Bonnie Curran v. Medford, City of - Housing Authority (SPR 20170710)

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts William Francis Galvin, Secretary of the Commonwealth Public Records Division Rebecca S. Murray Supervisor of Records June 5, 2017 SPR17/710 Kathy Fortier Assistant Executive Director Medford Housing Authority 121 Riverside Ave. Medford, MA 0215 5 Dear Ms. Fortier: I have received the petition of Bonnie Curran appealing the response of the Medford Housing Authority (Authority) to a request for public records. G. L. c. 66 § lOA; see also 950 C.M.R. 32.08(1). Specifically, Ms. Curran requested various categories ofrecords, including time cards, minutes, contracts, and legal invoices. The Authority provided certain responsive records. Unsatisfied with this response, Ms. Curran appealed. 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). It is the burden of the records custodian to demonstrate the application of an exemption in order to withhold a requested record. G. L. c. 66, § 1O (b )(iv); 950 C.M.R. 32.06(3); see also Dist. Attorney for the Norfolk Dist. v. Flatley, 419 Mass. 507,511 (1995) (custodian has the burden of establishing the applicability of an exemption). 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. If there are any fees associated with a response a written, good faith estimate must be provided. G. L. c. 66, § 1 O(b)(viii); see also 950 C.M.R. 32.07(2). Once fees are paid, a records custodian must provide the responsive records. 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

Kathy Fortier SPRl 7/710 Page 2 June 5, 2017 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. Public Records Division attorneys are available during regular business hours to answer general questions regarding the Public Records Law. In addition, Public Records Division staff will visit a records custodian in person to conduct training workshops on the Public Records Law upon request. Please contact the Public Records Division directly at the telephone number provided in this determination for further information. Current appeal Based on Ms. Curran's appeal, it appears she believes the Authority cannot assess a fee for the first four hours of work performed to produce responsive records. Please note that in the Public Records Access Regulations, "Municipality" is defined as: Cities and towns, local housing, redevelopment or similar authorities. A consortium, consolidation or combination of entities within a single political subdivision of the commonwealth or among multiple political subdivisions of the commonwealth shall be deemed a municipality. 950 CMR 32.02. In light of this definition, the Authority, which is a local housing authority should be viewed as a municipality for the purposes of the Public Records Law. Under the updated Public Records Law, municipalities may not assess a fee for the first two hours of employee time to search for, compile, segregate, redact or reproduce the record or records requested unless the municipality has 20,000 people or less. G. L. c. 66, § IO(d)(iii). Therefore, the Authority is only required to provide the first two hours of work performed at no cost. It appears Ms. Curran also believes certain responsive records have not been provided. The duty to comply with requests for records extends to those records that exist and are in the possession, custody, or control of the custodian of records at the time of the request. See G. L. c. 66, § IO(a)(ii). The Authority must confirm whether all responsive records have been provided, or, if applicable, explain how an exemption applies to withhold any responsive records. Flatley, 419 Mass. at 511 (c ustodian has the burden of establishing the applicability of an exemption). Ms. Curran also seeks records related to executive session minutes. Please be advised that this request may require an interpretation of the Open Meeting Law, which falls within the authority of the Office of the Attorney General (AGO) and not this office. See G.L. c. 30A, §23. It is recommended that the parties contact the AGO regarding issues that invoke the Open Meeting Law. I understand a Public Records Divisions staff attorney contacted Laurie W. Engdahl, Esq. about this matter and she indicated the Authority would provide Ms. Curran a supplemental response.

Kathy Fortier SPRl 7/710 Page 3 June 5, 2017 Conclusion Accordingly, I will consider this appeal closed with the proviso that the Authority provide Ms. Curran with a response to the request, provided in a manner consistent with this order, the Public Records Law and its Regulations within ten 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: Bonnie Curran Daniel C. Brown, Esq.