Q

of Transportation

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Federal Aviation
Administration

FEB 09 2015
Mr. Jorge A. Rojas

Dear Mr. Rojas:

This letter is in response to your Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request, 2015-009300,
dated June 25, 2015. Your request sought emails and chats sent to and from Shelton Snow
for the time periods of December 1, 2013 to March 30, 2014 and January 1, 2015 to June 24,
2015. The enclosed disk contains the records responsive to your request. Portions of those
records have been withheld pursuant to FOIA exemptions 2 and 6.
FOIA exemption 2 protects internal documents that are related solely to the personnel rules
and practices of an agency. The redacted information consists of security processes or
procedures and passcodes. We have also withheld, under this exemption, seven documents
in their entirety consisting of software instructions (4 documents), training certi cate (1
document), condition of employment form (1 document), uncompleted form related to
condition of employment (1 document). The last three documents, or portions thereof, are
also withheld under FOIA exemption 6.

Exemption 6 protects information that pertains to an individual the disclosure of which

would constitute a clearly unwarranted invasion of personal privacy. 5 U.S.C. 552(b)(6).
The redacted information consists of personal email addresses, cell phone numbers, drivers
license number, user IDs for accessing personnel accounts, and other personal information
from Noti cationof Personnel Action forms (SF-50). We have also withheld, under this
exemption, four documents in their entirety. These documents pertain to a personnel action.
When applying exemption 6, the FAA weighs the privacy interest of an individual against
any public interest in the records. In the case of the redacted information, weve determined
that private interest outweighs any public interest.

We also located 181 emails, which are not agency records. FOIA only applies to records
that are (1) either created or obtained by an agency, and (2) under agency control at the time
of the FOIA request. The courts have identi edfour factors to consider when evaluating the
extent of an agencys control of a record. The factors are (1) the intent of the document's
creator to retain or relinquish control over the record; (2) the ability of the agency to use and
dispose of the record as it sees t;(3) the extent to which agency personnel have read or
relied upon the document; and (4) the degree to which the document was integrated into the
agency's record systems or les.

It was determined that the subject emails are not agency records because the agency did not
rely upon their content for any matter under consideration by the agency. Therefore, the 181
emails will not be subject to the FOIA.
Sincerely,

.4.-/ii

"'1

Timothy L. Arel
Vice President, Air Traf cServices
Enclosure