Opinion ID: 677363
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Documents Exempt Under Sec. 552(b)(7)(C)

Text: 20 On a number of documents, IRS employee initials, names and phone numbers were redacted. The IRS claims that this information may be withheld pursuant to Sec. 552(b)(7)(C), 19 which provides an exemption for records or information compiled for law enforcement purposes, but only to the extent that the production of such law enforcement records or information ... could reasonably be expected to constitute an unwarranted invasion of personal privacy. 20 21 Judge Rovner engaged in a balancing test, weighing the employees' privacy interests against the public interest in disclosure. See United States Dep't of Justice v. Reporters Comm. for Freedom of the Press, 489 U.S. 749, 109 S.Ct. 1468, 103 L.Ed.2d 774 (1989) (holding that rap sheets are exempt from disclosure under Sec. 552(b)(7)(C)). The Beckers must show a substantial public interest in disclosure to outweigh privacy concerns. Matter of Wade, 969 F.2d at 246. The only public interest a court need examine in the balancing process is whether disclosure would contribute  'significantly to public understanding of the operations or activities of the government.'  United States Dep't of Defense v. Federal Labor Relations Auth., --- U.S. ----, ----, 114 S.Ct. 1006, 1012, 127 L.Ed.2d 325 (1994) (addressing exemption (b)(6) 21 ) (quoting Reporters Comm. for Freedom of the Press, 489 U.S. at 755, 109 S.Ct. at 1472). Judge Rovner found that these documents were compiled for law enforcement purposes (see Clarkson v. Internal Revenue Service, 811 F.2d 1396, 1397 (11th Cir.), cert. denied, 481 U.S. 1031, 107 S.Ct. 1961, 95 L.Ed.2d 533 (1987)) and that the employees have an interest in nondisclosure because they may not want the Beckers to be able to contact them. Judge Rovner found that the Beckers advanced no public interest in disclosure, and discerned no such interest on her own evaluation. 22 The Beckers do not take issue with Judge Rovner's conclusion that the documents were compiled for law enforcement purposes, or that the IRS employees have a privacy interest in protecting their names from disclosure. The Beckers argue that Judge Rovner improperly categorized them and withheld the information based on their status. 23 It is fundamental that  'the identity of the requesting party has no bearing on the merits of his or her FOIA request.'  United States Dep't of Defense v. Federal Labor Relations Auth., --- U.S. ----, ----, 114 S.Ct. 1006, 1013, 127 L.Ed.2d 325 (1994) (quoting Reporters Comm. for Freedom of the Press, 489 U.S. at 771, 109 S.Ct. at 1480). However, the nature of an employee's work may render release of personal information an unwarranted invasion of personal privacy. See United States Dep't of Navy v. Federal Labor Relations Auth., 975 F.2d 348, 353 (7th Cir.1992) (addressing exemption (b)(6)) (federal employees have a privacy interest in the non-disclosure of their names and home addresses) (If a FOIA disclosure request would not reveal information about the government's operations, then it is not in the public interest. Id. at 354.); Matter of Wade, 969 F.2d at 246 (redaction of FBI agent's name acceptable to avoid annoyance by requesting party and where requesting party has not offered a substantial public interest); Maroscia v. Levi, 569 F.2d 1000, 1002 (7th Cir.1977) (names of FBI personnel and other law enforcement personnel exempt from disclosure); Fischer v. Internal Revenue Service, 621 F.Supp. 835 (D.C.N.Y.1985) (deletions of IRS personnel names from documents generated with respect to requester's tax liability proper under Sec. 552(b)(7)(C)); Stauss v. Internal Revenue Service, 516 F.Supp. 1218, 1222 (D.C.D.C.1981) (names of IRS employees who have worked on tax protest project properly withheld under Sec. 552(b)(7)(C)). 24 The Beckers argue that they need the employee names in order to discover documents relevant to their FOIA request. They do not, however, advance any public interest in disclosure. We do not see how redaction of IRS employee initials and the like inhibits the public's understanding of the IRS, and therefore do not find a substantial public interest that would be served by release of this information. With respect to the Beckers' personal interest in disclosure, after reviewing the full record before us, and given Judge Rovner's determination that the IRS search was reasonable, 22 we believe any such interest is negligible, and does not outweigh the employees' privacy interests. We conclude that Judge Rovner's finding that the documents were properly redacted pursuant to Sec. 552(b)(7)(C) was not clearly erroneous. 23