Charles Dougherty v. Massachusetts Clean Energy Center (SPR 20191127)

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts William Francis Galvin, Secretary of the Commonwealth Public Records Division Rebecca S. Murray Supervisor ofR ecords June 12, 2019 SPR19/1127 Alexandra J. Zaltman Massachusetts Clean Energy Center 63 Franklin Street, 3rd Floor Boston, MA 02110 Dear Attorney Zaltman, I have received your petition on behalf of the Massachusetts Clean Energy Center (Center) seeking an extension of time to produce records or any portion thereof. G. L. c. 66, § lO(c); see also 950 C.M.R. 32.06(4). As required by law, the Center furnished a copy of this petition to the requestor. On May 2, 2019 Charles Dougherty requested various categories of records concerning the "New Bedford Marine Commerce Terminal '(NBMCT)." 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. G. L. c. 66, § lO(c). 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

Attorney Zaltman SPR19/1127 Page 2 June 12, 2019 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 obligation to provide copies of the records sought. Id. 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. 36.06(4)(b). Current Petition The Center requested a 20 business day extension to produce responsive records. In their June 5, 2019 letter to this office, the Center states, "[u]nder 950 C.M.R. 32.06(4), we seek an extension of 20 business days from the date of the Supervisor's ruling on this petition. On May 16, 2019 we spoke with the requestor and proposed an extension until May 31, 2019 which is 10 business days beyond the statutory deadline set forth in G. L. c. 66, § lO(a)." The Center further writes, "[t]he requestor agreed to this extension. On June 5, 2019, we sent a letter to this reque~tor, and informed the requestor of our intent to file this petition." In an email to this office dated June 6, 2019, Mr. Dougherty writes, "[i]n order to expedite this process, and with Ms. Zaltman's assurance that they will endeavor to respond to my request as quickly as possible within the extension period, I assent to the requested extension. Accordingly, I request that you approve the extension promptly so that the extension goes into effect on the earliest possible date." Conclusion In light of Mr. Dougherty's June 6th letter to this office in which he assents to the time extension, I find that it is unnecessary to opine on the Center's petition. Sincerely, Rebecca S. Murray Supervisor of Records cc: Charles Dougherty