IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA ____________________________________ ) ELOUISE PEPION COBELL, et al., ) ) No. 1:96CV01285 Plaintiffs, ) (Judge Robertson) v. ) ) DIRK KEMPTHORNE, Secretary of ) the Interior, et al., )) Defendants. ) ) DEFENDANTS’ OPPOSITION TO PLAINTIFFS’ MOTION TO COMPEL PRODUCTION OF WITNESSES FOR DEPOSITION AND REQUEST FOR SANCTIONS INTRODUCTION In their March 9, 2007 Motion to Compel Production of Witnesses for Deposition and Request for Sanctions (“Motion to Compel”), Plaintiffs again seek to revive moot discovery issues. Defendants interpret this Court’s January 16, 2007 Order – denying Interior Defendants’ October 7, 2005 Motion for A Protective Order Quashing Plaintiffs’ Amended Notices of Deposition Served Sept. 29, 2005 (Dkt. No. 3186) (“Protective Order Motion”) – as a denial based on the mootness of the proposed discovery. Defendants do not see how it could be reasonably interpreted as allowing additional, broad-ranging discovery regarding allegations of contempt Plaintiffs made in a motion that was also denied in the same order, and regarding IT security – a matter that was the subject of an extended evidentiary hearing in 2005, with a vacatur of the resulting injunction in July 2006. Furthermore, even assuming, solely for the sake of argument, that IT security and the contempt allegations were relevant to the accounting the Secretary of the Interior must perform, this Court is not currently reviewing the accounting. 1/ This letter was attached as Exhibit 2 to Defendants’ Protective Order Motion. 2 Even if it were, under the Administrative Procedure Act (“APA”), review of agency action normally is a record review, which does not involve broad discovery. The APA thus does not contemplate discovery, much less the perpetual, roving and intrusive discovery into agency operations that Plaintiffs seek. Defendants respectfully submit this memorandum in opposition to Plaintiffs’ motion. BACKGROUND On July 26, 2005, Plaintiffs filed a Motion for an Order to Show Cause Why Secretary Norton, W. Hord Tipton and Other Interior Employees Should Not Be Held in Civil and Criminal Contempt of Court for Violating This Court’s Anti-Retaliation Order (“Plaintiffs’ Contempt Motion”). On September 29, 2005, Plaintiffs served Defendants with amended deposition notices for nine Interior officials, including the Secretary of the Interior. Plaintiffs later confirmed that at least one topic of deposition for each witness would be the allegations raised in Plaintiffs’ Contempt Motion. See September 30, 2005, Letter from Tracy L. Hilmer to Dennis M. Gingold (appended as Attachment A).1 Plaintiffs’ counsel further advised that three of the proposed depositions – including that of Larry Jensen, Deputy Solicitor for the Department of the Interior – would be limited to those contempt allegations. See id. In addition, on September 29, 2005, Plaintiffs served Defendants with a deposition notice of the Office of the Inspector General for the Department of the Interior (“OIG”), pursuant to Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 30(b)(6), requesting designation of a witness to testify regarding seven subject matters, three of which involved the allegations from Plaintiffs’ Contempt Motion. Three other subjects in the Rule 30(b)(6) deposition notice involved IT 3 security investigations by OIG. The only other noticed subject concerned any investigation by Interior’s OIG regarding document destruction at the National Archives and Records Administration (“NARA”). On October 7, 2005, Defendants’ filed their Protective Order Motion seeking to quash all the September 29, 2005 deposition notices. Defendants explained in the motion why Plaintiffs were not entitled to conduct discovery into their contempt allegations and why their IT security discovery was duplicative and cumulative of the vast discovery already obtained during the 59-day evidentiary hearing held in the summer of 2005. Defendants further established that Plaintiffs were not entitled to conduct perpetual, continuing IT security discovery after the hearing record had been closed. See Protective Order Motion, at 2-10. Defendants also explained that Interior’s OIG could not reasonably be expected to designate a Rule 30(b)(6) witness with knowledge about an investigation being conducted by NARA’s Inspector General. See id. at 12-13. Finally, Defendants explained that Plaintiffs should not be permitted to take the deposition of the Secretary of the Interior because high-ranking government officials cannot be deposed absent extraordinary circumstances, not present here. Id. at 13-14. On January 16, 2007, the Court denied Defendants’ Protective Order Motion. See Order (Dkt. No. 3283) (“January 16, 2007 Order”). The Court denied the motion without explanation, listing it among a number of pending motions that were being denied by the same Order. Included in this list of denied motions was Plaintiffs’ Contempt Motion. On March 8, 2007, Plaintiffs’ counsel inquired by telephone whether Defendants would make Mr. Jensen and the OIG Rule 30(b)(6) witness available for deposition, in light of the Court’s January 16, 2007 Order. Defendants’ counsel informed Plaintiffs that Defendants 4 believed that their Protective Order Motion was denied on January 16, 2007 because the discovery sought in 2005 was now moot with the Court’s denial of Plaintiffs’ Contempt Motion and the appellate vacatur of the IT security injunction. Thus, Defendants’ counsel indicated that the witnesses would not be made available for deposition. On March 9, 2007, Plaintiffs filed their Motion to Compel. It is unclear whether Plaintiffs now seek to conduct the depositions of all nine Interior officials – including the Secretary of the Interior – and the Rule 30(b)(6) deposition of OIG, that were the subject of the September 29, 2005 deposition notices, or whether they have now limited their demand to Mr. Jensen and the OIG Rule 30(b)(6) deposition. The proposed order attached to their Motion to Compel would only order the latter, but the rhetoric of their Motion to Compel is broader. See, e.g., Motion to Compel at 1-2 (“[I]t is now necessary to order Interior defendants under Rule 26(c) to produce each named individual for deposition . . . . [T]he government’s continued refusal to produce the noticed individuals makes this motion necessary.”). ARGUMENT I. The Discovery Plaintiffs Seek is Moot Defendants’ interpretation of the Court’s January 16, 2007 Order – that Defendants’ Protective Order Motion was denied because it was moot – is entirely reasonable under the circumstances. In the very same order denying Defendants’ Protective Order Motion, the Court also denied Plaintiffs’ Contempt Motion. Plaintiffs had informed Defendants in 2005 that the allegations in their Contempt Motion would be explored in all of the noticed depositions and that three of the noticed depositions – including that of Mr. Jensen – would be limited to that issue. See Attachment A. Three of the seven subject areas in the Rule 30(b)(6) deposition notice also related to their contempt allegations. The Court’s denial of the Contempt 5 Motion would seem to render discovery into contempt allegations contained within the motion moot. With regard to IT security discovery, it is also reasonable to conclude that the Protective Order Motion was denied as moot. Defendants had already produced a massive amount of IT security discovery and testimony in connection with the IT security hearing in 2005. The record in that hearing was closed in July 2005, the Court issued its injunction in October 2005, and the Court of Appeals vacated that injunction in July 2006. Several of the motions that the Court denied in the same order were also associated with that injunction. See Order of January 16, 2007 (Dkt. Nos. 3097, 3168, 3186-3188, 3192, 3197, and 3200). Moreover, Interior Defendants already provide relevant information on IT security matters in the Quarterly Status Reports filed with the Court. See, e.g., Status Report to the Court Number Thirty-Eight, at 43-49 (Feb. 1, 2007). In their Contempt Motion, Plaintiffs tell the Court that they need the Rule 30(b)(6) deposition on the IT security incident at MMS because Interior Defendants have not “provided such information in their quarterly reports to this Court.” Contempt Motion at 3 n.2. This is untrue. Interior Defendants reported on the status of the investigation in the Twenty-Third Quarterly Report. See Status Report to the Court Number Twenty-Three, at 5 (Nov. 1, 2005) (“The incident is still under investigation with the OIG and FBI. Based upon the investigation to date, there is no reason to believe the integrity of any data was compromised. Changes have been made . . . .”) (appended as Attachment B). Interior Defendants also reported on the final results of the investigation. See Status Report to the Court Number Twenty-Four, at 4 (February 1, 2006) (“Final security scans and a security review were conducted by an independent contractor, which confirmed that the integrity of IITD was not compromised.”) (appended as Attachment C). 2/ Although Defendants recently filed a Motion to Vacate Consent Order Regarding Information Technology Security (Dkt. No. 3296), discovery is neither necessary nor should be permitted for any response to this motion which Plaintiffs may file. The motion involves only a question of law and recites facts that have already been found by the Court or cannot be reasonably disputed. 6 Under these circumstances, the only reasonable interpretation of the Court’s Order is that it denied Defendants’ Protective Order Motion as moot. Plaintiffs’ contrary interpretation – that the Court intended to re-open discovery into IT security issues that were the subject of a hearing completed in 2005 – is simply unreasonable. Plaintiffs’ assertion – without any discussion – that the depositions of Mr. Jensen and OIG officials will “undoubtedly lead to the discovery of admissible evidence,” Motion to Compel at 4, rests on an assumption that the requested discovery is still relevant to a current issue in the case. Currently, there is no proceeding for which IT security information would be relevant, much less admissible.2 No government witnesses are scheduled to testify about IT security. As noted above, the evidentiary portion of the IT Security Hearing closed in the summer of 2005, the Court issued its injunction in 2005, and that injunction was vacated in July 2006. Moreover, a principal reason the Court of Appeals gave for vacating the Court’s 2005 IT Security Injunction was that it was “unconvinced the class members demonstrated that they would necessarily suffer harm without th[e] injunction.” Cobell v. Kempthorne, 455 F.3d 301, 315 (D.C. Cir. 2006). Plaintiffs argue that the January 16, 2007 Order should be interpreted completely out of context, without consideration of intervening appellate decisions, the current posture of the case, or common sense. Defendants’ interpretation – that the Court considered the Protective 3/ To the extent that Plaintiffs seek to compel the deposition of the Secretary of the Interior, it is also unreasonable to assume that the Court would have intended to permit such an extraordinary deposition by denying the Protective Order Motion without comment. Defendants incorporate here by reference the arguments made in their Protective Order Motion, explaining why the deposition of a cabinet official is improper. See Protective Order Motion at 13-14. 4/ The Rule 30(b)(6) deposition notice requested OIG to designate an official knowledgeable about: “4. Any investigation performed relating to the actual or potential destruction of documents containing Indian Trust Data (“ITD”) at the National Archives and Records Administration, including the nature of documents destroyed or disposed of, and the substance of interviews with potential witnesses.” See Plaintiffs’ Amended Rule 30(b)(6) Notice of Deposition of OIG, at 2 (appended as Attachment F). 7 Order Motion moot because the IT Security hearing and appellate review of the matter are long over – is more reasonable.3 The discovery Plaintiffs seek to obtain from Defendants regarding NARA’s investigation is also moot.4 Defendants have already reported on this matter to the Court – and NARA also wrote two letters directly to Plaintiffs’ counsel providing information about their investigation, and its results. See Letter of September 28, 2005 from Jason Baron to Dennis Gingold (attached as an exhibit to Defendants’ Notice of Filing of September 2005 Status Report by the Department of the Interior Office of Trust Records [Dkt. No. 3191]) (appended as Attachment D); Letter of December 9, 2005 from Jason Baron to Dennis Gingold (attached as an exhibit to Defendants’ Notice of Filing of November 2005 Status Report by the Department of the Interior Office of Trust Records [Dkt. No. 3220]) (appended as Attachment E). Furthermore, as was made clear in the Protective Order Motion, the OIG for Interior is not in a position to designate a Rule 30(b)(6) witness because the investigation was conducted by the OIG at NARA. See Protective Order Motion at 12-13. 8 II. The Discovery Plaintiffs Seek To Compel Is Improper Under the APA The APA also forecloses Plaintiffs from obtaining the roving discovery they seek. Although this Court previously permitted Plaintiffs discovery on certain topics notwithstanding this case’s jurisdictional footing in the APA, the Court of Appeals has since reiterated and clarified the limits of the Court’s jurisdiction under the APA vis-a-vis the common law governing trusts. Cobell, 455 F.3d at 303-07. Therefore, future proceedings, including discovery, must be viewed in the context of the recent Court of Appeals decisions and the wellestablished constraints of the APA. In its July 11, 2006 decision, the Court of Appeals reconciled the fact that this is an APA case with the fact that Interior is acting as a fiduciary to whom common trust law would apply. In vacating the preliminary injunction entered following the IT Security hearing, the Court of Appeals explained: Because “an on-going program or policy is not, in itself, a ‘final agency action’ under the APA,” our jurisdiction does not extend to reviewing generalized complaints about agency behavior. Consequently, each case only presents the court with a narrow question to resolve, it can have no occasion to order wholesale reform of an agency program. Still, “because the underlying lawsuit is both an Indian case and a trust case in which the trustees have egregiously breached their fiduciary duties,” the court “retains substantial latitude, much more so than in the typical agency case, to fashion an equitable remedy.” These equitable powers, limited at one end of the spectrum by the court’s inability to order broad, programmatic reforms, are also limited in the opposite direction by an inability to require the agency to follow a detailed plan of action. The court generally may not prescribe specific tasks for Interior to complete; it must allow Interior to exercise its discretion and utilize its expertise in complying with broad statutory mandates. These restraints are put in place by both administrative law and trust law. The ability of the agency itself to exercise its discretion is somewhat constrained, however. Rather than its normal freedom to choose 9 ‘any reasonable option,’ the agency’s actions must satisfy fiduciary standards. Id. at 307 (internal citations omitted). The APA’s limitations articulated in this appellate decision are consistent with the Court of Appeals’ decisions in prior APA cases. In all but exceptional situations, judicial review of agency action is confined to the administrative record. See Commercial Drapery Contractors, Inc. v. United States, 133 F.3d 1, 7 (D.C. Cir. 1998) (in most instances, the APA "limits review to the administrative record . . . ." (citations omitted)); see also Holy Land Found. for Relief & Dev. v. Ashcroft, 219 F. Supp. 2d 57, 65 (D.D.C. 2002), aff'd, 333 F.3d 156 (D.C. Cir. 2003) ("It is well-established that the scope of review under the APA is narrow and must ordinarily be confined to the administrative record." (citation omitted)). As established over thirty years ago in Camp v. Pitts, 411 U.S. 138, 142 (1973) (per curiam), "the focal point for judicial review [of agency action] should be the administrative record already in existence, not some new record made initially in the reviewing court." Accord Fla. Power & Light v. Lorion, 470 U.S. 729, 743 (1985); see also Common Sense Salmon Recovery v. Evans, 217 F. Supp. 2d 17, 20 (D.D.C. 2002) ("[P]laintiffs fail to recognize the basic rule that generally discovery is not permitted in Administrative Procedure Act cases because a court's review of an agency's decision is confined to the administrative record." (citations omitted)); Marshall County Health Care Auth. v. Shalala, 988 F.2d 1221, 1226 (D.C. Cir. 1993) ("[C]hallengers to agency action are not . . . ordinarily entitled to augment the agency's record with” discovery.); Texas Rural Legal Aid, Inc. v. Legal Services Corp., 940 F.2d 685, 698 (D.C. Cir. 1991) ("The general principle that informal agency action must be reviewed on the administrative record predates the APA . . . ." (citations omitted)); National Law Ctr. on 5/ See Pub. L. No. 107-347, Title III, §§ 301-305. 10 Homelessness and Poverty v. Department of Veteran's Affairs, 736 F. Supp. 1148, 1152 (D.D.C. 1990) ("[D]iscovery is not [generally] permitted prior to a court's review of the legality of agency action . . . ."). With respect to IT security, in its July 11, 2006 decision, the Court of Appeals noted that the Federal Information Security Management Act of 2002 (“FISMA”)5 established a statutory scheme to manage and provide oversight of IT security risks. Cobell, 455 F.3d at 308-14. The appellate court further observed that “[n]otably absent from FISMA is a role for the judicial branch,” and concluded that “[t]his is not a FISMA compliance case, whether or not such an animal exists elsewhere.” Id. at 314 (dictum). Thus, APA review of final agency action on an accounting does not translate into perpetual discovery and judicial oversight of Interior’s programmatic efforts concerning IT security. In contradiction to this controlling authority, Plaintiffs apparently wish to engage in a roving investigation into IT security, untethered to any proceeding. Such a fishing expedition is not merely improper under the APA, it is never appropriate under the federal rules. Plaintiffs have already been afforded vast discovery into the Interior Department’s efforts to secure and protect its IT systems – well beyond that countenanced in any APA case – and nothing warrants further departure from the firm rule that APA cases are decided on the administrative record. Before the Court can ascertain whether additional extra-record discovery is appropriate in this case, Interior must file an administrative record on its accounting. Only at that point will it be appropriate for Plaintiffs to attempt to demonstrate 6/ Also, to the extent that Plaintiffs still intend to investigate the criminal contempt allegations in their Contempt Motion, notwithstanding its denial, this Court’s decision in Landmark Legal Foundation v. EPA, 272 F. Supp. 2d 70, 76 (D.D.C. 2003), citing Young v. United States ex rel. Vuitton et Fils, S.A., 481 U.S. 787, 801, 814 (1987), makes clear that the Plaintiffs cannot assume this role. 11 that this is one of the exceptional circumstances in which judicial review of an agency action may consider matters not in the administrative record.6 III. Defendants’ Interpretation of The Court’s January 16, 2007 Order Is Substantially Justified Even if the Court determines that Plaintiffs are entitled to some or all of the requested discovery, Defendants’ interpretation of the Court’s January 16, 2007 Order is substantially justified and, therefore, sanctions are not appropriate. In adjudicating discovery disputes, sanctions are not appropriate if, as in this instance, a party was "substantially justified" in advancing its position. Fed. R. Civ. P. 37(a)(4)(A). "If there is an absence of controlling authority, and the issue presented is one not free from doubt and could engender a responsible difference of opinion among conscientious, diligent but reasonable advocates, then the opposing positions taken by them are substantially justified." Athridge v. Aetna Cas. & Sur. Co., 184 F.R.D. 200, 205 (D.D.C. 1998) (citations omitted). For all the reasons articulated in this Opposition, Defendants’ interpretation of the Court’s January 16, 2007 Order – that the Court denied Defendants’ Protective Order Motion as moot – is reasonable. The context in which Defendants’ Motion was denied would lead a reasonable litigant to understand that the Court denied Defendants’ Motion because the issues were moot. Under these circumstances, an adverse ruling by the Court should not warrant sanctions. 12 CONCLUSION For these reasons, the Court should deny Plaintiffs’ Motion To Compel. Dated: March 23, 2007 Respectfully submitted, PETER D. KEISLER Assistant Attorney General MICHAEL F. HERTZ Deputy Assistant Attorney General J. CHRISTOPHER KOHN Director /s/ Robert E. Kirschman, Jr. ROBERT E. KIRSCHMAN, JR. D.C. Bar No. 406635 Deputy Director PHILLIP M. SELIGMAN Trial Attorney Commercial Litigation Branch Civil Division P.O. Box 875 Ben Franklin Station Washington, D.C. 20044-0875 (202) 616-0328 CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE I hereby certify that, on March 23, 2007 the foregoing Defendants’ Opposition to Plaintiffs’ Motion to Compel Production of Witnesses for Deposition and Request for Sanctions was served by Electronic Case Filing, and on the following who is not registered for Electronic Case Filing, by facsimile: Earl Old Person (Pro se) Blackfeet Tribe P.O. Box 850 Browning, MT 59417 Fax (406) 338-7530 /s/ Kevin P. Kingston Kevin P. Kingston OCT-04-2005 TUE 04: 40 PM P, 02/04 U.S. Department of Justice Civil Division MFH:THilmer nny: Tracy I-lilmrr Tel: (202)307-0371 Post OJiceBot ?ti/. BCIIFratrkli~rJ'fution H%.\li!2!ra?bn. aC 05'30 September 30, 2005 Bv Facsimile (202)318-2372 Dennis hl. Gingold, Esq. Box No. 6 607 14"' Street, NW Wasl~ington,DC 20005 Re: .Cobell v. Norfun, Civ. Action No.96-1285 (RCI.1 (D.D.C.1 Dear Mr.Gingold: This is to confirm Bob Kirscliman's and my d~scussion with you toclay regarding p1;dntiffs2 amenclcd no~ices of deposilion issued on Sep~cnlbcr 29, 2005, for the following W. Hord Tipton, Lq Benna, Scl~lla Siel~a, Jocl Htuford, Gale Borron, Kathlccn Clarlce, Michael Xecld, Lal-ry Jensen, ICallileen LVIlecler, and the Department olthe 111terior Office of Inspector General (purs~~ant to Fed. R. Civ. P. 30(b)(6)). We also discussed plaintiffs' rcquesl for production ol"docu~r~ents served Scptenlber 29,2005. Jn you voicemail message lo me on Tuesday, September 27,2005, you advised that plaintiffs intended to issue a series of deposition notices with regard to the Levine matter that is tlle subject ofplaintiffs' shaw cause motion. In OLE conversation today, you advised thal the proposed depositions of Micllael Nedd, Lany Jensen, and Katl~leen Wheeler would seelc information solely about tllc Levine matter, bu~ that the other proposed deposidons cotild go beyond the Levinc matter. The notice for the proposed Rulc 30(bj(6) deposition and the documem requests identify some categorics liiniled lo the Levine matter ,?s well categories that address other topics, We infonned you of our intcnt to file a motion for a protective order regarding the various deposition norices. Ors conversntio~~ lo satisfy the requirements of wit11 you was cond~~cted Local Ride 7(m), as wcll as to ilifonn you tl~at we do not intend to produce any oT thc noticed wimesses pending resolu~ion of our motion Tor proteclive order so that plaintifrs would 1101 unnecessarily inc~u the costs of engaging a court reporter. We undcrs~md tl~at yo~twill oppose ATTACHMENT A DEFENDANTS' OPPOSITION TO PLAINTIFFS' MOTION TO COMPEL PRODUCTION OF WITNESSES FOR DEPOSITION AND REQUEST FOR SANCTIONS Page 1 of 3 .. . . . . . . . . jj,, ,,,.., __, .............................................................. ,> .,.,... ,,,,, ..................... .,........ OCT-04-2005 TUE 04: 40 PM FAX NO, P, 03/04 our motion for pro~ective order. %re also understand that plaintiffs may serve addilio11;ll deposition notices and requests for production, which wc will address at the appropriate time. We also discussed briefly the potential issue regarding the holdiiig of depositions on consectitive days and the seven-hour ljniitation on deposj~ions set forr11 inFed. R. Civ. P. 30(d)(2). The government will reserve the right to raise tllesc issues andlor other procedwal objcctions shoulcl the Comt determiile tl~althe dcposilions inay proceed on some or all topics. We also rcserve [he right to raise all appropriate objections to he document requcsts in accordance with Rule 34. We appreciate your taking the time to clarify plaintiffs' intentions regarding the depositions so that tbe pallies can Ioc~ls their briefings qpl-opria~ely.' Trial ~'t.d-ne~ Commel.cial Litigation ATTACHMENT A DEFENDANTS' OPPOSITION TO PLAINTIFFS' MOTION TO COMPEL PRODUCTION OF WITNESSES FOR DEPOSITION AND REQUEST FOR SANCTIONS Page 2 of 3 OCT-04-2005 TUE 04:40 PM FAX MO, P, 04/04 $tIxrxtmXx~ll~$i##xI$mmttmItxxtt#tt~$xtx$#x~~x*mmmmx#m##x#~~xx~#~x~mx$x#xx$x$##~~~xxm~#mmmxmxmmmm~~% t 8 TRANSACTION REPORT Pt01 ;rc %' X SEP-30-2005 FRI 04: 15 PM % XI # t FOR: x t Y m SEND # # DATE START RECEIVER TX TIME PAGES TYPE NOTE X SEP-30 04:14 PI1 93182372 58" 3 FAX TX OK 328 t TflTAL : 58s PAGES: 3 i! x UNITED STATES DEPART-MKSTOF JUSTICE CIVILDMSIOY COhIMERCTAL1,ITIGATION BRANCH FMUD SECTTON FACSIMILE TRANSMISSION RECORD Datc: Septembcr 30,2005 Fax No.: (202)318-2372 To: 2 From: Tracy L.IEllImer Trial Attorney U.S. Dcpt. of Juuticc Remlnr Mail: P.0, Box 261 Raoln 9021 Patrick Henry Bldg. Ben FrmlrlinStation 601DStreet N.W. Washington, 1l.C. 20044 Washington, D.C. 20004 ATTACHMENT A DEFENDANTS' OPPOSITION TO PLAINTIFFS' MOTION TO COMPEL PRODUCTION OF WITNESSES FOR DEPOSITION AND REQUEST FOR SANCTIONS Page 3 of 3 STATUS REPORT TO THE COURT NUMBER TWENTY-THME * OIG completed a FISMA documentation review for OST, with no deficiencies noted during the review. The draft or final report has not been received. BLM conducted two significant, separate table-top contingency exercises of MAS and the enclave GSS. BLM conducted an exercise of the ALIS contingency plan on August 9,2005. Multiple other MAS participated in a contingency plan exercise on September 14, 2005. I I Q ! As reported to the court on September 2,2005, a limited amount of IITD was discovered in I I I BLM's LR2000 database on August 18,2005. Internal access to LR2000 was immediately I! blocked. A data quality review was conducted by BLM. All IITD was removed fiom I LR2000. The security module was modified to include access disclaimers requiring users to I refrain fiom using LR2000 for any Indian trust-related work. Additional scans were I completed on August 24,2005. BLM's DAA approved access restoration on an internal I basis as of August 26,2005. I I 1 * MMS conducted monthly network vulnerability scans on intemal servers and network devices. Due to the hurricane impacts to the Gulf of Mexico, including severe damage to 1 4 MMS facilities, limited remediation occurred for the August and September scan results. The tracking system in New Orleans was not restored until after the end of the reporting period. * As reported to the Court on August 25,2005, MMS detected an unauthorized change of an administrator password on the MRMSS externally-hosted portal in August 2005. The incident is still under investigation with the OIG and FBI. Based upon the investigation to date, there is no reason to believe the integrity of any data was compromised. Changes have been made to increase event monitoring at both the perimeter firewalls and application. Security scans of the application have been conducted, additional scans are scheduled. Final security scans and a security review are expected to be conducted by an independent third party contractor. NBC initiated remediation activities to address vulnerabilities identified in the second OIG penetration testing conducted on NBC systems in July. Personnel data was accessed, in the course of testing NPS systems. Immediate action was taken on critical vulnerabilities and NBC continues to track progress of remaining tasks from both penetration testing exercises. Policies and Guidance * The Interior CIO issued OCIO Directive 2005-012, "Wireless Network Security," to the bureau and ofice chief information officers on July 29,2005. This directive outlines the security requirements for wireless networking devices within Interior and requires adherence to "Wireless Security Technical Implementation Guide," Version 2.0, July 21,2005. The CIO also approved the "DO1 Wireless Data Communications Strategy" on August 3,2005. ATTACHMENT B DEFENDANTS' OPPOSITION TO PLAINTIFFS' MOTION TO COMPEL PRODUCTION OF WITNESSES FOR DEPOSITION AND REQUEST FOR SANCTIONS 5 STATUS REPORT TO THE COURTNUNBER TWENTY-FOUR In addition to the vulnerability assessment performed, an independent information assurance test is conducted to verify whether vulnerabilities identified are false positives. As of the end of this reporting period, 40 critical, 32 major and zero SANS Top 20 vulnerabilities were identified. All identified critical or major vulnerabilities were either remediated or were false positives. e Twenty-eight successfU1 incidents involving non-trust bureaus were reported to DOI-CIRC during this reporting period. These incidents were primarily virus (or other malware) infections of limited scope and duration. Only two successful incidents were reported from trust bureaus: a laptop misconfiguration (corrected) and a server thee (currently being investigated for prosecution by external law enforcement). There was no IITD involved. e Interior acquired an Interior-wide license for an internal scanning tool to be deployed at ESN, and is preparing to conduct Interior-wide internal vulnerability scans in test mode. e OST completed integration of additional monitoring tools, enabling near real-time monitoring and correlation of security related events. NBC initiated a number of major security projects as corrective actions in response to the March and July OIG penetration test results. These are on-going activities that are expected to continue through the fiscal year: o Investigation, testing and implementation of encryption mechanisms; and o An independent security assessment, including penetration testing. As previously reported to the Court, MMS detected an unauthorized change of an administrator password on the contracted MRMSS (Data Warehouse) in August 2005. Final security scans and a security review were conducted by an independent contractor, which confirmed that the integrity of IITD was not compromised. Policies and Guidance The BLM Assistant Director for Information Resources issued Instruction Memorandum 2006-13, "Revised Policy and Guidance for the Bureau of Land Management (BLIM) Regarding the Movement of Federal Recordsy7 to state directors, center directors and assistant directors on October 3,2005. This instruction memorandum established policy, procedures, and documentation requirements governing the movement of Indian fiduciary trust records. It also restated existing policy for the movement of all other official BLM records. * The Interior CIO issued "Implementing OCIO Directive 2005-007 for Fiscal Year (FY) 2006 Plans of Actions and Milestones (POA&M) and Federal Information Security Management Act (FISMA) Performance Measures" to the heads of bureaus and offces on November 4, 2005. This memorandum provides guidance in completing POA&Ms and FISMA performance measures. ATTACHMENT c DEFENDANTS' OPPOSITION TO PLAINTIFFS' MOTION TO COMPEL PRODUCTION OF WITNESSES FOR DEPOSITION AND REQUEST FOR SANCTIONS Oct-17-2005 04:OTpm From- ATational Archives and Records Administratzs~z 6601 Adclphi Rood College Park. Maryland 20740-6001 8v Facsimile-202-318-2372 Denr~isGirrgold, Esq. 60714'"~t. N.W. Box 6 Washington, D.C.20005 Re: Cobell v. Nodon I Dear Dennis: I am writing 10 provide ycu with an update aboul the matters th-ot we discussed in our tekphone conversation on Wednesday, Se7ternber 21, 2005, concerning the recen! series of what appear to be several uns~rccessfulattempts at improper disposal of records at the National Archives. See my letter dated Sepiember 13. ZOOS,to Interior Assistarit Deputy Secretary Haspel. I base the foilcwing update on specific informstion C~stNARA's Ofice of lrspector General (IG)has provided me and on my own resEarch into the inc~dents,including viewing the recovered records. As i told you over the te:ephone on Se2ternber 21. NARA's IG is presently conducting an investigation into a series of iricidents that have occurred over the past three weeks, involving what appear to be tte anernpted disposal of various types of pern-,anent rrccrds of ddferent federal ag~ncies,includi~gthe Departments of Interior an6 Veterans Affairs, thst were sforsd in the stacks at the Main Archives Building in downtown Washinglon, D.C. It appears that., in each of the incidents under ir.vestigztion, an attempt was made to improperly dispose of record and non-reccrd materisls in vari.3~~ trash bzskeis (orin boxes designated as trash) loc~ted within restricted areas of the building. In the tirg incident on Sept~mber1. aftera NARA stzffer noticed the records in a trash basket, NARA staff found and recovered edditional records in a dumpster and trzsh compactor (also locsted in a restricted area of the Main Archives Building). Since Szptember 1,there appEars to Rave be~nas may as six addition21 attempted di: pcsal incidents. all of which are currently under in\testigation by our IG. ATTACHMENT D DEFENDANTS' OPPOSITION TO PLAINTIFFS' MOTION TO COMPEL PRODUCTION OF WITNESSES FOR DEPOSITION AND REQUEST FOR SANCTIONS Page 1 of 4 Oct-17-2005 04:OBpm From- Letter f 3 Dennis Gingcld, ~Esq. September 28,2005 Pege4 contecc me if yov have any questions or concerns. Sinc~rely, __ .-. . -rase 1:=v=Q12W.-. irector of Litigation Ofice sf Genenl Counsel Cc: Abraham E. Haspel, Ph.L-1. Assistsnt Deputy Secretary U.S. Department of the Interior ~cumenL31~ 1WI2885 -Saw-of 7 -FU ATTACHMENT D DEFENDANTS' OPPOSITION TO PLAINTIFFS' MOTION TO COMPEL PRODUCTION OF WITNESSES FOR DEPOSITION AND REQUEST FOR SANCTIONS Page 4 of 4 TOTAL P. National Archives mzd Records Administration 8601 Adelphi Road College Parl:, Maryland 20740-6001 Tt!. 301-837-1499 Fax 30 1-837-0293 EmJ:jasonb~ron@mgOv~ase Document 3220-2 Page 4 of 6 1 :96-cv-01285-JR Filed 1211 512005 By Facsimile 202-318-23;Q Dennis Gingold, Fsq. 607 14' St. N.W. Box 6 Washington, D.C. 20005 Re; G?bell v. Norton Dear Dennls: In my SepStember28, 2005 letter to you, I stated that I would provide you with a further update concerning the incidents of attempted records disposal at Main Archives which occurred in September 2005. This letter serves as that update. On Friday,December 9, 2005, Archivist Allen Weinstejn issued the attached notice to all National Archives and Records Administration (IJARA) staff. As the notice states, and as you are aware from rn!y prior correspondence, a series of seven incidents occurred on and after September 1, 2005,involving the aYernpted disposal of various types of permanent records amongst our agency's holdir~gsat the Main Archives building in Washington, D-C. The documents involved included those from the Department of Veterans Affairs, the U-S, Army, Navy Department, and War Department, as well as from the Department of Ir~terior. As the notice goes on to stare, NARA took swift action to investigate and cure the situation that led to those September incidents. NAM's Inspector General gathered evidence, and based on that evidence, on Sep'romber28, 2005, NARA management barred one NARA employee (an archives technicim) from having further access to the secured, nonpublic stack 3reas in the Main Arcttives building. NARA alsc placed that individual on administrative leave. The ernploy~.esubsequently resigned from NARA, effective hlovember 18, 2005. Most importantly, no additional incidents of attempted disposai of records have been reported since ihs Septenbr 2005 incidents referred to above. In my September 28 letter-to you 1 noted that NLiRA staffwere taking steps to discover whether there were any "~japs"in NARA's existir~gholdings corresponding to the records ATTACHMENT E DEFENDANTS' OPPOSITION TO PLAINTIFFS' MOTION TO COMPEL PRODUCTION OF WITNESSES FOR DEPOSITION AND REQUEST FOR SANCTIONS Page 1 of 3 NAICl 's cueb zife is 11~IZJ:/!m.archiveJ-,pov that the former employee was processing for preservation, in addition to the records recovered in the September 2005 incidents, Ttie ArchivistD6notice reaffirms that NARA staff are continuing to review records holdings in this regard. Based on the review conducted to date, 1 am in a position to supply you with the following additional fads. Other Zhan with respect to VA records, the employee in question who has resignedwas most ~~~ently involved in processing Consolidaled Chippewa record holdings (including being 'hiasked repfa~Aiil%l 5,2005 Page 5 of 6 PSB~%%#S~-~PY~~~@~~~&~ neygOver date. NARA staff have de,terrninedthat a~~mxcrnatelv o e f@sl8bf correspond to the approximately 275 ~on;olida~!ed dhippewa nonrecord file covers and jackets recovered from various trash areas in September are, in fact, intact, in NARA's permanerit holdings. As stated above. NARA's review process is ongoing, and NARA staff members are cantinuing to search forthe remaining 25 or so files, In the event these additional records are located, NARA will provide you with a further update. Please ca.ll me if you have further questions or concerns. Sincerely, SON 8.~AR~N of Litigation Office of General Counsel Enclosure tc. Abrattam E. Haspel, Ph.3, Assistant Deputy Secret~y U.S. Department of the lnteriar ATTACHMENT E DEFENDANTS' OPPOSITION TO PLAINTIFFS' MOTION TO COMPEL PRODUCTION OF WITNESSES FOR DEPOSITION AND REQUEST FOR SANCTIONS NAPJ > >rie&rifeij h~://~.~~kfvet,gdv Page 2 of 3 From: NOTICE To: NOTICE Date: 12r9/052:50PM Subject: NARA Notice 2006-064, Incident of Attempted Disgosa(of Archival Rocords at Archives This isa NARA nolice to all en-rployees. Attanti'bnsupervisors: If you have employeeswho do riot have access to a computer, le s that those emp!oyses rec&~d@&aw~~6.-~is ~ ~2fi1ZFff564 idmm&2Qd ~ Page of December 9,2005 iluring September, 2005,a serles of seven incidentsoccurred invahing !he attempted disposal of various types aF permanent records amongst our holdings at-hives [. Several staff members and conlnctors. including archivists, a security guard and 0n electrician, found the original documents in !rash containers and quickly brogght them to the attention of their supervisors. The documents were from the Department of Veierans Affairs,he U.S. P,rrny. Navy Department.and War Department, aswell as from the Department of Interior. The Inclde~tsware Immediakly reported to the Inspector General who opened an investigationand gathered evidence. Based on that evidence, on September 28,2005,a NARA employer was barred from having further access to the siecured, nonpublic stack ereas er ArchivesI. NARA also placed that individ~ialan administrative leave. The employee subsequently reslyned from NARA. Most im?art3nlly, no additional incidents datrcnpted disposal of records have been reported. 1 want lo take this opportunity to thank those employees who fuund tne records in the trash containers an:! he IG for his assistance in this case. The sbff in the Oflice of Records Services.Washmgton DC, is mnllnuing to review our records holdings to assess whether there are any gaps related to theseprior incidonls. Ialso want to remind all ofyo~rof the irnportanl work mat you do in safeguarding our nation's records-We. must continue to work togethe'rto And ways to ensure tho safely of c,ur documentary heritage, while making these records evaiiable to the widest possible audience. ALLEN W EINSTEIN Archivist ofthe UnltedStates For questions on this notfcc coptact: Susan Coo~er,NCON . . su~an.cooper@.nara.~av Roam '102, A1 Phone: 202-507-5526ext. 236 Fax: 202-208-2046 ATTACHMENT E DEFENDANTS' OPPOSITION TO PLAINTIFFS' MOTION TO COMPEL PRODUCTION OF WITNESSES FOR DEPOSITION AND REQUEST FOR SANCTIONS Page 3 of 3 To. 'Robert Kjrschman Page 18 of 22 2005-09-28 19:31 03 (GMT) 1-202-318-2372 From. Geoffrey Rempel 018/022 09/28/2005 13:12 FAX 336 607 7500 KILPATRICK-STOCKTDN IN THE UNITIZD STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA 1 Elouise Pepion Cobell, et al, 1 1 Plaintiffs 1 1 v. ) Civil Action No, 96-1286 (RCL) 1 Gale A. Yorton, et al. )1 Defendants. 1 RULE 30(b)161 NOTICE OF DEPOSITION OF THEOFFICE To: ROBERT E. KIRSCHIIAN, Jr. Assistant Director United States Department of Justice Civil Division Commercial Litigation .Branch I I00L Street,NW, Room 10008 Washington, D.C. 20005 PLEASE TAKE NOTICE, that on October 13, 2005, at the offices of plaintiffs' counsel, Kilpatrick Stockton, LLP, 607 14" St., N.W., 9' Floor, Washington, D.C.20005, plaintiffs will take the depositi~nof the Inspector General for the Department of Interior, pursuant to Rule 30@)(6) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure. The deposition will commence at 9:00a.m. and will continue on consecutive days thereafter until completed. Testimony will be recorded by stenographic means. ATTACHMENT F DEFENDANTS' OPPOSITION TO PLAINTIFFS' MOTION TO COMPEL PRODUCTION OF WITNESSES FOR DEPOSITION AND REQUEST FOR SANCTIONS Page 1of 3 To 'Robert Krschrnan Page 19 of 22 2005-09-2819 31 03(GMT) 1-202-318-2372 From Geoffrey Rernpel 09/28/2005 13'12 FAX 336 607 7500 KILPATRICK-STOCKTON G?] 019/022 The deponent is hereby rt:quested to designate one or more knowledgeable individuals to testify regarding the fo lowing subject matters: 1. Any investigation performed related to the employment of Ronnie Levme ("Ms. Levlne"), chief information officer ("CIO")of the Bureau of Land Management ("BLM") including documents reviewed and the substance of interviews with potential witnesses. 2. Any investigation performed relating to any retaIiatory acaon taken against Ms. Levine by any employee of the Department of the Interior ("D01") including documents reviewed and the substanceof interviews with potential witnesses. 3, Any investigation performed relating to any proposed transfer of Ms.Levine from the position of CIO of BLM,including documents reviewed and the substance of interviews wth potential witnesses. 4. Any investigation pedormed relahng to the actual or potential destruction of documents containing Indian Trust Data ("ITD") at the National Archives and Records Administration, inchding the naturl: of documents destroyed or disposed of, and the substance of inteniews with potential witnesses. 5. The Inspector General's testing of the IT systems at Minerals Management Service ("MMS") fiom January 1,2005 to the present. 6. Any investigation performed relating to any unauthorized access obtained to any IT system of MMS through UsijAccenture as reported to the Court on August 25,2005. 7. The testing of any IT system at DO1 by the Inspector General from April 2005 to the present. ATTACHMENT F DEFENDANTS' OPPOSITION TO PLAINTIFFS' MOTION TO COMPEL PRODUCTION OF WITNESSES FOR , DEPOSITION AND REQUEST FOR SANCTIONS Page 2 of 3 To 'Robert Kirschman Page 20 of 22 2005-09-28 19:3103 (GMT) 1-202-318-2372 From: Geoffrey Rernpel 09/28/2005 13:12 FAX 336 607 7500 KILPATR1C:K-STOCKTON @J020/022 Respectfully submitted, this tho g4day of Scptcrnber, 2005. ->.. %. *9 (bd L)ennisM. Gingold L)CBar No. 4 17748 P.O. Box 14464 VJashington, DC 14464 'Ielephone: (202) 661-6380 OF COUNSEL: John Echohawk Native American Rights Fund 15 06 Broadway Boulder, CO 80302 'l'elephone: (303)447-8760 - fl -rhrs] Keith M. Harper DC Bar No. 45 19$6 Native American fights Fund 1'112 N Street, NW U'ashington, DC 20036-2976 T1:lephone: (202) 785-4166 A ttomeys for Plaintiffs ATTACHMENT F DEFENDANTS' OPPOSITION TO PLAINTIFFS' MOTION TO COMPEL PRODUCTION OF WITNESSES FOR DEPOSITION AND REQUEST FOR SANCTIONS Page 3 of 3 IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA __________________________________________ ) ELOUISE PEPION COBELL, et al., ) ) Plaintiffs, ) ) v. ) Case No. 1:96cv01285JR ) DIRK KEMPTHORNE, ) Secretary of the Interior, et al., ) ) Defendants. ) __________________________________________) ORDER This matter comes before the Court on Plaintiffs’ Motion to Compel Production of Witnesses for Deposition, Request for Sanctions, and Memorandum in Support Thereof (Dkt. # 3296). Upon consideration of the Plaintiffs’ Motion and Request, Defendants’ Opposition, any Reply thereto, and the entire record of this case, it is hereby ORDERED that the Motion to Compel Production of I-T Security Personnel Document is DENIED and; It is further ORDERED that the Request for Sanctions is also DENIED. SO ORDERED. ___________________________________ Hon. James Robertson UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE United States District Court for the District of Columbia Date:______________