Customer Name:
Peggy James
| We| Peggy James and Debbie Levinthal| jointly file this FOIA in the interest of transparency to the D86 Community and seek production of the following documents in PDF form. Please produce emails (and attachments) to/from/between any of the following individuals/groups: Peggy James| Debbie Levinthal| Terri Walker| Tammy Prentiss| Deb Kedrowski| and [email protected] dated on or after August 10| 2021 through the date of this FOIA request that reference the D86 contract that was entered into with Saxman and Anew (Nunez) in September 2020. The responsive documents should include| but not be limited to| the email from Peggy James to the BOE dated October 1| 2021 and the attachment titled Timeline. To the extent that any responsive documents were written by either of us| we| Peggy James and Debbie Levinthal| give permission for them to be produced in their entirety without any redactions. |
Response:
| Your request is denied. As the District has previously stated| the records have been redacted pursuant to valid FOIA exemptions as the communications in question are preliminary drafts| notes| recommendations| memoranda and other records in which opinions are expressed| or policies or actions are formulated| pursuant to Section 7(1) (f) of FOIA; this includes “predecisional and deliberative material” which the Attorney General has repeatedly stated falls within the Section 7(1)(f) exemption. Harwood v. McDonough| 344 Ill. App. 3d 242| 247 (1st Dist. 2003). Further| the Section 7(1)(f) exemption does not include any language which allows individual members of public bodies to waive the privilege on behalf of the public entity| even as to their own writings. Instead only the “head of the public body” is stated to| in effect| waive the exemption by citing and identifying such records in public. 5 ILCS 140/7(1)(f). In any event| you are not the only author of the redacted materials in the responsive documents. Also| while the redacted materials reference a past contract| they consist of opinions and recommendations for future policies or actions. |