Open Government Update 02.2022
An update on some of my federal and state Freedom of Information Act requests.
Update 7/18/2023: I’m still using MuckRock, as there isn’t a better alternative and they’ve made sincere efforts to increase the level of support available to requesters on the platform.
Update 7/13/2022: I’m no longer using MuckRock to file FOIA requests. My experiences using the platform haven’t been ideal, and they’ve removed key features that made using the service worth it to me, such as curated and collaborative projects. Because of that, I prefer to handle requests myself moving forward (and report on any issues I experience along the way). From now on, I’ll publicly share each new FOIA request as I file it, and also share the documents I receive, in free public posts under the “FOIA Files” section of my Substack. My earlier FOIA requests from 2021-2022, and the resulting records, remain available to the public on my MuckRock profile, here: https://www.muckrock.com/accounts/profile/erinmiller.
Anyone that has ever filed more than a few requests for government records under the Freedom of Information Act knows how frustrating it can be. It often feels like the entire process is broken.
Over the last year, I’ve been working on a number of FOIA requests and projects seeking clarity and accountability for the public confusion that has taken hold over the last several years. Below, I’ll discuss some of my recent adventures in being classified as “spam” by the FDA, getting snubbed by the Michigan National Guard for over half a year, and being stonewalled with nonexistent invoices.
Beyond those clear failures in the FOIA, though, I’ve also gotten ahold of some valuable information and documents, which I’ve included below for those interested in taking a look. These are just some of the highlights of my FOIA requests. You can view the full set on my MuckRock profile.
Accountability: Crisis in Ukraine
On Feb. 3, 2022, while attending a U.S. State Department press briefing, a veteran reporter from the Associated Press requested that department spokesman Ned Price make public the declassified intelligence Mr. Price had referenced during the briefing as evidence of possible military action by Russia against Ukraine.
Surprisingly, Mr. Price became visibly agitated and asserted that his verbal claims should be sufficient evidence for the reporter. The reporter responded that he would prefer hard evidence to a verbal statement. Mr. Price reiterated that his claims were based on declassified intelligence, but declined to provide any further evidence or documentation to support those claims — despite specifically stating that the information he had shared was declassified.
The government refusing to share declassified information with journalists upon request is unusual.
The previous week, Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy had scorned reports from Western media about the threat of war. According to a report from Reuters dated Jan. 28, 2022, “(Zelenskyy) said the White House was making a ‘mistake’ in highlighting excessively the risk of a large-scale war, and that this was the message he gave U.S. President Joe Biden in their phone call on Thursday.” Zelenskyy also noted that those Western reports were having a destabilizing effect on Ukraine’s economy. (Zelenskyy later requested that the U.S. government enforce sanctions on Russian officials to prevent war, in lieu of military action; the U.S. government elected to delay granting his request.)
The U.S. government has quite a history of getting things wrong when it comes to justifying wars. Recent events in Afghanistan have served as a reminder of that, but so have past events regarding Iraq and Vietnam. Because of that history — and because war is horrific — I wanted to see the evidence, too.
In a FOIA request submitted via MuckRock on Feb. 8, 2022, I asked the U.S. State Department for the declassified intelligence referenced by Mr. Price during that press briefing. You can follow State Deptartment Request F-2022-04647 and review the responsive records when (or, if) they’re delivered here.
While we’re on the subject of war, I also filed two bonus FOIA requests with the federal government related to some defense projects that have piqued my curiosity in the last year.
Open Government: What Are All Those IP Addresses For?
Only a few minutes before President Joseph R. Biden was sworn into office on Jan. 20, 2021, millions of dormant IP addresses once owned by the U.S. military suddenly came to life — under a mysterious Florida company called Global Resource Systems LLC, whose ownership and existence even reporters at some of the most prestigious newspapers in the country struggled to make sense of.
In the weeks that followed, technologists waxed philosophical about all the things that could be done with that many IP addresses. Ideas about everything from ensuring internet security to massive cyberattacks and more were floated online. The subject has captivated my interest for over a year now, and I finally decided to ask the Dept. of Defense about it in the form of a FOIA request.
Open Government: U.S. Pandemic Policy
After two years of conflicting messaging from public health authorities, insufficient data tracking, and confusing reporting from mainstream news outlets, the rampant spread of conspiracy theories across the world should come as a surprise to exactly no one.
It should also surprise exactly no one that getting clear answers from the government about what might have caused such a quagmire has been next to impossible.
It’s become obvious that getting a clear-eyed perspective on how public policy was decided by our elected and appointed officials in the U.S. amid the pandemic is going to be a lifelong project — maybe one that I will have to pass down to the next generation.
I’m still fairly young, though, and I plan to leave no stone unturned.
Pandemic Policy: Michigan FOIA Requests
From short-lived, nearly empty multi-million dollar field hospitals to inadequate data tracking and abrupt resignations with opaque confidentiality agreements, the pandemic left many in Michigan with more questions than answers. I aim to change that through a series of FOIA requests seeking transparency about what happened in Michigan in 2020.
Many of my requests have been quoted high-ish (okay, sometimes exorbitant) fees. If you’re interested in contributing to a specific request via MuckRock’s crowdfunding feature, please contact me through my website’s contact form or by email.
Data Collection and Breakthrough Reporting
MDHHS: COVID-19 Facility Data Collection Forms — Payment Required: Undisclosed amount; MDHHS hasn’t provided an invoice and hasn’t responded to my follow up messages
Request H014028-122321 seeks all forms used by MDHHS to collect data on COVID-19 cases, deaths, and outbreaks in hospitals and long term care facilities in Michigan between 3/1/2020 and the date this request is ultimately processed. The agency granted the request as to nonexempt records and stated there was a fee; there is no invoice available in the agency’s FOIA portal. The portal also shows a balance of $0 due. The agency has not responded to multiple follow up messages inquiring about the fee and missing invoice.MDHHS: COVID-19 Breakthrough Data by Demographic — Payment Required: $813.13
Request H013544-110421 seeks any available data on the number of breakthrough COVID-19 cases reported to MDHHS by race and ethnicity, age, sex, occupation and/or employer type, by date and cumulative between August 21, 2021 and the date that this request is ultimately fulfilled, as well as when the data was collected, what methods were used, and what purpose was intended for the data when gathering it. The agency quoted a fee of $813.13 for the requested information; the data does not appear to have been made publicly available yet. *If you’re interested in contributing to a crowdfunding effort to unlock these documents, please contact me.MDHHS: Email Communications Re: Omicron and Breakthrough Cases — Completed
Request H014014-122221 asked for all emails that include the words "Omicron" and/or "B.1.1.529" and/or "GR/484A" and/or "variant" and/or "21K" between the dates of 10/1/2021 and 2/8/2022 between specific state officials.
Long-Term Care Facilities
MDHHS: Doctors Without Borders Long-Term Care Facility Recommendations — Completed
Request H012609-081321 sought documents related to the coordination between the Michigan Dept. of Health and Human Services and Doctors Without Borders, also known as Médecins Sans Frontières or MSF, regarding COVID-19 and long-term care facilities between 3/1/2020 and 10/1/2020. The resulting documents showed MSF had concerns about the ways COVID-19 was being handled in long-term care facilties in Michigan, as well as conditions for staff, and offered recommendations in July for re-opening facilities to visitors and establishing better cohorting practices to keep residents on-site instead of being transferred out to other facilities.MDHHS: Michigan Nursing Homes COVID-19 Preparedness Task Force — Payment Required: $1285.43
Request H012435-080121 / H012434-080121 seeks documents related to the Michigan Nursing Homes COVID-19 Preparedness Task Force, including any reports or recommendations submitted by the task force to Gov. Gretchen Whitmer's office.
Curiously, despite the high price tag for this request, I accidentally discovered that the requested report is actually available on the State’s website — for free. The agency did not direct me to the report, nor did they respond to my questions about whether they had included the report in the fee. This report highlighted concerns similar to the Doctors Without Borders report, which had been submitted around three weeks earlier. Changes were put into place by the State about a month later.MDHHS: Medicaid Estate Recovery Program Data - 2018-2021 — Completed
Request H013505-110321 sought data about the total number of individual long-term care recipients in Michigan from whom estate money was recovered under the MDHHS Michigan Estate Recovery Program between January 1, 2018 and November 1, 2021. Given the disproportionate number of long-term care residents that reportedly died from COVID-19 in 2020, the results of this request actually surprised me. I plan to continue re-filing this request for the next several years to track any late recoveries. (The Medicaid Estate Recovery Program was put into place to reclaim money from the etates of some long-term care recipients, and others, after their deaths if that care was provided under Medicaid.)
Government Spending
MDTMB: State Contracts for the TCF Regional Care Center and Suburban Collection Showcase Field Hospitals — Completed
This unnumbered request with the Michigan Dept. of Technology, Management and Budget sought all contracts, subcontracts, and budget plans related to the planning, funding, construction, and closure of the TCF Regional Care Center and Suburban Collection Showplace field hospitals between the dates of 3/1/2020 and 10/5/2020.MDHHS: TCF Regional Care Center Emails — Completed
MDHHS Request H012701-081821 sought emails related to the planning, funding, construction, and closure of the TCF Regional Care Center in Detroit, MI sent between former MDHHS Director Robert Gordon and several key individuals involved in the project between the dates of 3/1/2020 and 5/10/2020. I actually missed this one in the database and only just discovered that the request was completed a couple of days ago, so I’ll be sifting through the handful of resulting emails this week.
Pandemic Policy: Federal FOIA Requests
It’s no secret that the U.S. response to the COVID-19 pandemic has been chaos at every level of government for the last two years, across two administrations. Amid the confusion and conspiracy theories, I’m seeking clarity from official government records.
Government Spending
Michigan National Guard: TCF Regional Care Center Email Communications — Ugh
I have absolutely no idea what’s going on with this request. Despite the fact that it was filed in July 2021, the Michigan National Guard never provided me with a response letter confirming receipt of the request or assigning it a tracking number, as they’re required to do by law. They also didn’t provide me with a determination letter informing me of whether my request had been approved or denied, as they’re also required to do. They also won’t respond to my emails except to say that “my request is still being processed,” without any explanation or tracking number to reference. They also won’t answer the phone.
Vaccine Oversight
FDA: Administrative Processing Records for related to FDA FOIA request Control #2021-5683 — Completed
Request FDA2280527 sought all administrative processing records (including notes, emails, and memos) related to FDA FOIA request Control #2021-5683.
The request in question was a FOIA request filed by a group of professors and scientists from UCLA, Yale, Harvard and other top universities seeking the Pfizer data related to the COVID-19 vaccine approval, for an independent peer review aiming to curb vaccine hesitancy. In a recent FOIA lawsuit over the data, the FDA claimed it needed until 2096 to review and release the data. A judge disagreed, ordering its prompt release.
I was curious to know what behind-the-scenes discussions looked like about this request, including how the agency determined that it needed over half a century to complete it, so I decided to ask.
My initial request for the same information (FDA2280136) quickly devolved into a weird FOIA nightmare. After a phone call with the FOIA officer in charge of the initial request, my MuckRock email was suddenly classified as “spam” by the agency’s spam filters. Because of that, my responses related to the request were never received by the agency, and so the request was “administratively closed” due to my supposed lack of response to their clarifying questions. I ended up filing this new request instead and got the documents.FDA: Retirement/Resignation of Dr. Marion Gruber and Dr. Philip Krause — Processing
Request FDA2280562 seeks all records related to the retirements, resignations and/or terminations of Dr. Marion Gruber, former director of the Office of Vaccines Research and Review at FDA's Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research, and Dr. Philip Krause, former deputy director of the Office of Vaccines Research and Review at FDA's Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research. I will be following up on this request closely after the issues with my email address being filtered as spam by the agency in my previous request.
Long-Term Care Facilities
DOJ: Michigan COVID-19 Nursing Home Response to DoJ Inquiry — Completed
Request 21-00262-F sought all documents, data, and records provided to the Department of Justice by Gov. Gretchen Whitmer's office and the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services in response to the Department of Justice, Civil Rights Division's request for information related to the State of Michigan's policies related to nursing homes and long-term care facilities during the COVID-19 pandemic. The resulting document is a huge file, and I’m still working my way through it. I requested the same information from the other three states that were involved in the inquiry (I’m still waiting on those).
Omicron and Breakthrough Tracking
NIAID: Email Communications from Dr. Anthony S. Fauci Re: Omicron and Breakthrough Cases — Processing
Request 57583 seeks all emails sent by Dr. Fauci between 11/1/2021 and 1/6/2022 containing the terms ("Omicron" OR "B.1.1.529" OR "GR/484A" OR "21K") AND "breakthrough," including all attachments to those emails. This request is still processing.
Open Government: Beware the Sock Puppets!
While I was filing some of the other requests, I got to thinking about Operation Earnest Voice — a government project that was used, officially, to counter extremist voices online in Iraq in 2011.
How? By utilizing persona management software to unleash “sock puppets” on social media platforms. For anyone unfamiliar, sock puppets are social media accounts that appear to be real people. While they’re usually controlled by real people, they aren’t what they seem.
Sometimes, they’re used by PR agencies to generate public attention or make a brand or celebrity or event look super popular. On a more serious level, though, they can also be deployed by governments to disseminate propaganda, attempt to influence public opinion, elevate or suppress topics without direct censorship, or create the illusion of strong public support for certain issues (and, presumably, the appearance of opposition to other issues a government doesn’t want to deal with).
Although fighting legitimate terrorism with sock puppets is a noble cause, the ethics behind sock puppets — especially when used by governments to influence the public — are questionable.
This is why I always say, “Social media is not real life.”
It’s also why utilizing diverse sources of information (including traditional books) and being brave enough to approach opposing political perspectives with compassion and an open mind are so important.
To my knowledge, the only person that has ever gotten anywhere with a request for information about our country’s use of persona management software was internet activist Aaron Swartz in 2011.
Since there’s been about a decade in between, I decided to go for it. Last week I filed a request for the same information with the Defense Contract Management Agency. As it turned out, I’ll have to file the same request with basically every agency at the Dept. of Defense if I want any information.
So, keep an eye out over the next few weeks as I get started on that!
I discovered your writing today. You do excellent and thorough work, and I cheer you on.