Bathurst, Thomas v. Danvers, Town of - Police Department (SPR 20150910)

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts William Francis Galvin, Secretary of the Commonwealth Public Records Division Shawn A. Williams Supervisor ofR ecords January 8, 2016 SPRlS/910 Captain Jamie Lovell Town of Danvers-Police Department 120 Ash Street Danvers, MA 01923 Dear Captain Lovell: I have received the petition of Thomas Bathurst appealing the response of the Town of Danvers-Police Department (Department) to his request for public records. G. L. c. 66 § 1O (b ); see also 950 C.M.R. 32.08(2). Specifically, Mr. Bathurst requested copies of"all records and investigation from 1983 to the present" pertaining to himself. You provided Mr. Bathurst with certain records and denied him others claiming that the retention period for certain records has expired and as such your office no longer has certain records that were responsive. In the Department's initial response a fee estimate was provided to Mr. Bathurst. It is that fee estimate that initiated Mr. Bathurst's appeal. The Public Records Law strongly favors disclosure by creating a presumption that all governmental records are public records. G. L. c. 66, § IO(c); 950 C.M.R. 32.08(4). "Public records" is broadly defined to include all documentary materials or data, regardless of physical form or characteristics, made or received by any officer or employee of any town of the Commonwealth, unless falling within a statutory exemption. G. L. c. 4, § 7(26). Fees estimate A custodian of records may assess a reasonable fee for complying with a request for public records. G. L. c. 66, § 10(a); see also 950 C.M.R. 32.06(2) (where cost of complying with a request for public records is expected to exceed ten dollars ($10.00), custodian of records shall provide written good faith estimate). Absent specific statutory authority to the contrary, the fees to be charged for complying with requests for public records are established by the Public Records Access Regulations (Regulations). See 950 C.M.R. 32.06 (fees for public records). The Regulations provide that in cases where search or segregation time is necessary a custodian of records may charge a pro-rated fee based on the hourly rate of the lowest paid employee who is capable of performing the task. 950 C.M.R. 32.06(1)(c) (emphasis added). OneAshburton Place, Room 1719, Boston, Massachusetts 02108 · (617) 727-2832 ·Fax (617) 727-5914 www.sec.state.ma. us/pre

Captain Jamie Lovell SPR15/910 Page Two January 8, 2016 The Regulations define "search time" as the time needed to locate, pull from the file, copy and refile public records, and "segregation time" as the time used to redact data that is exempt from non-exempt material. 950 C.M.R. 32.03. The search and segregation fees must reflect the actual cost of complying with a particular request. G. L. c. 66, § lO(a). The Department's initial response did not meet the requirements of the Public Records Law in detailing the specific costs associated with the providing the records. However, by email to this office and Mr. Bathurst dated January 6, 2016 you stated that all responsive records have been provided and all fees for this particular records request have been waived. Accordingly, whereas the Department provided all responsive records and waived all fees, I will consider this administrative appeal closed. To assist the Department in responding to requests for public records I have enclosed a copy of our publication, A Guide to the Massachusetts Public Records Law. This document is also available on the Internet, free of charge, at http://www.sec.state.ma.us/pre/prepdf/guide.pdf. Attorneys on my staff are available during regular business hours to answer general questions regarding the Public Records Law. In addition, members of my staff will visit a records custodian in person to conduct training workshops on the Public Records Law upon request. Please contact my office directly at the telephone number below for further information. cc: Mr. Thomas Bathurst