{These letters regard an attempt by Larson to get ATF to turn over portions of the National Firearms Registration and Transfer Record (NFRTR) data base manuals, in which materials describing how to identify and correct errors in the NFRTR were removed. The notion that these materials "were never created and placed in the manual" seems a bit odd, given that the manual contains specific instructions for using the exhibits to make corrections of errors in Form 1, Form 2, Form 3, Form 4, Form 5 and so forth. The time it took to deal with Larson's request, and the nature of the denials, suggests that the Exhibits in the NFRTR manuals or information about them is quite sensitive.] -------------- page 1 Eric M. Larson P.O. Box 5497 Takoma Park, Maryland 20913 (301) 270-3450 larsone@erols.com July 10, 1999 Mr. Peter J. Chisholm, Disclosure Specialist Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms 650 Massachusetts Avenue, N.W. Washington, D.C. 20226 Dear Mr. Chisholm: This letter is in response to your letter to me dated June 29, 1999, bearing symbols 112000 99-1505, and enclosures. I have copied pertintent parts of these enclosures for ease of reference, and enclosed them with this letter. Boiled down, I am writing to ask for your guidance in requesting documents referred to on pages 174 to 191, which correspond to Exhibits 11 through 29. While I suppose I could do another request for information under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), this may not be appropriate becaause the documents do not appear to have been specifically denied (as were others)--they just appear to have been withheld without any reason. As can be seen by inspection of the enclosed Table of Contents, and several pages following 191 from the NFRTR manual which make reference to these apparently denied Exhibits, these Exhibits are an integral part of the manual which I requested. In fact, they are critical to understanding ATF's procedures in reviewing NFA documents for errors. Consequently, I respectfully request copies of Exhibits 11 through 29. If ATF would like to formally deny me access to copies of these documents, please tell me so I may instigate procedures to obtain copies. Some background may be of assistance in resolving my request. First, however, I would like to thank you for all your help in sending me documents and responding to my requests. I also recognize that you have a job to do, like anybody who works for the government; and that you can only get what people are willing to give you. Based on some previous experience with tryingn to obtain copies of the NFRTR database manuals, I think it is possible that some persons at the National Firearms Act Branch, or other areas of ATF, may have improperly withheld FOIA information. Specifically, for some time I had been trying to obtain copies of the NFRTR manuals under a FOIA request. On March 29, 1997, I received 23 pages (some heavily redacted) of what was purported to be a copy of an NFRTR manual in responses to my January 18, 1997, appeal of ATF's total denial of my FOIA for copies of these instruction manuals.[FN #1]. Inspection of these 23 pages indicated that the NFRTR database instruction manual was organized haphazardly at best. There was no index, materials appeared to ahve been randomly inserted, and the documents themselves are not of a uniform format. Because of the complexity of the NFRTR, I doubted that ATF had responded truthfully to my FOIA. My recent receipt of several NFRTR manuals from ATF confirms my doubts, because in one of the manuals there are typewritten dates on the bottom of the pages indicating the manual was drafted in 1996. Now, I'm definitely not trying to accuse you of acting in bad faith at all--I really am not--I am including this information to point out that in the past, ATF appears not to have followed FOIA procedures regarding my requests for copies of the NFRTR manuals. [FN #1] These NFRTR materials were included as an Enclosure to a letter to me from Patrick D. Hynes, Assistant Director, Liaison and Public Information, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms dated March 21, 1997, bearing symbols CC--47,793. page 2 I don't think it is any secret that my research into errors that ATF has created in the NFRTR, which I've testified about before the Congress, has been pretty unwelcome to some people at ATF. I'm talking common sense here. Although I'm trying to work diligently through the system, as provided by law, to get these problems corrected, there may be some people at ATF who don't want to see the errors corrected. Finally, the importance of Exhibits 11 through 29 being fully disclosed really cannot be overstated, because these documents apparently are the written guidance that ATF has used to define, evaluate and correct errors in the NFRTR--a matter that goes to the heart of four Congressional testimonies that I've submitted. So, the fact that some person or persons at ATF have withheld these documents, and that no explanation has been given, appears to be a misapplication of the FOIA law. These exhibits most certainly exist, and I can prove it. For one thing, they are specifically listed by title in the Table of Contents (which I've copied and enclosed). These appear on pages 130 to 131. For example, Exhibit 16 is "Reviewing ATF Form 4 within the NFRTR," and Exhibit 24 is "Reviewing an amendment within [sic] based on a report of inspection." Also, it is clear from teh NFA instruction manual that these Exhibits were used to prepare "NFA's Quality Review Report" for various dates. In fact, I requested and received copies of these reports earlier this year.[FN #2] I'd like to conclude this letter by respectfully requesting complete and unredacted copies of Exhibits 11 to 29, and previously noted. Thank you. Sincerely, (signed---Eric M. Larson) [FN #2] It may be useful for you or others to inspect these materials, totaling some 183 pages. See the Enclosure to a leter to me from Marilyn R. LaBrie, Disclosure Specialist, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms dated March 30, 1999, bearing symbols 112000-MRL, 99-264. [NOTE: The Enclosures to Larson's letter have not been reproduced here] ----------------------------------- DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms Washington, D.C. 20226 AUG 4 1999 REFER TO: 112000 PJC/99-1505/2 Eric M. Larson P.O. Box 5497 Takoma Park, MD 20913 Dear Mr. Larson: This is in response to your letter dated July 10, 1999, in which you request additional information related to our release of pages 174 to 191 of the NFRTR manual. Please be advised that a search has been requested for these documents, and you can expect a response from this division within twenty working days of the date of this letter. We apologize for the delay in responding to you. We have received an administrative appeal for this same material. As referenced above, we are currently conducting a search for these records. Upon our final response to you regarding this matter, we will provide you with additional appeal rights for any deletions or denials made, or to appeal to adequacy of the search conducted. If you have questions, please feel free to contact me at (202) 927-7948. Sincerely, (signed---Peter J. Chisholm Peter J. Chisholm Acting Chief, Disclosure Division ---------------------- DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms Washington, D.C. 20226 OCT 19 1999 REFER TO: 112000 PJC/99-1505/3 Eric M. Larson P.O. Box 5497 Takoma Park, MD 20913 Dear Mr. Larson: This is in response to your Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request, dated July 10, 1999, in which you request additional information related to our release of pages 174 to 191 of the NFRTR manual, which correspond to Exhibits 11 through 29. A review of teh manual shows that these 'exhibits' were never created and placed in the manual. There is no further information available. As this search was done instead of processing your letter as an administrative appeal, you may still submit an administrative appeal for the deletions in our June 29, 1999 release to you. Please follow the guidelines outlined on Part III of the "Document Cover Sheet" that was included in our original response." Sincerely, (signed---Peter J. Chisholm) Peter J. Chisholm Disclosure Specialist