Paul Sullivan v. Framingham, City of - Public Schools Department (SPR 20181740)

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts William Francis Galvin, Secretary of the Commonwealth Public Records Division Rebecca S. Murray Supervisor of Records November 27,2018 SPR1811740 Nancy Piaseclci Public Records Access Officer Frarningham Public Schools 73 Mt. Wayte Ave., Suite 5 Framingham, MA 0 1702 Dear Ms. Piasecki: I have received your petition on behalf of the Framingham Public Schools (School) seeking an extension of time to furnish copies of a requested record. G. L. c. 66, § lO(c). The School is also seeking to charge for segregation and redaction of the records. G. L. c. 66, § lO(d)(iv). As required by law, the School furnished a copy of this petition to the requestor. G. L. c. 66, 5 10(c), (d)(iv)(2). On November 6,2017 , Paul Sullivan requested copies of invoices, payment approvals, and requests of services of vendors from the School. ( 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. One Ashburton Place, Room 1719 , Boston, Massachusetts 021 08 (617) 727-2832. Fax: (617) 727-5914 sec.state.ma.us/pre pre@sec.state.ma.us

Nancy Piasecki Page 2 November 27,20 18 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 Id. obligation to provide copies of the records sought. The filing of a petition does not affect the requirement that a Records Access Officer (RAO) shall provide an initial response to a requestor within ten business days after receipt of a request for public records. 950 C.M.R. 3 6.06(4)(b). The School is requesting an extension of time "[blased on the time needed to review and redact the records, the School requests 10 business days following receipt of the Supervisor's decision and payment of the estimated cost." The School states that the additional time is needed to "reasonably complete this review and redaction." I find the School has established good cause to permit an extension of time of 10 business days beyond the statutorily allowed 25 business days from the date of receipt of the request for production of the responsive records. G. L. c. 66, 5 lO(c)(i)-(v); see also G. L. c. 66 5 lO(b)(vi) (a records access officer may identify a reasonable timeframe in which it shall produce the public records sought; provided, that for a municipality the timeframe shall not exceed 25 business days following the initial receipt of the request). , Petitions for ability to assess fees 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, 5 lO(d)(iii). Where appropriate, municipalities may include as part of the fee an hourly rate equal to or less than the hourly rate attributed to the lowest paid employee who has the necessary skill required to search for, compile, segregate, Id. redact or reproduce a record requested, but the fee shall not be more than $25 per hour. A fee shall not be assessed for time spent segregating or redacting records unless such segregation or redaction is required by law or approved by the Supervisor of Records (Supervisor) under a petition under G. L. c. 66, 5 lO(d)(iv). G. L. c. 66, 5 lO(d)(iii); 950 CMR 32.06(4). The Supervisor may approve a petition from a municipality to charge for time spent segregating or redacting or to charge in excess of $25 per hour, if the Supervisor determines that 1) the request is for a commercial purpose or 2) the fee represents an actual and good faith representation by the municipality to comply with the request, the fee is necessary such that the request could not have been prudently completed without the redaction, segregation or fee in

Nancy Piasecki Page 3 November 27,20 18 excess of $25 per hour, and the amount of the fee is reasonable and the fee is not designed to limit, deter or prevent access to requested public records. G. L. c. 66, 5 lO(d)(iv). In rendering such a decision, the Supervisor is required to consider the following: a) the public interest served by limiting the cost of public access to the records; b) the financial ability of the requestor to pay the additional or increased fees; and c) any other relevant extenuating a. circumstances. The School is seeking permission to charge for segregation and redaction time at an hourly rate of $220.00 per hour. The School explains that given the nature of the exempt information "documents must be reviewed for redaction an attorney, because city employees lack the legal training to assess what part of a billing entry is within the above exemptions, especially attorney-client privilege." I find the School has met its burden to explain how, given the nature of the responsive records, the request could not prudently be completed without redaction, segregation or by assessing a fee in excess of $25.00 per hour. See G. L. c. 66, 5 10(d)(iv). However, I decline to approve the School's request for $220.00 per hour. Instead, I find the School may assess a fee not greater than $75.00 per hour for attorney review. Conclusion Accordingly, I find the School has established good cause for a time extension of 10 business days as described above. Additionally, the School's petition to assess fees for segregation and redaction of the records is granted at an hourly rate no more than $75.00 per hour. The School is advised it must provide the records in a manner consistent with this determination, the Public Records Law and its Access Regulations. Mr. Sullivan may appeal the substantive nature of the School's response within ninety days. 950 C.M.R. 32.08(1). Sincerely, Rebecca S. Murray Supervisor of Records cc: Paul Sullivan