FIA-23-0019 - In the Matter of John Carlo Manigaulte

On June 6, 2023, the Office of Hearings and Appeals (OHA) denied a Freedom of Information Act ( FOIA) appeal filed by John Carlo Manigaulte (Appellant), from an Interim Response Letter issued by the Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Public Information (OPI). The Appellant challenged the DOE OPI's denial of his request for expedited processing of his request, and a waiver of fees.

The Appellant sought records showing that analog electricity meters can over -report actual energy consumption. After reviewing the FOIA request and appeal documents, OHA found the Appellant's FOIA request was not in the public's interest. The Appellant did not demonstrate his request concerned an identifiable operation or activity of government, did not demonstrate that disclosure would likely contribute to an understanding of the operations of government, and the Appellant could not rely upon a local news agency to carry his burden of disseminating the information from the records to the public. OHA also found the Appellant's claim that failure to get the records on an expedited basis would cause him to suffer a heart attack and put at risk all consumers who are over - charged for electricity, to be too remote to support expedited processing of his request. (OHA Case No. FIA-23-0019)