Institute for Energy Research v. Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

In a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) lawsuit to compel disclosure of redacted information in calendars of two FERC Commissioners, the federal district court for the District of Columbia ruled that FERC had not justified its invocation of the deliberative process privilege for certain calendar entries but had sufficiently explained why privacy interests justified most of its Exemption 6 redactions, though not redactions related to names of “lower-level staff.” The court also found that FERC’s search of records had been adequate. The plaintiff requested the Commissioners’ calendars after FERC Chairman Richard Glick testified before Congress that no one “higher up” in the Biden administration had “ever spoken to [him] in regards to somehow slow-walking or otherwise impeding or otherwise actuating policy that would have the effect of impeding the development of natural gas pipelines.” The plaintiff said it requested the calendars because it was skeptical of Chairman Glick’s response.