James G. Grillo, Esq. v. Pepperell, Town of - Town Clerk (SPR 20170428)

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts William Francis Galvin, Secretary of the Commonwealth Public Records Division Rebecca S. Murray Supervisor of Records February 7, 2017 Lisa M. Ferolito Town Clerk Town of Pepperell One Main Street Pepperell, MA O1 463 Dear Ms. Ferolito: I have received your petition on behalf of the Town of Pepperell (Town) seeking an extension of time to furnish copies of the requested record, or any portion thereof. G. L. c. 66 § lO(c); also 950 C.M.R. 32.06(4). As required by law, the Town furnished a copy of this petition to the requester. Specifically, James G. Grillo, Esq. requested records related to a specifically identified public construction project. Petitions for an extension of time Under the Public Records Law, upon a showing of good cause, the Supervisor of Records (Supervisor) may grant a single extension to an agency not to exceed 20 business days and a single extension to a municipality not to exceed 30 business days. In determining whether there has been a showing of good cause, the Supervisor shall consider, but shall not be limited to considering: (i) the need to search for, collect, segregate or examine records; (ii) the scope of redaction required to prevent unlawful disclosure; (iii) the capacity or the normal business hours of operation of the agency or municipality to produce the request without the extension; (iv) efforts undertaken by the agency or municipality in fulfilling the current request and previous requests; (v) whether the request, either individually or as part of a series of requests from the same requestor, is frivolous or intended to harass or intimidate the agency or municipality; and (vi) the public interest served by expeditious disclosure. G. L. c. 66 § lO(c) One Ashburton Place, Room 1719, Boston, Massachusetts 02108 • (617) 727-2832• Fax: (617) 727-5914 sec.state.ma.us/pre• pre@sec.state.ma.us

Lisa Ferolito Page 2 February 7, 2017 If the Supervisor determines that the request is part of a series of contemporaneous requests that are frivolous or designed to intimidate or harass, and the requests are not intended for the broad dissemination of information to the public about actual or alleged government activity, the Supervisor may grant a longer extension or relieve the agency or municipality of its obligation to provide copies of the records sought. Id. The filing of a petition does not affect the requirement that a Records Access Officer (RAO) shall provide an initial response to a requester within ten business days after receipt of a request for public records. 950 CMR 36.06(4)(b). Current petition In your initial petition dated February 2, 2017 you explain the Town received Attorney Grillo's request on January 26, 2017 and is seeking "an extension of time to provide the documents due to impending litigation." In an email to Attorney Grillo you explain the Town is requesting "twenty-five (25) business days to fulfill the public records request dated January 26, 2017 regarding the above-noted matter." In a subsequent email to this office dated February 2nd you confirm the Town is seeking a "25 business day extension." Conclusion In light of the Town's February 2nd emails I find it is unnecessary to opine on the Town's extension request because it intends to provide responsive records within twenty five (25) business days of the receipt of the request as allowed in G. L. c. 66 § lO(b)(vi). The Town is advised it must seek another petition for extension if it cannot provide responsive records within twenty five (25) business days of the receipt of the request. G. L. c. 66 § lO(c). The records must be provided in a manner consistent with the Public Records Law and its Access Regulations. Attorney Grillo may appeal the substantive nature of the Town's response within ninety (90) days. See 950 C.M.R. 32.08(1). Sincerely, ~ u r r ~ Supervisor of Records cc: James G. Grillo, Esq.