Jorge Teixeira v. Hudson, Town of - Public Schools (SPR 20180127)

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts William Francis Galvin, Secretary of the Commonwealth Public Records Division Rebecca S. Murray Supemisor o f Records February 8,2018 SPR181127 Superintendent Marco Rodrigues Town of Hudson - Public Schools 155 Apsley Street Hudson, MA 01749 Dear Superintendent Rodrigues: I have received the petition of Jorge Teixeira appealing the response of the Town of Hudson Public Schools (School) to a request for public records. G. L. c. 66, 5 10A; see also 950 C.M.R. 32.08(1). Specifically, Mr. Teixeira requested "all documentation that proves mismanagement of fundstbank account by the previous SEPAC Board" (Board). Previous appeals This request was the subject of previous appeals. SPR1711614 Determination of the Supervisor of Records (November 22,2017); SPR1711725 Determination of the Supervisor of Records (January 2,2018). I closed SPR1711725 by ordering the School to provide Mr. Teixeira with a response to the request in a manner consistent with the order, the Public Records Law, and its Regulations. Following the January 2,2018 determination, the School provided a response dated January 19,2018 which included responsive records. Mr. Teixeira contends that the records he received were not responsive to his request and petitioned this office. SPR18t127 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, 5 10A(d); 950 C.M.R. 32.03(4). "Public records" is broadly defmed 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, 5 7(26). . - 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

Superintendent Marco Rodrigues Page 2 February 8,2018 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, 5 IO(b)(iv); 950 C.M.R. 32.06(3); see also Dist. Attorney for the Norfolk Dist. v. Flatlev, 419 Mass. 507, 51 1 (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, 5 lO(b)(viii); see also 950 C.M.R. 32.07(2). Once fees are paid, a records custodian must provide the responsive records. Although the School provided email records that show the current Board's inability to have funds transferred from the previous Board to the current Board, Mr. Teixeira indicated in his request that he is seeking "all documentation that proves mismanagement of fundstbank account by the previous [Board]." Based on the School's response, it is unclear if such a record exists. The School must provide such a record if it exists and is in its possession unless a statutory exemption applies to withhold it. G. L. c. 66, 5 10(c). If the record does not exist, the School must confirm that fact in writing to Mr. Teixeira. See G. L. c. 4, 5 7(26) (the duty to comply with requests for information extends only to those records that exist and are in the custody of the custodian of records at the time of the request). I understand a Public Records Division staff attorney contacted your office about this appeal. Conclusion For the reasons discussed above, the School is hereby ordered, to provide Mr. Teixeira with a copy of the responsive record, if it exists, in accordance with the provisions of the Public Records Law within ten business days. If the School maintains that any portion of the responsive records is exempt from disclosure, it must provide Mr. Teixeira with a written explanation, with specgcity, how a particular exemption applies to the record. Lastly, if the School determines it does not possess responsive records, it must provide a response to Mr. Teixeira indicating so. 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 prefi2sec.state.ma.us. Sincerely, w Rebecca S. Murray Supervisor of Records cc: Jorge Teixeira