Hilliard, John v. Waltham, City of - Treasurer's Office (SPR 20140223)

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts William Francis Galvin, Secretary of the Commonwealth Public Records Division Shawn A. Williams Supervisor ofR ecords June 19, 2014 SPR14/223 Mr. John Hilliard Boston University News Service 22 Highland Street Waltham, MA 02453 Dear Mr. Hilliard: I have received your petition appealing the response of the City of Waltham-Treasurer and Collector's Office to your March 1, 2014 request for public records. See G. L. c. 66, § lO(b); see also 950 C.M.R. 32.08(2). Specifically, you requested an electronic formatted Microsoft Excel spreadsheet copy of: 1. Fiscal Year 2013 payroll including employee name, department where each employee works, employee's salary, and any additional compensation including overtime pay, and 2. Fiscal Year 2014 payroll including employee name, department where each employee works, and the employee's salary. On March 10, 2014, Thomas Magno in the Treasurer and Collector's Office informed you that the information you seek is not available in the format described in your request. On March 17, 2014, Mr. Magno informed you that the City will produce the reports for 2013 and 2014 in Excel as requested, and that it will cost sixty ($60) dollars for each report. On March 19, 2014, Mr. Magno explained that the City has estimated that it will take four hours (2 hours for each reports) to search for and produce the information requested at $30.84 per hour. Mr. Magno stated that once the payment was made, the City's Information Technology Department (IT) will search for and extract the information. On March 31, 2014, Mr. Magno informed you that it is estimated that IT would need approximately twenty to thirty minutes to set the computer program up to extract the information and then one and half hours to edit the results of the standard report. The City will export that file into Excel to remove (segregate) the personal data. You appealed the one hundred and twenty ($120) dollar estimate. OneAshburton Place, Room 1719, Boston, Massachusetts 02108 · (617) 727-2832 ·Fax (617) 727-5914 www.sec.state.ma. us/ pre

Mr. John Hilliard SPR14/223 Page Two June 19, 2014 In a discussion with an attorney on my staff, Mr. Magno explained that the City keeps all payroll and other data on the computer system, and that there are no electronic or paper reports that will provide you with the specific information that you seek. Mr. Mango explained that the City must compile the information into a report, then review and redact the report. It is important to note that the City has, in effect, waived a portion of fees it could assess for search time. A custodian of records may charge for the costs of providing records, however those fees must be reasonable and in compliance with the Public Records Access Regulations. 950 C.M.R. 32.00. I find that the written, good faith estimate provided by the City is reasonable and in compliance with the Regulations. Your administrative appeal is closed. Supervisor of Records cc: Mr. Thomas Magno