Hollman, Esq., Steven v. Department of Public Health (SPR 20140426)

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts William Francis Galvin, Secretary of the Commonwealth Public Records Division Shawn A. Williams Supervisor ofR ecords October 10,2014 SPR14/426 Ms. Rebecca J. Rodman, Esq. Department of Public Health Office of the General Counsel 250 Washington Street Boston, MA 02108-4619 Dear Attorney Rodman: This office has received the petition of Steven P. Hollman, Esq. appealing the response of the Department of Public Health (Department) to his April30, 2014 request for public records. See G. L. c. 66, § 10(b); see also 950 C.M.R. 32.08(6). Specifically, Attorney Hollman requested copies of records relating to the declaration of a public health emergency. In a May 2, 2014 letter to Attorney Hollman, you acknowledged his request and stated that the Department was in the process of identifying responsive records. The Department subsequently failed to provide Attorney Hollman with any further update regarding his records request until a September 8, 2014letter from you, over four months after your initial correspondence. While the Department initially acknowledged its receipt of Attorney Hollman's request, the Department failed to satisfy its burden with respect to the timeliness requirement of the Public Records Law. While a request for public records must be met with a written response within ten (10) calendar days ofthe request (See G. L. c. 66, § 10(b); 950 C.M.R. 32.05), this office recognizes that with respect to certain requests, a records custodian may require additional time to determine the scope of a request and calculate a detailed fee estimate for the cost to provide records. However, the Department's delay in providing a further response, extending over four months, fails to comply with the spirit and timeliness requirement of the Public Records Law. In your September 8th letter, you informed Attorney Hollman that the Department has calculated a cost of $46,000 that is required simply to conduct a search for all responsive records. Your letter further states that upon completing a search for responsive records, the OneAshburton Place, Room 1719, Boston, Massachusetts 02108 · (617) 727-2832 ·Fax (617) 727-5914 www.sec.state.ma. us/ pre

Ms. Rebecca J. Rodman, Esq. SPR14/426 Page Two October 10, 2014 Department will notify Attorney Hollman of the estimated cost to review the identified records and provide copies. Pursuant to the Public Records Access Regulations, the Department is permitted to issue a detailed fee estimate for the cost to be incurred in providing records responsive to a public records request. See 950 C.M.R. 32.06(2). In this instance, the Department failed to provide any meaningful detail to support its calculation of the fee estimate. The Department failed to identify the number of hours required to search for responsive records or any hourly rates that may have been used as part of its fee estimate calculation. In summary, the . Department has not satisfied its burden in responding to Attorney Hollman's request. Whereas the Department has failed to satisfy its burden, it is hereby ordered to provide Attorney Hollman with copies of all responsive records within ten (1 0) calendar days or alternatively to provide Attorney Hollman and this office with a more detailed explanation and fee estimate calculation that will satisfy its burden in respon g to this request. Accordingly, this administrative appeal is now closed. Supervisor of Records cc: Mr. Steven P. Hollman, Esq. Mr. Mark Waterbury, Esq. Mr. David Kibbe