Michelle Mangino v. Revere, City of - Office of the City Clerk (SPR 20170435)

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts William Francis Galvin, Secretary of the Commonwealth Public Records Division Rebecca S. Murray Supervisor of Records February 10, 2017 Ashley E. Melnik City Clerk City of Revere 281 Broadway Revere, MA 02151 Dear Ms. Melnik: I have received your petition on behalf of the City of Revere (City) seeking an extension of time to furnish copies of the requested record, or any portion thereof. G. L. c. 66 § lO(c); see also 950 C.M.R. 32.06(4). Specifically, Michelle Mangino requested records related to a specifically identified settlement agreement. 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

Ashley E. Melnik Page 2 February 10, 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 petition dated February 7, 2017 you explain the City is seeking an extension of time because "[t]here are approximately 1,099 emails that the City Solicitor must review prior to releasing any documentation to the requester." I understand that in a subsequent email dated February 8, 2017, Ms. Mangino agreed to ten (10) additional business days for the provision of responsive records. Conclusion In light of the Ms. Mangino's February 8th email, I will not opine on the City's petition for an extension of time to furnish responsive records. See G. L. c. 66 § lO(b)(vi) ("the requestor may voluntarily agree to a response date beyond the timeframes set forth herein"). The City is advised it must provide the records in a manner consistent with the Public Records Law and its Access Regulations. Ms. Mangino may appeal the substantive nature of the City's response within ninety (90) days. See 950 C.M.R. 32.08(1). Sincerely, Rebecca S. Murray Supervisor of Records cc: Michelle Mangino