35544 Federal Register / Vol. 83, No. 145 / Friday, July 27, 2018 / Rules and Regulations 

Charles B. Wheeler Downtown RWY 03 LOC 

(Lat. 39°07′40′′ N, long. 94°35′17′′ W) 

That airspace extending upward from the 

surface to and including 3,300 feet MSL 

within a 4.2-mile radius of Charles B. 

Wheeler Downtown Airport, excluding that 

airspace within the Kansas City, MO Class B 

airspace area; and within 1.0 mile each side 

of the 012° bearing from the Charles B. 

Wheeler Downtown RWY 19 LOC, extending 

from the 4.2-mile radius to 4.4 miles north 

of the airport; and within 1.0 mile each side 

of the 013° bearing from the airport, 

extending from the 4.2-mile radius to 4.3 

miles north of the airport; and within 1.0 

mile each side of the 215° bearing from the 

Charles B. Wheeler Downtown RWY 03 LOC, 

extending from the 4.2-mile radius to 4.5 

miles south of the airport; and within 1.0 

mile each side of the 218° bearing from the 

airport, extending from the 4.2-mile radius to 

5.0 miles south of the airport. 

Paragraph 6004 Class E Airspace Areas 

Designated as an Extension to a Class D or 

Class E Surface Area. 

* * * * * 

ACE MO E4 Kansas City Charles B. Wheeler 

Downtown Airport, MO [Removed] 

Paragraph 6005 Class E Airspace Areas 

Extending Upward From 700 Feet or More 

Above the Surface of the Earth. 

* * * * * 

ACE MO E5 Kansas City, MO [Amended] 

Kansas City International Airport, MO 

(Lat. 39°17′51′′ N, long. 94°42′50′′ W) 

Charles B. Wheeler Downtown Airport, MO 

(Lat. 39°07′23′′ N, long. 94°35′34′′ W) 

Charles B. Wheeler Downtown RWY 03 LOC 

(Lat. 39°07′40′′ N, long. 94°35′17′′ W) 

Sherman Army Airfield (AAF), KS 

(Lat. 39°22′03′′ N, long. 94°54′52′′ W) 

That airspace extending upward from 700 

feet above the surface within a 7.6-mile 

radius of Kansas City International Airport; 

and within a 6.7-mile radius of Charles B. 

Wheeler Downtown Airport; and within 2.0 

miles each side of the 215° bearing from the 

Charles B. Wheeler Downtown RWY 03 LOC, 

extending from the 6.7-mile radius to 8.7 

miles south of Charles B. Wheeler Downtown 

Airport; and within a 6.5-mile radius of 

Sherman AAF. 

Issued in Fort Worth, Texas, on July 16, 

2018. 

Walter Tweedy, 

Acting Manager, Operations Support Group, 

ATO Central Service Center. 

[FR Doc. 2018–16013 Filed 7–26–18; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4910–13–P 

MILLENNIUM CHALLENGE 

CORPORATION 

22 CFR Part 1304 

Freedom of Information Act 

Regulations 

AGENCY: Millennium Challenge 

Corporation. 

ACTION: Final rule. 

SUMMARY: This rule amends the 

Agency’s regulations under the Freedom 

of Information Act (FOIA). The 

regulation has been revised to update 

and implement the relevant provisions 

of the Freedom of Information Act as 

required under that statute. This 

document will assist interested parties 

in obtaining access to Millennium 

Challenge Corporation public records. 

DATES: This rule is effective July 27, 

2018. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Tamiko N.W. Watkins, Chief FOIA 

Officer, 202–521–3730. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The 

Millennium Challenge Act (MCA) of 

2003 established a new federal agency 

called the Millennium Challenge 

Corporation. Congress enacted the 

Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) in 

1966 and last modified it with the FOIA 

Improvement Act of 2016. This rule 

addresses electronically available 

documents, procedures for making 

requests, agency handling of requests, 

records not disclosed, changes in fees, 

and public reading rooms, as well as, 

other related provisions. 

Discussion of Final Rule and Response 

to Comments and Other Changes From 

Proposed Rule 

MCC reviewed all public comments 

and made the necessary revisions in 

order to ensure that this rule complies 

with the Freedom of Information Act 

and FOIA Improvement Act of 2016. 

These revisions include updating 

definitions to reflect the definitions 

identified in the Department of Justice 

Template for Agency FOIA Regulations. 

Lists of Subjects in 22 CFR Part 1304 

Freedom of Information Act 

procedures. 

■ For the reasons set forth in the 

preamble, the Millennium Challenge 

Corporation amends chapter XIII of title 

22 by revising part 1304 to read as 

follows: 

PART 1304—PRODUCTION OR 

DISCLOSURE OF INFORMATION 

Subpart A—Procedures for Requests 

for Disclosure of Records Under the 

Freedom of Information Act 

Sec. 

1304.1 General provisions. 

1304.2 Definitions. 

1304.3 Proactive disclosure of MCC records. 

1304.4 Requirements for making requests. 

1304.5 Responsibility for acknowledgment 

and initial determinations. 

1304.6 Timing of responses to requests. 

1304.7 Responses to requests. 

1304.8 Confidential commercial 

information. 

1304.9 Administrative appeals. 

1304.10 Preservation of records. 

1304.11 Fees. 

1304.12 Other rights and services. 

Subpart B—[Reserved] 

Authority: 5 U.S.C. 552, as amended. 

§ 1304.1 General provisions. 

This part contains the rules that the 

Millennium Challenge Corporation 

(‘‘MCC’’) follows in processing requests 

for records under the Freedom of 

Information Act (‘‘FOIA’’) (5 U.S.C. 

552). The rules in this part should be 

read in conjunction with the text of the 

FOIA and the Uniform Freedom of 

Information Act Fee Schedule and 

Guidelines published by the Office of 

Management and Budget (‘‘OMB Fee 

Guidelines’’). In addition, the MCC 

FOIA web page contains information 

about the specific procedures particular 

to MCC with respect to making FOIA 

requests. This resource is available at 

www.mcc.gov/resources/foia. 

§ 1304.2 Definitions. 

Administrative appeal. An 

independent review of the initial 

determination made in response to a 

FOIA request. 

Agency. Any executive department, 

military department, government 

corporation, government controlled 

corporation, or other establishment in 

the executive branch of the Federal 

Government or any independent 

regulatory agency. 

Business day or work day. A day of 

the week, excluding Saturday, Sunday, 

or legal public holidays. 

Calendar days. Every day within a 

month, including Saturday, Sunday, 

and legal public holidays. Unless 

identified as a ‘‘business day’’ or ‘‘work 

day,’’ all timeframes and days noted in 

this part shall be calculated in calendar 

days. 

Chief FOIA Officer. A designated 

MCC employee who is a senior official, 

at the Assistant Secretary or equivalent 

level who, subject to the authority of the 

head of the agency, shall have agency 

wide responsibility for efficient and 

appropriate compliance with the FOIA. 

In addition, the Chief FOIA Officer shall 

monitor implementation of the FOIA 

throughout MCC and keep the head of 

the agency, the chief legal officer of the 

agency, and the Attorney General 

appropriately informed of the agency’s 

performance in implementing the FOIA; 

recommend to the head of the agency 

such adjustments to MCC’s practices, 

policies, personnel, and funding as may 


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be necessary to improve its 

implementation of the FOIA; facilitate 

public understanding of the purposes of 

the statutory exemptions of the FOIA; 

offer training to MCC staff regarding 

their responsibilities under the FOIA, 

serve as the primary agency liaison with 

the Office of Government Information 

Services and the Office of Information 

policy; and designate one (1) or more 

FOIA Public Liaisons. The Chief FOIA 

Officer shall review, not less frequently 

than annually, all aspects of the 

administration of the FOIA by MCC to 

ensure compliance with the 

requirements of the FOIA, including— 

agency regulations; disclosure of 

records; assessment of fees and 

determination of eligibility for fee 

waivers; timely processing of requests 

for information; the use of exemptions; 

and dispute resolution services with the 

assistance of the Office of Government 

Information Services or the FOIA Public 

Liaison. 

Commercial requester. Any person 

making a request for information for a 

use or purpose that furthers a 

commercial, trade, or profit interest, 

which can include furthering those 

interests through litigation. 

Complex request. A FOIA request that 

MCC anticipates will involve a 

voluminous amount of material to 

review or will be time-consuming to 

process. 

Confidential commercial information. 

Records provided to the government 

that contain material exempt from 

disclosure under Exemption 4 of the 

FOIA and disclosure of such records 

could reasonably be expected to cause 

substantial competitive harm. 

Consultation. When MCC locates a 

record that contains information of 

interest to another agency, MCC shall 

ask the interested agency for their views 

on disclosing the records before any 

final determination is made. 

Direct costs. Expenditures actually 

incurred by MCC for searching, 

duplicating, and in the case of 

commercial use requests, reviewing 

records in order to respond to a FOIA 

request. 

Discretionary disclosure. The release 

of or portions of records to a FOIA 

requester that could be withheld by 

MCC under one or more of the FOIA 

exemptions. 

Duplication. The process of making a 

copy of a record in order to respond to 

a FOIA request, including but not 

limited to paper copies, microfilm, 

audio-video materials, and computer 

diskettes or other electronic copies. 

Duplication fees. The estimated direct 

costs of making a copy of a record in 

order to respond to a FOIA request. 

Educational institution. Any school or 

institution that operates a program of 

scholarly research. A requester in this 

category must show that the request is 

made in connection with his or her role 

at the educational institution. 

Educational requester. A student who 

makes a request in furtherance of their 

coursework or other school-sponsored 

activities and provides a copy of a 

course syllabus or other reasonable 

documentation to indicate the research 

purpose for the request, would qualify 

as part of this fee category. 

Exemptions. Certain categories of 

information that are not required to be 

released in response to a FOIA request 

because release would be harmful to 

governmental or private interests. 

Fee waiver. The waiver or reduction 

of processing fees if a requester can 

demonstrate that certain statutory 

standards are satisfied including that 

the information is in the public interest 

and is not requested for a commercial 

interest. 

FOIA Appeals Officer. The MCC 

employee who is responsible for 

conducting an independent review of 

the initial determination of the FOIA 

request after the requester has requested 

an administrative appeal. 

FOIA Public Liaison. The MCC 

employee who is responsible for 

assisting in the resolution of disputes in 

response to FOIA requests. 

FOIA Program Officer. The MCC 

employee who receives and processes 

requests within the MCC FOIA Office. 

Non-commercial scientific institution. 

An institution that does not operate on 

a commercial basis, but operates solely 

for the purpose of conducting scientific 

research and the results of the scientific 

research are not intended to promote 

any particular product or industry. 

Record. Any item, collection, or 

grouping of information maintained by 

MCC in any form or format, including 

an electronic copy. A ‘‘record’’ can 

potentially constitute an entire 

document, a single page of a multipage 

document, an individual paragraph of a 

document, or an email within an email 

chain. 

Referral. When an agency locates a 

record that originated with, or is of 

otherwise primary interest to another 

agency, it will forward that record to the 

other agency to process the record and 

to provide the final determination 

directly to the requester. 

Representative of the news media. 

Any person or entity that gathers 

information of potential interest to a 

segment of the public, uses its editorial 

skills to turn the raw materials into a 

distinct work, and distributes that work 

to an audience. The term ‘‘news’’ means 

information that is about current events 

or that would be of current interest to 

the public. Examples of news media 

entities include television or radio 

stations that broadcast ‘‘news’’ to the 

public at large and publishers of 

periodicals that disseminate ‘‘news’’ 

and make their products available 

through a variety of means to the 

general public, including news 

organizations that disseminate solely on 

the internet. A request for records 

supporting the news-dissemination 

function of the requester will not be 

considered to be for a commercial use. 

‘‘Freelance’’ journalists who 

demonstrate a solid basis for expecting 

publication through a news media entity 

will be considered as a representative of 

the news media. A publishing contract 

would provide the clearest evidence 

that publication is expected; however, 

agencies can also consider a requester’s 

past publication record in making this 

determination. 

Review. The process of examining a 

record to determine whether all or part 

of the record may be released or 

withheld, and includes redacting or 

otherwise processing the record for 

disclosure to a requester. The review 

process does not include time spent 

resolving legal or policy issues 

regarding the application of exemptions 

to a record. The review process also 

does not include time spent reviewing 

records at the administrative appeal 

level unless, MCC determines that the 

exemption under which it withheld 

records does not apply and the records 

are reviewed again to determine 

whether a different exemption may 

apply. 

Requester category. One of the three 

categories that agencies place requesters 

in for the purpose of determining 

whether a requester will be charged fees 

for search, review and duplication, 

including commercial requesters; noncommercial scientific or educational 

institutions or news media requesters, 

and all other requesters. 

Search. The time spent locating 

records that may be responsive to a 

request, manually or by electronic 

means, including page-by-page or lineby-line identification of responsive 

material within a record. 

Search fees. Estimated direct costs of 

the time spent locating records by either 

manual or electronic means. 

Submitter. Any person or entity who 

provides information directly or 

indirectly to MCC. The term includes, 

but is not limited to, corporations, state 

governments, and foreign governments. 


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§ 1304.3 Proactive disclosure of MCC 

records. 

Records that are required by the FOIA 

to be made available for public 

inspection in an electronic format may 

be accessed through the MCC website. 

MCC is responsible for determining 

which of its records are required to be 

made publicly available, identifying 

additional records in the interest of the 

public that are appropriate for public 

disclosure, and posting such records. 

MCC shall ensure that its website of 

posted records is reviewed and updated 

on an ongoing basis. The FOIA Program 

Officer may assist individuals in 

locating records on the MCC website 

and FOIA reading room. 

§ 1304.4 Requirements for making 

requests. 

(a) Requests for access to, or copies of, 

MCC records other than those identified 

in § 1304.3, shall be in writing and 

addressed to the MCC Chief FOIA 

Officer at 1099 14th St. NW, 

Washington, DC 20005 or FOIA@

mcc.gov. All requests for records shall 

be deemed to have been made pursuant 

to the FOIA, regardless of whether the 

request specifically mentions the 

Freedom of Information Act. To 

facilitate processing, the requester 

should place the phrase ‘‘FOIA 

REQUEST’’ in capital letters on the front 

of the envelope or subject line of the 

email. 

(b) Each request shall include the 

following: 

(1) A description of the record(s) that 

provides sufficient detail to enable MCC 

to locate the record(s) with a reasonable 

amount of effort; such as the date, title 

or name, author, recipient, subject 

matter of the record, case number, file 

designation, or reference number. Before 

submitting their requests, requesters 

may contact the MCC FOIA Program 

Officer to discuss the records the are 

seeking and receive assistance in 

describing the records; 

(2) The preferred format of the 

records; 

(3) The requestor’s full name, mailing 

address or email address, and telephone 

number where the requester can be 

reached during business hours; and 

(4) If applicable, the maximum 

amount the requester is willing to pay 

or dollar limit on the fees MCC may 

incur to respond to the request for 

records. When this information is 

specified, MCC shall not exceed such 

limit. 

(c) If a request does not meet all of the 

requirements of paragraph (b) of this 

section, the FOIA Program Officer may 

advise the requester that additional 

information is needed. Requesters who 

are attempting to reformulate or modify 

a request may engage with the MCC 

Program Officer to clarify their request. 

§ 1304.5 Responsibility for 

acknowledgment and initial determinations. 

(a) Upon receipt of a request for 

records, the FOIA Program Officer will 

acknowledge receipt of the request in 

writing within ten (10) business days. In 

responding to a request for records, 

MCC shall make reasonable efforts to 

search for the records in electronic 

format, except when such efforts would 

significantly interfere with the operation 

of the agency’s automated information 

system. 

(b) The Chief FOIA Officer shall make 

an initial determination, within twenty 

(20) business days, to either grant or 

deny, in whole or in part, a request for 

records. If the Chief FOIA Officer shall 

notify the requester making such a 

request of the following information: 

(1) The determination whether grant 

or deny the request and reasons for the 

determination; 

(2) The right of the requester to seek 

assistance from the FOIA Public 

Liaison; and in the case of an adverse 

determination; 

(3) The right of the requester to seek 

dispute resolution services via the 

Office of Government Information 

Services of the National Archives and 

Records Administration (OGIS); and 

(4) The right to file an administrative 

appeal to the FOIA Appeals Officer 

within 90 calendar days after the date of 

the adverse determination. 

§ 1304.6 Timing of responses to requests. 

(a) General information. The twenty 

(20) business day period identified in 

§ 1304.5(b) shall commence on the date 

that the request is first received by the 

MCC FOIA office and an 

acknowledgment of the request shall be 

sent no later than ten (10) business days 

after receipt of the request. The twenty 

(20) business day period shall not be 

tolled except that MCC may make one 

request to the requester for information 

and toll the twenty (20) business day 

period while it is awaiting receipt of the 

information, or the twenty (20) business 

day period may be tolled if it is 

necessary to clarify issues regarding fees 

with the requester. 

(b) Unusual circumstances. If MCC 

cannot meet the statutory time limit for 

processing a request because of 

‘‘unusual circumstances’’ as defined in 

the FOIA and MCC extends the time 

limit on that basis, MCC will, before 

expiration of the twenty (20) business 

day period, notify the requester in 

writing of the unusual circumstances 

involved and of the date by which MCC 

estimates processing of the request will 

be completed. Where the extension 

exceeds ten (10) business days, MCC 

will provide the requester with an 

opportunity to modify the request or 

arrange an alternative time period for 

processing the original or modified 

request. MCC must make its designated 

FOIA Program Officer or FOIA Public 

Liaison available for this purpose. To 

aid the requester, the MCC FOIA Public 

Liaison shall assist in the resolution of 

any disputes between the requester and 

MCC, and notify the requester of the 

right to seek dispute resolution services 

from the Office of Government 

Information Services. 

(c) Aggregating requests. MCC may 

aggregate requests where it reasonably 

appears that multiple requests, 

submitted either by a requester or by a 

group of requesters acting in concert, 

constitute a single request that would 

otherwise involve unusual 

circumstances. Requests that involve 

unrelated matters shall not be 

aggregated. 

(d) Multitrack processing. MCC may 

use multitrack processing in responding 

to requests. This process entails 

separating simple requests that require 

rather limited review from more lengthy 

and complex requests. Requests in each 

track are then processed in their 

respective track. The FOIA Program 

Officer may provide requesters in the 

slower track an opportunity to limit the 

scope of their requests in order to 

decrease the processing time required. 

The FOIA Program Officer may provide 

the opportunity to limit the scope of the 

request by contacting the requester by 

letter, email, or telephone. 

(e) Expedited processing of requests. 

The FOIA Program Officer must 

determine whether to grant a request for 

expedited processing within ten (10) 

calendar days of its receipt. Requests 

will receive expedited processing if one 

of the following criteria are met: 

(1) The requester can establish that 

failure to receive the records quickly 

could reasonably be expected to pose an 

imminent threat to the life or physical 

safety of an individual; 

(2) The requester is primarily engaged 

in disseminating information and can 

demonstrate that an urgency to inform 

the public concerning actual or alleged 

Federal Government activity exists; or 

(3) As determined by the Chief FOIA 

Officer. 

(f) Written expedited requests. A 

requester who seeks expedited 

processing must submit a written 

statement explaining in detail the basis 

for making the request for expedited 

processing. This statement must be 

certified to be true and correct. The 


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MCC Chief FOIA Officer may waive the 

formal certification requirement. 

§ 1304.7 Responses to requests. 

(a) General information. MCC, to the 

extent practicable, will communicate 

with requesters who have access to the 

internet via email or web portal. 

(b) Acknowledgment of requests. MCC 

shall acknowledge the request in writing 

and assign a tracking number for 

processing purposes. 

(c) Estimated dates of completion and 

interim responses. Upon request, MCC 

shall provide an estimated response 

date. If a request involves a voluminous 

amount of material or searches in 

multiple locations, MCC shall provide 

interim responses by releasing the 

records on a rolling basis. 

(d) Granting requests. MCC will notify 

the requestor in writing if it determines 

that it will grant a request in full or in 

part. MCC shall inform the requester of 

any fees charged and shall disclose the 

requested records to the requester 

promptly upon payment of any 

applicable fees. 

(e) Partial grant of requests. MCC 

shall consider whether partial 

disclosure of information is possible 

whenever the agency determines that a 

full disclosure of a requested record is 

not possible. MCC shall take reasonable 

steps necessary to segregate and release 

nonexempt information. 

(f) Denial or adverse determination of 

requests. Except as otherwise provided 

in this part, MCC shall withhold 

information only if— 

(1) It reasonably foresees that 

disclosure would harm an interest 

protected by an exemption under the 

FOIA or disclosure is prohibited by law; 

(2) The request does not reasonably 

describe the records sought; 

(3) The information sought is not a 

record subject to the FOIA; 

(4) The information sought does not 

exist, cannot be located, or has been 

destroyed; or 

(5) The records are not in the readily 

producible form or format sought by the 

requester. 

(g) Markings on released documents. 

Records disclosed in part shall be 

marked clearly to show the amount of 

information deleted and the exemption 

under which the deletion was made 

unless doing so would harm an interest 

protected by an applicable exemption. 

§ 1304.8 Confidential commercial 

information. 

(a) Designation of confidential 

commercial information. A submitter of 

confidential commercial information 

must use good faith efforts to designate 

by appropriate markings, either at the 

time of the submission or within a 

reasonable time thereafter, any portion 

of its submission that it considers to be 

protected from disclosure under 

Exemption 4 of the FOIA. These 

designations shall expire ten (10) years 

after the date of submission unless the 

submitter requests and provides 

justification for a longer designation 

period. 

(b) Required notice. Written notice 

shall be provided to a submitter of 

confidential commercial information 

whenever records containing such 

information are requested under the 

FOIA if, after reviewing the request, the 

responsive records, and any appeal by 

the requester, it is determined that MCC 

may be required to disclose the records, 

provided: 

(1) The requested information has 

been designated in good faith by the 

submitter as information considered 

protected from disclosure under 

Exemption 4 of the FOIA; or 

(2) MCC has reason to believe that the 

requested information may be protected 

from disclosure under Exemption 4 of 

the FOIA, but has not yet determined 

whether the information is protected 

from disclosure under that exemption or 

any other applicable exemption. 

(c) Information. The notices shall 

either describe the commercial 

information requested or include a copy 

of the requested records or portions of 

records containing information. In cases 

involving a voluminous number of 

submitters, notice may be made by 

posting or publishing the notice in a 

place or manner reasonably likely to 

accomplish it. 

(d) Exceptions to notice requirements. 

The notices requirements of this section 

shall not apply if: 

(1) The Chief FOIA Officer determines 

that the information is exempt under the 

FOIA; 

(2) The information has been lawfully 

published or has officially been made 

available to the public; 

(3) Disclosure of the information is 

required by a statute other than the 

FOIA or by a regulation issued in 

accordance with the requirements of 

Executive Order 12600 of June 23, 1987; 

or 

(4) The designation made by the 

submitter under paragraph (b) of this 

section appears obviously frivolous, 

except that, in such a case, the 

component shall give the submitter 

written notice of any final decision to 

disclose the information and must 

provide that notice within a reasonable 

number of days prior to the disclosure 

date. 

(e) Opportunity to object to disclosure. 

A submitter may provide the Chief 

FOIA Officer with a detailed written 

statement of any objection to disclosure 

within ten (10) days of notification. The 

statement shall specify all grounds for 

withholding any of the information 

under any exemption of the FOIA, and 

if Exemption 4 applies, shall 

demonstrate the reasons the submitter 

believes the information to be 

confidential commercial information 

that is exempt from disclosure. 

Whenever possible, the submitter’s 

claim of confidentiality shall be 

supported by a statement or certification 

by an officer or authorized 

representative of the submitter. In the 

event a submitter fails to respond to the 

notice in the time specified, the 

submitter will be considered to have no 

objection to the disclosure of the 

information. Information provided by 

the submitter that is received after the 

disclosure decision has been made will 

not be considered. Information provided 

by a submitter pursuant to this 

paragraph may itself be subject to 

disclosure under the FOIA. 

(f) Notice of intent to disclose. The 

Chief FOIA Officer shall consider a 

submitter’s objections and specific 

grounds for nondisclosure prior to 

determining whether to disclose the 

information requested. Whenever the 

Chief FOIA Officer determines that 

disclosure is appropriate, the Chief 

FOIA Officer shall, within a reasonable 

number of days prior to disclosure, 

provide the submitter with written 

notice of the intent to disclose which 

shall include a statement of the reasons 

for which the submitter’s objections 

were overruled, a description of the 

information to be disclosed, and a 

specific disclosure date. The Chief FOIA 

Officer shall also notify the requester 

that the requested records will be made 

available. 

(g) Notice of lawsuit. If the requester 

files a lawsuit seeking to compel 

disclosure of confidential commercial 

information, MCC shall promptly notify 

the submitter of this action. If a 

submitter files a lawsuit seeking to 

prevent disclosure of confidential 

commercial information, MCC shall 

promptly notify the requester. 

§ 1304.9 Administrative appeals. 

(a) Requirements for appealing an 

adverse determination. A requester may 

appeal any adverse determination to 

MCC. The requester must submit a 

written notice of appeal and it must be 

postmarked or, in the case of electronic 

submissions, transmitted within ninety 

(90) calendar days after the date of the 

response. The appeal should clearly 

identify the determination that is being 

appealed and the assigned tracking 


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number. To facilitate handling, the 

requester should mark both the appeal 

letter and envelope, or subject line of 

the electronic transmission, ‘‘Freedom 

of Information Act Appeal.’’ 

(b) Appeals address. Requesters can 

submit appeals by mail by addressing it 

to Millennium Challenge Corporation, 

Attn.: FOIA Appeals Officer, 1099 14th 

St. NW, Washington, DC 20005 or 

online at FOIA@mcc.gov. 

(c) Adjudication of appeals. The MCC 

FOIA Appeals Officer will adjudicate 

the appeal within twenty (20) business 

days after the receipt of such appeal. An 

appeal ordinarily will not be 

adjudicated if the request becomes a 

matter of the subject of litigation. On 

receipt of any appeal involving 

classified information, the MCC FOIA 

Appeals Officer must take appropriate 

action to ensure compliance with 

applicable classification rules. 

(d) Final agency determinations. The 

FOIA Appeals Officer shall issue a final 

written determination, stating the basis 

for the decision, within twenty (20) 

business days after receipt of a notice of 

appeal. Any decision that upholds 

MCC’s determination in whole or in part 

must contain a statement that identifies 

the reason(s) for the decision, including 

any FOIA exemptions applied. The 

decision will provide the requester with 

notification of the statutory right to file 

a lawsuit and will inform the requester 

of the dispute resolution services 

offered by the OGIS of the National 

Archives and Records Administration as 

a non-exclusive alternative to litigation. 

If the Chief FOIA Officer’s decision is 

remanded or modified on appeal, the 

FOIA Appeals Officer will notify the 

requester of the determination in 

writing. MCC will then further process 

the request in accordance with the 

appeal determination and will respond 

directly to the requester. 

(e) Engaging in dispute resolution 

services provided by OGIS. Dispute 

resolution is a voluntary process. If 

MCC agrees to participate in the dispute 

resolution services provided by OGIS, 

MCC will actively engage as a partner to 

the process in an attempt to resolve the 

dispute. 

(f) When an appeal is required. Before 

seeking review by a court of MCC’s 

adverse determination, a requester 

generally must first submit a timely 

administrative appeal. 

§ 1304.10 Preservation of records. 

MCC shall preserve all 

correspondence pertaining to the 

requests that it receives under this part, 

as well as copies of all requested 

records, until disposition or destruction 

is authorized pursuant to Title 44 of the 

United States Code or the General 

Records Schedule 4.2 of the National 

Archives and Records Administration. 

MCC shall not dispose of or destroy 

records while they are the subject of a 

pending request, appeal, or lawsuit 

under the FOIA. 

§ 1304.11 Fees. 

(a) General information. (1) MCC’s fee 

provisions are governed by the FOIA 

and by the Office of Management and 

Budget’s Uniform FOIA Fee Schedule 

and Guidelines. For purposes of 

assessing fees, the FOIA establishes the 

following categories of requesters: 

(i) Commercial use; 

(ii) Non-commercial scientific or 

educational institutions; 

(iii) Representative of the news media; 

and 

(iv) All other requesters. 

(2) Fees will be assessed pursuant to 

the category of requester and detailed in 

paragraph (b) of this section. Requesters 

may seek a fee waiver. To resolve any 

fee issues that arise under this section, 

MCC may contact a requester for 

additional information. MCC will 

ensure that searches, review, and 

duplication are conducted in the most 

efficient and the least expensive 

manner. MCC ordinarily will collect all 

applicable fees before sending copies of 

records to a requester. Requesters must 

pay fees to the Treasury of the United 

States. All fee information is available at 

www.mcc.gov/resources/foia. 

(b) Charging fees. Because the fee 

amounts provided already account for 

the direct costs associated with the 

given fee type, MCC will not add any 

additional costs to charges calculated 

under this section. In responding to 

FOIA requests, MCC shall charge fees 

for the following unless a waiver or 

reduction of fees has been granted: 

(1) Search time fees. Search time 

includes page-by-page or line-by-line 

identification of information within 

records and the reasonable efforts 

expended to locate and retrieve 

information from electronic records. 

(i) Requests made by education 

institutions, non-commercial scientific 

institutions, or representatives of the 

news media are not subject to search 

time fees. Search time fees shall be 

charged for all other requesters, subject 

to the restrictions identified in this 

section. MCC may properly charge for 

time spent searching even if no 

responsive records are located if it is 

determined that the records are entirely 

exempt from disclosure. 

(ii) Requesters shall be charged the 

direct costs associated with conducting 

any searches that require the creation of 

a new computer program to locate the 

requested records. Requesters shall be 

notified of the costs associated with 

creating such a program and must agree 

to pay the associated costs before the 

costs may be incurred. 

(iii) For requests that require the 

retrieval of records stored by an agency 

at the Federal Records Centers operated 

by the National Archives and Records 

Administration (NARA), additional 

costs shall be charged in accordance 

with the Transactional Billing Range 

Schedule established by NARA. 

(2) Duplication fees. Duplication fees 

shall be charged to all requesters, 

subject to the restrictions in this section. 

MCC shall honor a requester’s 

preference for receiving a record in a 

particular form or format where it is 

readily reproducible by MCC in the 

form or format requested. Where 

photocopies are supplied, MCC shall 

provide one copy per request and charge 

fees calculated per page. For copies of 

records produced on tapes, disks, or 

other media, MCC shall charge the 

direct costs of producing the copy, 

including operator time. Where paper 

documents must be scanned in order to 

comply with a requester’s preference to 

receive the records in an electronic 

format, the requester shall be charged 

direct costs associated with scanning 

those materials. For other forms of 

duplication, MCC shall charge the direct 

costs. 

(3) Review. Review fees shall be 

charged to requesters who make 

commercial use requests. Review fees 

shall be assessed in connection with the 

initial review of the record. No charge 

will be made for review at the 

administrative appeal state of 

exemptions applied at the initial review 

stage. If a particular exemption is 

deemed to no longer apply, any costs 

associated with MCC’s subsequent 

review following the administrative 

appeal of the records in order to 

consider the use of other exemptions 

may be assessed as review fees. 

(c) Restrictions on charging fees. The 

following restrictions shall apply to 

MCC FOIA requests: 

(1) If MCC fails to comply with the 

FOIA’s time limits to respond to a 

request, MCC may not charge fees, 

except as described in paragraphs (c)(3) 

through (5) of this section; 

(2) If MCC has determined that 

unusual circumstances as defined by the 

FOIA apply and the agency provided 

timely written notice to the requester in 

accordance with the FOIA, a failure to 

comply with the time limit shall be 

excused for an additional ten (10) 

calendar days; 

(3) If MCC has determined that 

unusual circumstances as defined by the 


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FOIA apply, and more than fivethousand (5,000) pages are necessary to 

respond to the request, MCC may charge 

search time fees or duplication fees 

where applicable, if MCC has provided 

timely written notice of the unusual 

circumstances to the requester in 

accordance with the FOIA and has 

discussed with the requester via written 

mail, email, or telephone (or made a 

minimum of three (3) good-faith 

attempts to do so) how the requester 

could effectively limit the scope of the 

request; 

(4) If a court has determined that 

exceptional circumstances exist as 

defined by the FOIA, a failure to comply 

with the time limits shall be excused for 

the length of time provided by the court 

order; and 

(5) No search time or review fees will 

be charged for a quarter-hour period 

unless more than half of that period is 

required for search or review. 

(d) Fee exceptions. Except for 

requesters seeking records for 

commercial use, MCC shall provide 

without charge: 

(1) The first one-hundred (100) pages 

of duplication (or the cost equivalent for 

other media); and 

(2) The first two (2) hours of search 

time. When, after deducting the first 

one-hundred (100) free pages (or its cost 

equivalent) and the first two (2) hours 

of search time, a total fee calculated 

under this section is $25.00 or less for 

any request, no fee will be charged. 

(e) Notice of anticipated fees in excess 

of $25.00. (1) When MCC determines 

that the fees to be assessed will exceed 

$25.00, the requester shall be notified of 

the actual or estimated amount of the 

fees, including the breakdown of the 

fees for search time, review or 

duplication, unless the requester has 

indicated a willingness to pay fees as 

high as those anticipated. If only a 

portion of the fee can be estimated 

readily, MCC shall advise the requester 

accordingly. If the requester is not a 

commercial use requester, the notice 

shall specify that the requester is 

entitled to the statutory requirements of 

one-hundred (100) pages of duplication 

at no charge and, if the requester is 

charged search time fees, two (2) hours 

of search time at no charge, and shall 

advise the requester whether those 

entitlements have been provided. 

(2) In cases in which a requester has 

been notified that the actual or 

estimated fees are in excess of $25.00, 

the request shall not be considered 

received and further work will not be 

completed until the requester commits, 

in writing, to pay the actual or estimated 

total fee, or designates some amount of 

fees the requester is willing to pay, or 

in the case of a requester who is not a 

commercial use requester who has not 

yet been provided with the requester’s 

statutory entitlements, designates that 

the requester seeks only that which can 

be provided by the statutory 

entitlements. The requester must 

provide the commitment or designation 

in writing, and must, when applicable 

designate an exact dollar amount the 

requester is willing to pay. MCC is not 

required to accept payments in 

installments. 

(3) If the requester has indicated a 

willingness to pay some designated 

amount of fees, and MCC estimates that 

the total fee will exceed that amount, 

MCC shall toll the processing of the 

request when it notifies the requester of 

the estimated fees in excess of the 

amount the requester has indicated a 

willingness to pay. MCC shall inquire 

whether the requester wishes to revise 

the amount of fees the requester is 

willing to pay or modify the request. 

Once the requester responds, the time to 

respond will resume from where it was 

at the date of the notification. 

(4) The FOIA Program Officer will 

assist any requester in reformulating a 

request to meet the requester’s needs at 

a lower cost. 

(f) Waiver or reduction of fees. 

Documents shall be furnished without 

charge or at a charge below that listed 

in this section based upon information 

provided by a requester or otherwise 

made known to the Chief FOIA Officer 

that disclosure of the requested 

information is in the public interest. 

Disclosure is in the public interest if it 

is likely to contribute significantly to 

public understanding of government 

operations and is not primarily for 

commercial purposes. Requests for a 

waiver or reduction of fees shall be 

considered on a case by case basis. 

Where only some of the records to be 

released satisfy the requirements for 

waiver of fees, a waiver shall be granted 

to those records. In order to determine 

whether the fee waiver requirement is 

met, the Chief FOIA Officer shall 

consider the following factors: 

(1) The subject of the request. 

Whether the subject of the requested 

records concerns the operations or 

activities of the government; 

(2) The informative value of the 

information to be disclosed; and 

(3) The significance of the 

contribution to public understanding. 

(g) Fees pending a waiver request. 

Requests for a waiver or reduction of 

fees should be made when the request 

is first submitted to the agency and 

should address the criteria referenced in 

this section. A requester may submit a 

fee waiver request at a later time so long 

as the underlying record request is 

pending or on administrative appeal. 

When a requester who has committed to 

pay fees subsequently asks for a waiver 

of those fees and that waiver is denied, 

the requester must pay any costs 

incurred up to the date the fee waiver 

request was received. 

(h) Types of requesters. There are four 

categories of FOIA requesters: 

Commercial use requesters, educational 

and non-commercial scientific 

institutional requesters; representatives 

of the news media; and all other 

requesters. The following specific levels 

of fees are prescribed for each of these 

categories: 

(1) Commercial requesters shall be 

charged the full direct costs of searching 

for, reviewing, and duplicating 

requested records; 

(2) Educational and non-commercial 

scientific institution requesters shall be 

charged for document duplication only 

and the first one-hundred (100) pages of 

paper copies shall be provided without 

charge; 

(3) Representative of the news media 

requesters shall be charged for 

document duplication costs only, except 

that the first one-hundred (100) pages of 

paper copies shall be provided without 

charge; and 

(4) All other requesters who do not 

fall into any of the categories in 

paragraphs (h)(1) through (3) of this 

section shall be charged fees which 

recover the full reasonable direct costs 

incurred for searching for and 

reproducing records if that total costs 

exceeds $25.00, except that the first onehundred (100) pages of duplication and 

the first two hours of manual search 

time shall not be charged. 

(i) Charges for unsuccessful searches. 

If the requester has been notified of the 

estimated cost of the search time and 

has been advised specifically that the 

requested records may not exist or may 

be withheld as exempt, fees may be 

charged. 

(j) Charges for other services. 

Although MCC is not required to 

provide special services, if it chooses to 

do so as a matter of administrative 

discretion, the direct costs of providing 

the service shall be charged. Examples 

of such services include certifying that 

records are true copies, providing 

multiple copies of the same document, 

or sending records by means other than 

first class mail. 

(k) Charging interest. MCC may charge 

interest on any unpaid bill starting on 

the 31st day following the date of billing 

the requester. Interest charges shall be 

assessed at the rate provided in 31 

U.S.C. 3717 and will accrue from the 

billing date until payment is received. 


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35550 Federal Register / Vol. 83, No. 145 / Friday, July 27, 2018 / Rules and Regulations 

MCC shall follow the provisions of the 

Debt Collection Act of 1982, as 

amended, and its administrative 

procedures, including the use consumer 

reporting agencies, collection agencies, 

and offset. 

(l) Aggregating requests. The requester 

or a group of requesters may not submit 

multiple requests at the same time, each 

seeking portions of a document or 

documents solely in order to avoid 

payment of fees. When the FOIA 

Program Officer reasonably believes that 

a requester is attempting to divide a 

request into a series of requests to evade 

an assessment of fees, the FOIA Program 

Officer may aggregate such requests and 

charge accordingly. MCC may presume 

that multiple requests of this type made 

within a thirty (30) calendar day period 

have been made in order to avoid fees. 

For requests separated by a longer 

period, MCC will aggregate them only 

where there is a reasonable basis for 

determining that aggregation is 

warranted in view of all the 

circumstances involved. Multiple 

requests involving unrelated matters 

cannot be aggregated. 

(m) Advance payment of fees. (1) 

MCC may require an advanced payment 

of fees if the requestor previously failed 

to pay fees or if the FOIA Program 

Officer determines the total fee will 

exceed $250.00. When payment is 

required in advance of the processing of 

a request, the time limits prescribed in 

§ 1304.5 shall not be deemed to begin 

until the requester has paid the assessed 

fees. 

(2) In cases in which MCC requires 

advance payment, the request will not 

be considered received and further work 

will not be completed until the required 

payment is received. If the requester 

does not pay the advance payment 

within thirty (30) calendar days after the 

date of the fee determination, the 

request will be closed. Where it is 

anticipated that the cost of providing 

the requested record will exceed $25.00 

but falls below $250.00 after the free 

duplication and search time has been 

calculated, MCC may, in its discretion 

may require either an advance deposit 

of the entire estimated charges or 

written confirmation of the requester’s 

willingness to pay such charges. 

(3) Where the requester has 

previously failed to pay a properly 

charged FOIA fee within thirty (30) 

calendar days of the billing date, MCC 

may require the requester to pay the full 

amount due plus any applicable interest 

on that prior request, and/or require that 

the requester make an advance payment 

of the full amount of the anticipated fee 

before MCC begins a new request or 

continues to process a pending request 

or any pending appeal. If MCC has a 

reasonable basis to believe that a 

requester has misrepresented the 

requester’s identity in order to avoid 

paying outstanding fees, MCC may 

require that the requester provide proof 

of identity. 

§ 1304.12 Other rights and services. 

Nothing in this part shall be 

construed to entitle any person a right 

to any service or to the disclosure of any 

record to which such person is not 

entitled under the FOIA. 

Dated: July 17, 2018. 

Tamiko N.W. Watkins, 

Chief FOIA Officer, Millennium Challenge 

Corporation. 

[FR Doc. 2018–15950 Filed 7–26–18; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 9211–03–P 

DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND 

SECURITY 

Coast Guard 

33 CFR Part 117 

[Docket No. USCG–2018–0660] 

Drawbridge Operation Regulation; 

Jamaica Bay, Queens, NY 

AGENCY: Coast Guard, DHS. 

ACTION: Notice of deviation from 

drawbridge regulation. 

SUMMARY: The Coast Guard has issued a 

temporary deviation from the operating 

schedule that governs the Marine 

Parkway (Gil Hodges Memorial) bridge 

across Jamaica Bay (Rockaway Inlet), 

mile 3.0, at Queens, NY. The deviation 

is necessary to complete rehabilitation 

work on the bridge. This deviation 

allows the bridge owner to require two 

hours advance notice before opening the 

bridge. 

DATES: This deviation is effective from 

8 a.m. on July 30, 2018, to 4 p.m. on 

November 30, 2018. 

ADDRESSES: The docket for this 

deviation, USCG–2018–0660 is available 

at http://www.regulations.gov. Type the 

docket number in the ‘‘SEARCH’’ box 

and click ‘‘SEARCH’’. Click on Open 

Docket Folder on the line associated 

with this deviation. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: If 

you have questions on this temporary 

deviation, call or email Judy Leung-Yee, 

Bridge Management Specialist, First 

District Bridge Branch, U.S. Coast 

Guard; telephone 212–514–4336, email 

Judy.K.Leung-Yee@uscg.mil. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The owner 

of the bridge, Metropolitan 

Transportation Authority Bridges and 

Tunnels, requested a temporary 

deviation from the normal operating 

schedule in order to complete 

rehabilitation work associated with the 

replacement of lift span machinery. The 

Marine Parkway (Gil Hodges Memorial) 

Bridge across Jamaica Bay (Rockaway 

Inlet), mile 3.0 at Queens, New York has 

a vertical clearance of 55 feet at mean 

high water and 59 feet at mean low 

water in the closed position. The 

existing drawbridge operating 

regulations are listed at 33 CFR 

117.795(a). 

The temporary deviation will allow 

the owner of the Marine Parkway (Gil 

Hodges Memorial) bridge to require 

vessels seeking an opening of the draw 

to provide a minimum of two hours of 

advance notice on weekdays (Monday 

through Friday) between the hours of 8 

a.m. and 4 p.m. from July 30, 2018 to 

November 30, 2018 by submitting a 

request for the opening of the draw. 

Requiring a minimum of two hours of 

advance notice before opening the draw 

allows for sufficient time to alert all 

affected personnel engaged in bridge 

rehabilitation work to vacate the lift 

span and all machinery areas along, 

with removing and/or securing 

materials and equipment prior to lifting 

the bridge. 

The waterway is transited by seasonal 

recreational traffic as well as 

commercial vessels, largely tug and 

barge combinations. The 55 foot vertical 

clearance while the bridge is in the 

closed position offers the bulk of 

commercial traffic sufficient room to 

transit under the bridge in the closed 

position. Vessels that can pass under the 

bridge without an opening may do so at 

all times. The bridge will be able to 

open for emergencies. There is no 

immediate alternate route for vessels 

unable to pass through the bridge when 

in the closed position. 

The Coast Guard will inform users of 

the waterway through our Local and 

Broadcast Notices to Mariners of the 

change in operating schedule for the 

bridge so that vessel operators can 

arrange their transits to minimize any 

impact caused by this temporary 

deviation. 

In accordance with 33 CFR 117.35(e), 

the drawbridge must return to its regular 

operating schedule immediately at the 

end of the effective period of this 

temporary deviation. This deviation 

from the operating regulations is 

authorized under 33 CFR 117.35. 


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