Steven Ballard v. Acton-Boxborough Regional School District (SPR 20171580)

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts William Francis Galvin, Secretary of the Commonwealth Public Records Division Rebecca S. Murray Supen,isor ofR ecords November 16, 2017 SPR17/1580 Beth Petr Acton-Boxborough Regional School District 16 Charter Road Acton, MA O1 720 Dear Ms. Petr: I have received the petition of Steven Ballard appealing the response of the Acton Boxborough Regional School District (District) to a request for public records. G. L. c. 66, § lOA; see also 950 C.M.R. 32.08(1). Specifically, Mr. Ballard requested a copy of various documents concerning the Executive Session meetings of the District. Unsatisfied with the Distriet1-s respo-nse;Mr; Ballard petitioned this office and this appeal 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). · 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, § 1 O(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 w,ith a respon~e, a written, good faith estimate must be provided. G. L. c. 66, § 1O (b )(viii); see also 950 C.M.R. 32.07(2). Once fees are paid, a records custodian must provide the responsive records. 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 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

Beth Petr SPRl 7/1580 Page2 November 16, 2017 the Internet at http://www.sec.state.ma.us/pre/prepdf/guide.pdf. Staff Attorneys are available during regular business hours to answer general questions regarding the Public Records Law. In addition, members of the Public Records Division will visit a records custodian in person to conduct training workshops on the Public Records Law upon request. Please contact this office directly at the telephone number provided in this determination for further information. School District did not claim exemption(s) In its August 9th response, the District failed to specifically claim an exemption or exemptions to withhold the documents used in the April 26th executive session meeting. The District's response simply states, "[t]he list of documents used in the executive session was redacted in the minutes of July 11, 2017. As a result, we are unable to confirm or deny the documents used at this time." The Public Records Law states that "the burden shall be upon the custodian to prove with specificity the exemption which applies.'' G. L. c. 66, § lO(b)(iv)(emphasis added); see also Globe Newspaper Co. v. Police Comm'r, 419 Mass. 852, 857 (1995); Flatley, 419 Mass. at 511. The District did not meet its burden of demonstrating how the responsive records, in their entirety, are exempt from disclosure. See Reinstein v. Police Comm'r of Boston, 378 Mass. 281, 289-90 (1979) (the statutory exemptions are narrowly construed and are not blanket in nature). The District must produce any non-exempt, segregable portion of a public record. G. L. c. 66, § lO(a). It is my understanding that an attorney in the Public Records Division contacted you about this appeal. ·· Conclusion Accordingly, the District is hereby ordered to provide Mr. Ballard 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: Steven Ballard