Benjamin J. Wish v. Brookline, Town of (SPR 20191573)

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts William Francis Galvin, Secretary of the Commonwealth Public Records Division Rebecca S. Murray Supervisor of Records August 13, 2019 SPR19/1573 Suzanne McCormick - de Boer Public Schools of Brookline Administration and Finance 333 Washington Street Brookline, MA 0244 Dear Ms. McCormick - de Boer: I have received your petition on behalf of the Brookline Public Schools (School) requesting an extension of time to produce records. G. L. c. 66, § lO(c); see also 950 C.M.R. 36.06(4)(b). As required by law, the School furnished a copy of this petition to the requestor. G. L. c. 66, § lO(d)(iv). In a letter dated June 21, 2019, Benjamin Wish seeks 30 categories of records concerning the Brookline K-8 schools. Public Records Law 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) .. If the Supervisor determines that the request is part of a series of contemporaneous 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

Suzanne McCormick -de Boer SPR19/1573 Page 2 August 13, 2019 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 ). Previous Appeal This petition is the subject of a previous case. See SPR19/1639 (August 12, 2019). I closed SPR19/1639 by ordering the School to provide Mr. Wish with a response in accordance with the Public Records Law, its Access Regulations and the order within ten business days, as well as responsive records as they become available without delay. Conclusion Subsequent to the intervention by a staff member of the Public Records Division, it is my understanding that the School intends to withdraw its petition. Accordingly, I find that in light of the School's communications with this office it is unnecessary to opine on the School's petition seeking an extension of time to furnish copies of the requested records. Should the School require additional time to produce the responsive 11 records, it may submit a petition within 10 days of receipt of the August lzl determination. G. L. c. 66, § lO(c). Sincerely, ~~ Rebecca S. Murray Supervisor of Records cc: Benjamin Wish