Brian J. Corriveau v. Warren, Town of (SPR 20170641)

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts William Francis Galvin, Secretary of the Commonwealth Public Records Division Rebecca S. Murray Supervisor of Records May 24, 2017 SPR17/641 Rebecca Acerra Records Access Officer Town of Warren 48 High Street Warren, MA 01083 Dear Ms. Acerra: I have received the petition of Brian J. Corriveau appealing the response of the Town of Warren (Town) to a February 25, 2017 request for public records. G. L. c. 66 § lOA; see also 950 C.M.R. 32.08(1). Specifically, Mr. Corriveau requested a copy of the Warren Police Department's 2016 budget, as well as a breakdown of the Department's spending. Previous appeals This request was the subject of previous appeals. See SPR 17 /257 Determination of the Supervisor or Records (February 28, 2017); SPR 17/393 Determination of the Supervisor of Records (April 6, 2017). This office closed SPR 17/393 with the determination that "the Town satisfied the obligation of providing Mr. Corriveau with a satisfactory response" as a fee estimate was provided to a January 29, 2017 request on February 7, 2017. In closing SPR 17/393 it was the understanding of this office that Mr. Corriveau's January 29th request was for the same information as his February 25th request. As later explained by Mr. Corriveau in his May 9, 2017 letter to this office, this was not the case. Mr. Corriveau's January 29th request was for "copies of the Police Department budget set by the town along with a breakdown of how the towns (sic) money was spent, going back 5 years" ih (emphasis added). The Town's February response was in response to this January 29th request. This response contained a fee estimate of $282.80 for completion of his request. A i\ secondary response, also dated February reduced this fee estimate to $6.50. In a request dated February 25, 2017, Mr. Corriveau subsequently narrowed his request to only the Police Department's 2016 budget. He petitioned this office in a letter dated March 28, 2017 stating he had yet to receive a response to his revised request, and SPR 17/393 was opened to review the matter. As stated above, this office closed SPR 17 /3 93 under the impression that 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

Rebecca Acerra SPRl 7/641 Page 2 May 24, 2017 ih the Town's February responses were in response to Mr. Corriveau's February 25th request for a copy of the Warren Police Department's 2016 budget, including a breakdown of spending. Mr. Corriveau notified this office of the misunderstanding in the April 6th determination closing SPR 17 /393 and this appeal, SPR 17 /641, was opened as a result. The Public Records Law The Public Records Law strongly favors disclosure by creating a presumption that all governmental records are public records. G. L. c. 66, § lOA(d); 950 C.M.R. 32.03(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). If there are any fees associated with a response a written, good faith estimate must be provided. G. L. c. 66, § lO(b)(viii); see also 950 C.M.R. 32.07(2). Once fees are paid, a records custodian must provide the responsive records. Conclusion It is unclear if the Town has responded to Mr. Corriveau's February 25th request. Therefore, the Town must provide Mr. Corriveau with a further response clarifying their response to his February 25th request. I will consider this administrative appeal closed with the proviso that this response is provided within ten (10) business days. 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. Sincerely, ~~ Rebecca S. Murray Supervisor of Records cc: Brian J. Corriveau