Richard Maximus Strahan v. Department of Fish and Game (SPR 20201322)

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts William Francis Galvin, Secretary of the Commonwealth Public Records Division Rebecca S. Murray Supervisor of Records August 13, 2020 SPR20/1322 Beverly M. Vucson, Esq. General Counsel Massachusetts Department of Fish and Game 251 Causeway Street, Suite 400 Boston, MA 02114 Dear Attorney Vucson: I have received your petition on behalf of the Massachusetts Department of Fish and Game (Department) seeking an extension of time to produce records G. L. c. 66, § 10(c). As required by law, it is my understanding that the Department furnished a copy of this petition to the requestor, Max Strahan. Id. In a letter dated July 23, 2020, Mr. Strahan requested four categories of records concerning the Natural Heritage and Endangered Species Program and its employees. Petition 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, § 10(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

Beverly M. Vucson, Esq. SPR20/1322 Page 2 August 13, 2020 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 In its petition dated August 6, 2020, the Department seeks “approval for an extension of 5-business to respond to a public records request submitted by Mr. Max Strahan.” The Department explains, “DFG has been advised that 334 potentially responsive emails have been identified. DFG will be required to review these emails to determine whether they are responsive to the request, and redact exempt or otherwise privileged information from each responsive communication.” The Department expressed “[u]ntil that review is complete, DFG is unable to state with specificity what portions of the records may be privileged or otherwise exempt, but a preliminary review indicates that portions may be exempt because they fall into the following categories of exempt materials (1) attorney-client privileged and (2) deliberative process materials.” The Department posits “[b]ecause such a large number of emails must be searched, DFG requests an additional five business days to respond. However, any responsive records identified will be provided at no cost to the requester, despite requiring in excess of four hours of labor to compile and segregate.” Conclusion I find the Department has established good cause to permit an extension of time. See G. L. c. 66, § 10(c)(i)-(iv). I hereby grant the Department an extension of 5 business days to furnish copies of records responsive to Mr. Strahan’s request. See G. L. c. 66, § 10(c). To the extent possible, the Department must provide responsive records on a rolling basis. Please note, Mr. Strahan has the right to seek judicial review of this decision by commencing a civil action in the appropriate superior court. See G. L. c. 66, § 10(d)(iv)(4), 10A(c).

Beverly M. Vucson, Esq. SPR20/1322 Page 3 August 13, 2020 Sincerely, Rebecca S. Murray Supervisor of Records cc: Max Strahan