Aldo A. Cipriano v. Grafton, Town of (SPR 20192531)

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts William Francis Galvin, Secretary of the Commonwealth Public Records Division

Rebecca S, Murray Supervisor of Records

January 9, 2020 SPR19/2531 Ginny S. Kremer, Esq. Blatman, Bobrowski, & Haverty, LLC 9 Damonmill Square, Suite 4A4 Concord, MA 01742

Dear Attorney Kremer:

I have received the petition of Aldo Cipriano, Esq. appealing the response of the Town of Grafton (Town) to a request for public records. G. L. c. 66, § 10A; see also 950 C.M.R. 32.08(1). Specifically, Attorney Cipriano requested 10 categories of records related to a drainage issue on an identified road. .

Previous appeal

This request was the subject of a previous determination. See SPR19/2318 Determination of the Supervisor of Records (December 2, 2019). In my December 2" determination I ordered the Town to provide Attorney Cipriano with a response to the request, provided in a manner consistent with the order, the Public Records Law and its Regulations. Attorney Cipriano informed this office that he did not receive a response to the order. SPR19/2531 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, § 10A(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, § 10(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.

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

Ginny S. Kremer, Esq. SPR19/2531 Page 2 January 9, 2020

Current Appeal

I understand the Town previously provided multiple responses to Attorney Cipriano, including an October 18, 2019 response in which it provided certain responsive records. In the October 18" response you indicate “[e]nclosed please find public records responsive to your request. The Select Board’s executive session minutes, to the extent they are public records, will | be provided under separate cover.”

In the current appeal petition, Attorney Cipriano indicates, in part, “[a]s of the date of this correspondence and further appeal, we have no response to the November 15, 2019 appeal [SPR19/2318] with its multiple attachments.”

Subsequent to the opening of this appeal, the Town provided Attorney Cipriano a supplemental response on December 27, 2019. This response contained certain executive session minutes. Whereas this matter was opened based upon Attorney Cipriano having yet to receive a response to the December 2™ order, I will now consider this administrative appeal closed. Attorney Cipriano may appeal the substantive nature of the Town’s December 27" response within 90 days. See 950 C.M.R. 32.08(1).

Sincerely,

Rileon Munna —

Rebecca S. Murray Supervisor of Records ce: Aldo Cipriano, Esq.