James Dumont, a Bristol attorney, has filed a lawsuit against the U.S. Air Force for denying a Freedom of Information Act request for the original scoring sheets used in the process of deciding where to base the F-35 fighter jet.
Last month, Dumont, who is also an attorney for the Stop the F-35 Coalition, filed a FOIA request with the Air Force for 205 scoring sheets that were used to narrow the number of locations used for the Air Force’s assessment of the F-35’s environmental impact.
The Air Force denied his request, stating in their response that the information contained in the scoring sheets is exempt from public disclosure under the deliberative process privilege, Exemption Five, of the Freedom of Information Act.
According to the exemption, opinions and recommendations can be kept confidential if their disclosure will affect the decision-making process before policy has been decided. However, Dumont argues that the scoring sheets contain facts, not opinions, such as the runway length, number of hangars and if there is a fitness center at the Vermont Air National Guard, for example.
Dumont said a U.S. District Court judge will hear oral arguments by mid-October.
Rosanne Greco, a South Burlington city councilor and an opponent of the F-35, said the release of the documents will not impact the final decision on where to base the F-35.
“It won’t matter,” Greco said. “This decision is based on the political will to have it here, not on any military operational basis.”
However, she said the documents would clarify questionable scoring procedures that ranked Burlington as one of the preferred locations to base the F-35.
Opponents of the basing argue many of the scores were changed or incorrect, such as the “encroachment” component of the scoring sheet which was assigned six points, according to the Joint Strike Fighter basing criteria sheet release by the Air Force. Encroachment measures whether there is development in both the crash zone and the 65-decibel day-night average noise level (DNL) contour of the airport.
Greco said the Burlington location should not have received these six points because the score implies that there was no development in the area around the airport.
Under scenarios 1 and 2 of the Air Force’s most recent Environmental Impact Statement (EIS), approximately 3,000 homes are located within the 65-decibel DNL contour.
Nicholas Germanos, a civilian project manager for the Air Force, said the Air Force determined that there was no incompatible development around the airport, partly because of the Federal Aviation Administration’s home buyback program that provides money to the airport to purchase homes affected by noise.
According to the F-35 Operational Beddown Criteria, the five criteria on the scoring sheet are airspace, mission, capacity, environment and cost. Military judgment is another factor in the final decision, officials have said.
The Air Combat Command is reviewing comments that were made on the most recent EIS. A final EIS is scheduled for release this fall and will be reviewed by the public for a minimum of 30 days before a final record of decision is made on where to base the F-35.
Eighteen to 24 fighter jets would be based with ther Vermont Air National Guard in Burlington, officials have said.
