Stanley Mazurczyk v. Chelmsford, Town of - Town Manager (SPR 20181957)

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts William Francis Galvin, Secretary of the Commonwealth Public Records Division Rebecca S. Murray Supervisor ofR ecords December 13, 2018 SPRlS/1957 Paul Cohen Town Manager Town of Chelmsford 50 Billerica Road Chelmsford, MA O1 824 Dear Mr. Cohen: I have received the petition of Stanley Mazurczyk appealing the response of the Town of Chelmsford (Town) to a request for public records. G. L. c. 66, § 1O A; see also 950 C.M.R. 32.08(1). Specifically, on November 5, 2018, Mr. Mazurczyk requested an" ... umedacted copy of an email [an identified individual] sent on October 10, 2018 at 3: 18 PM." The Town provided a response which included the responsive email record in redacted form. Unsatisfied with the Town's response, Mr. Mazurczyk petitioned this office and this appeal, SPRl 8/1957, 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, § IOA(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, § lO(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, § lO(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

Paul Cohen SPR18/1957 Page2 December 13, 2018 The Town's response In its response, the Town included the responsive email record with portions of the header information, specifically, the "To" and "Cc" portions, redacted. Based on the Town's response, it is unclear what exemption(s) to the Public Records Law the Town is claiming to support the redactions made in the responsive record. Under the Public Records Law, the burden shall be upon the custodian to prove with specificity the exemption which applies. G. L. c. 66, § lO(b)(iv); see also Globe Newspaper Co. v. Police Comm'r, 419 Mass. 852, 857 (1995); Flatley, 419 Mass. at 511. As a result, I find the Town did not meet its burden of demonstrating how the redacted portions of the records are exempt from disclosure. If the Town maintains the redacted portions are exempt from public disclosure, it must cite specific exemptions and the reasons the exemptions apply to withhold the redacted portions of the responsive records. See G. L. c. 66, § 1O (b )(iv). Conclusion Accordingly, the Town is ordered to provide Mr. Mazurczyk 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: Stanley Mazurczyk