4. 10/31/84 Menorandum from T. F. ilesterman no R. D. Martin (2'pages) l

5. Investigation Status Record (1 p.) -

'I

6. Investigation Status Record (1 p.) ' ' '

7. Report of Investigation, 4-84-039 (23 pp.) ,i

8. Transcript of Interview with Named Individual (105 pp.)

9. Transcript of Interview with Named Individoal (3i pp.)

10. Transcript of Interview with Named Individual (91 pp.) 7 i

11. Transcript of Interview with Named Individual',(,7. pp.) ('

12. Report of Interview with Named Individual (1 p.)

13. Report of Interview with Named Individual (1 p.)

14. Report'of Interview with Named Individual (1 p.) ,

15. Report of Interview with Named Individual (1 p.)

16. Review of Testimony of Named Individual (2 p.)

17. Transcript of Inve:tigative Deposition of Named Individual (76 pp.) s

18. Report of Interview with Named Individual (2 pp.)

19. Report of Interview with Named Individual (1 p.) ,

20. Transcript of Investigative Interview of Named Individual (45 pp.) '

21. Report of Interview with Named Individual (1 p.)

i

22. Deposition of Named Individual (79 pp.)

23. Transcript of Investigative Deposition of Named Individual (64 pp.)