This is Part 6 of a 6 Part Blog Series on “How to Make a Freedom of Information Act (“FOIA”) Request“. Make sure to read the previous 5 blog posts to get the full picture! Step 6: Review FOIA Request After the agency has received your fees, it will process your request. The agency may send you a written “initial determination” …
How to Make a Freedom of Information Act Request – Part 5
This is Part 5 of a 6 Part Blog Series on “How to Make a Freedom of Information Act (“FOIA”) Request“. Please stay tuned for the other blogs for the full picture! Step 5: Pay Fees There is no initial fee to file a FOIA request; however, federal agencies are allowed to request “reasonable standard charges for document search, duplication, …
How to Make a Freedom of Information Act Request – Part 4
This is Part 4 of a 6 Part Blog Series on “How to Make a Freedom of Information Act (“FOIA”) Request“. Please stay tuned for the other blogs for the full picture! Step 4: Wait for Government Response Federal governmental agencies are required to respond to FOIA requests within twenty business days, excluding weekends and holidays, beginning from receipt of …
Transcript from Keynote Presentation and Direct Farm Marketing Roundtable
Last fall, I had the pleasure of giving the Keynote address at the University of Tennessee College of Law’s Agriculture Law & Policy Symposium. My presentation from my “National Agriculture Law Update” is found here. I was also on a roundtable discussing direct farm marketing. The presentation materials are found here. Recently, the Tennessee Journal of Law and Policy published …
How to Make a Freedom of Information Act Request- Part 3
This is Part 3 of a 6 Part Blog Series on “How to Make a Freedom of Information Act (“FOIA”) Request“. Please stay tuned for the other blogs for the full picture! Step 3: Draft and Mail Your Written FOIA Request Letter You cannot make a FOIA request to a federal agency over the telephone. All FOIA requests must be …
How to Make a Freedom of Information Act Request- Part 2
This is Part 2 of a 6 Part Blog Series on “How to Make a Freedom of Information Act (“FOIA”) Request“. Please stay tuned for the other blogs for the full picture! Step 2: Choose The Government Agency or Agencies To Request Documents On either the federal or state level, there is not one central office that manages all …
Overview of FOIA for Food and Agriculture Businesses in New York
You may find a time when you want to see the documents available to the public about yourself or your food or agriculture operation. There are two main federal statutes that guide the process of obtaining information from the federal government: (i) Freedom of Information Act (“FOIA”) and (ii) Privacy Act (“PA”). In New York, requests can be made to …
My Wine & Vineyard Law Presentation
[slideshare id=54880203&doc=nbiwinepresentation11-8-15-151108170827-lva1-app6891] Really enjoyed presenting on wine law last month via the National Business Institute (NBI). For those of you who are looking for holiday gift ideas for yours truly, I love wine. Red wine, white wine, sparkling wine, sake. I don’t discriminate. The above presentation focuses on permits and licenses. It also discusses the governmental players, the types of wineries, …
Pace Law School’s Environmental Law Summer Program with Food and Agriculture Law
As I noted in this post, I will be teaching Survey to Food and Agriculture Law this summer from July 1-5, 2013 at Pace University, School of Law. I wanted to give my readers information on the entire environmental law program. After looking at the entire course schedule, I’m in aw of the great job that my alum has done. …
New York Office of Community Gardens
While reading this publication, I was reminded about the New York Office of Community Gardens with the NYS Department of Agriculture & Markets. Pursuant to NY Ag & Mkts Article 2-C, Section 31-h, the duties of the office are as follows: (1) identify vacant public land suitable for community gardens; (2) coordinate interested community groups with appropriate state or local …
Upcoming ABA Crop & Livestock Insurance CLE
As part of my new leadership role with the American Bar Association (“ABA”) General Practice, Solo & Small Firm Division’s Agriculture Law Committee, I have been busy helping plan a Continuing Legal Education (“CLE”) webinar on crop and livestock insurance. This program will lay down the fundamental building blocks for practicing either crop and or livestock insurance law. Please mark your …
Proposed Rule for Animal Disease Traceability
Last month, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (“USDA”) Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (“APHIS”) issued the long-awaited proposed rule on Traceability for Livestock Moving Interstate. The new proposed system will replace the National Animal Identification System (“NAIS”) and will be primarily managed at the state level. The USDA is currently seeking comments on the proposed rule for Animal Disease Traceability. …