Michael Dreslinski v. Holden, Town of - Fire Department (SPR 20160223)

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts William Francis Galvin, Secretary of the Commonwealth Public Records Division Shawn A. Williams Supervisor ofR ecords April 12, 2016 SPR16/223 Mr. John Chandler III Fire Chief Town of Holden 1370 Main Street Holden, MA 021520 Dear Chief Chandler: I have received the petitions of Michael Dreslinski appealing responses of the Town of Holden Fire Department (Fire Department) to December 21,2015 request for public records. G. L. c. 66 § 1O (b ); see also 950 C.M.R. 32.08(2). Specifically, Mr. Dreslinski sought copies of records in which he is identified. In a January 5, 2016 response the Fire Department provided a fee estimate. This estimate, totaling $1,083, includes fees for searching and segregating records, as well as a $.50 per page cost for thirty (30) computer printout pages. Mr. Dreslinski appealed this fee estimate, stating his belief that the fees for records provided by municipal fire departments are determined by statute, rather than by the Public Records Access Regulations. See G. L. c. 66, § 10 (a); see also 950 C.M.R. 32.06; SPR15/835 Determination ofthe Supervisor of Records (December 16, 20 15). Fees for copies ofp ublic records 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 ($1 0.00), custodian of records shall provide written good faith estimate). Absent specific statutory authority to the contrary, the fees to be charged for complying with requests for public records are established by the Public Records Access Regulations (Regulations). See 950 C.M.R. 32.06 (fees for public records). Under the Regulations, a custodian of records may assess a maximum fee of five cents ($.05) per page for a black and white single or double-sided photocopy of a public record. See 950 C.M.R. 32.06(1)(a). In addition to the copying fee, 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. OneAshburton Place, Room 1719, Boston, Massachusetts 02108 · (617) 727-2832 ·Fax (617) 727-5914 www.sec.state.ma. us/pre

Chief John Chandler III SPR16/223 Page 2 April12, 2016 32.06(1)(c). 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, § 10(a). Municipal fire departments may respond to requests for public records by providing fee estimates as indicated by statute: ... The following fees shall apply to any public record in the custody of the state police, the Massachusetts bay transportation authority police or any municipal police department or .fire department: for preparing and mailing a motor vehicle accident report, five dollars for not more than six pages and fifty cents for each additional page; for preparing and mailing a fire insurance report, five dollars for not more than six pages plus fifty cents for each additional page;for preparing and mailing crime, incident or miscellaneous reports, one dollar per page; for furnishing any public record, in hand, to a person requesting such records, fifty cents per page. A page shall be defined as one side of an eight and one-half inch by eleven inch sheet of paper. G. L. c. 66, lO(a) The statute states that municipal fire departments may charge a fee of $1.00 per page "for preparing and mailing" certain reports. Municipal fire departments may charge $.50 for copies of records provided "in hand." Whereas the provisions ofthis section permit a $1.00 fee for preparation of records, a municipal fire department is not permitted to assess an additional fee for search and segregation. Further, whereas the statute provides for "preparing and mailing," a municipal fire department is not permitted to charge an additional fee for postage. Order I find the Fire Department has failed to provide a fee estimate as indicated by statute. Accordingly, the Fire Department is hereby ordered, within ten (10) days ofthis order, to provide Mr. Dreslinski with a revised response to his December 21, 2015 request for records. The response by the Fire Department must be prepared in a manner consistent with this order, the Public Records Law, its Regulations and other applicable law. If the Fire Department maintains that any portion of the responsive records are exempt from disclosure it must, within ten (1 0) days provide to Mr. Dreslinski a written explanation, with specificity, how a particular exemption applies to each record. To meet the specificity requirement a custodian must not only cite an exemption, but must also state why the exemption applies to the withheld or redacted portion of the responsive record. A copy of any such response must be provided to this office. It is preferable to send an electronic copy of this response to this office at pre@sec.state.ma.us.

Chief John Chandler III SPR16/223 Page 3 April12, 2016 To assist in requesting and responding to requests for public records please refer to our publication, A Guide to the Massachusetts Public Records Law. This document is 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 provided in this determina ·on for further information. yours, /] cc: Mr. Michael Dreslinski