UNITED STATES ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY % WZ 5 WASHINGTON, D.C. 20460 F JUL 28 207 orice OF INSPECTOR GENERAL Daily Caller News Foundation Reporter 1050 17" Street NW, Suite 900 Washington, D.C. 20036 Re: Freedom of Information Act Request (EPA-HQ-2017-009086) — Final Disposition Dear Mr. Barton: This letter responds to your Freedom of Information Act request to the Environmental Protection Agency Office of Inspector General dated June 29, 2017 seeking disclosure of material related 10 the Gold King Mine Spill, as it relates to an EPA OIG email from the Congressional and Media Liaison dated October 12, 2016. Specifically, you were secking: “1. The ROI mentioned in [the Congressional and Media Liaison]’s email; 2. Any and all documents the EPA submitted to the OIG regarding administrative actions taken as a result of the ROI: 3. Any and all documents and/or reports the OIG submitted to the USAO, District of Colorado regarding the OIG’s investigation of the Gold King Mine spill; and 4. Any and all additional reports produced by or submitted to the OIG regarding the OIG's Gold King Mine investigation.” The material you requested in parts 1, 3, and 4 of your request are part of one or more open law enforcement files. Exemption 7(A) of the FOIA, 5 U.S.C. § $52(b\(7)(A), exempts from disclosure records or information compiled for law enforcement purposes to the extent that the production of such records could reasonably be expected to interfere with ongoing enforcement proceedings. Therefore, at this time parts 1, 3, and 4 of your request are denied, After a thorough search based on the information you provided, the Office of Inspector General has determined that we have no records that are responsive to part 2 of your request. For your inlormation, Congress excluded three discrete categories of law enforcement and national security records from the requirements of the FOIA. See 5 U.S.C. § 352(c) (2006 & upp. [V 2010). This response is limited to those records that are subject to the requirements of the FOIA. This is a standard notification that is given to all our requesters and should not be taken as an indication that excluded records do, or do not, exist sion to the Counsel to the Inspector General, Office of Counsel, Office of Inspector General, 1200 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Mailcode 24111, Washington, D.C. 20460, or via fax to (202) 366-0870. or via e-mail to oig_foia@epa.gov. The appeal must be made in writing and must be submitted no later than 90 calendar days from the date of this letter Recycled Recyclable «Prniod wih Vegetable Oi Based Inks‘The appeal letter and envelope should include the request number listed above and be marked “Freedom of Information Act Appeal.” ‘Additionally, you make seek dispute resolution services from either the EPA FOIA Public Liaison (hg.foia@epa.gov: 202-566-1667) or the Office of Government Information Services (OGIS). OGIS serves as a bridge between FOIA requesters and agencies and can be reached by ‘email at ogis@nara.gov, by phone at 1-877-684-6448, or by fax at (202) 741-5769. If you have any questions conceming this matter, you may contact Scott Levine, EPA OIG FOIA Officer, at (202) 566-1512. Sincerely, 028d LG Barvenik Associate Counsel