Craig Lampert v. Georgetown, Town of - Fire Department (SPR 20201959)

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts William Francis Galvin, Secretary of the Commonwealth Public Records Division Rebecca S. Murray Supervisor of Records October 26, 2020 SPR20/1959 Keri Ann McManus Town Clerk Town of Georgetown 1 Library Street Georgetown, MA 01833 Dear Ms. McManus: I have received the petition of Craig Lampert appealing the response of the Town of Georgetown (Town) to a request for public records. G. L. c. 66, § 10A; see also 950 C.M.R. 32.08(1). Specifically, Mr. Lampert requested “mails sent to, or received by [Georgetown Fire Chief Fred Mitchell], between October 1, 2016 and July 1, 2019 pertaining to: ‘Union’, ‘FD Union’, ‘Local 93’, ‘Local 939’, ‘Local 2635’, ‘Craig Lampert’, and ‘Disclaimer of Interest AFSCME Council and the Town of Georgetown, the Full-Time, Part-Time, On-Call Firefighters Unit.’" The Town responded on September 21, 2020, providing a fee estimate for the production of responsive records. Unsatisfied with the Town’s response, Mr. Lampert petitioned this office and this appeal, SPR20/1959, was opened as a result. Fee Estimates If there are any fees associated with a response a written, good faith estimate must be provided. G. L. c. 66, § 10(b)(viii); see also 950 C.M.R. 32.07(2). Once fees are paid, a records custodian must provide the responsive records. A municipality may assess a reasonable fee for the production of a public record except those records that are freely available for public inspection. G. L. c. 66, § 10(d). The fees must reflect the actual cost of complying with a particular request. Id. A maximum fee of five cents ($.05) per page may be assessed for a black and white single or double-sided photocopy of a public record. G. L. c. 66, § 10(d)(i). Municipalities may not assess a fee for the first two (2) hours of employee time to search for, compile, segregate, redact or reproduce the record or records requested unless the 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

Kerri Ann McManus SPR20/1959 Page 2 October 26, 2020 municipality has 20,000 people or fewer. G. L. c. 66, § 10(d)(iii). Where appropriate, municipalities may include as part of the fee an hourly rate equal to or less than the hourly rate attributed to the lowest paid employee who has the necessary skill required to search for, compile, segregate, redact or reproduce a record requested, but the fee shall not be more than $25 per hour. Id. However, municipalities may charge more than $25 per hour if such rate is approved by the Supervisor under a petition under G. L. c. 66, § 10(d)(iv). A fee shall not be assessed for time spent segregating or redacting records unless such segregation or redaction is required by law or approved by the Supervisor under a petition under G. L. c. 66, § 10(d)(iv). G. L. c. 66, § 10(d)(iii); 950 C.M.R. 32.06(4). Current Appeal In its September 21st fee estimate, the Town estimates that it will require 4 hours to produce responsive records, for a total cost of $100. Fees to search for, compile, segregate, redact or reproduce responsive records In its response, the Town estimates that it will require 4 hours to “”search for and segregate email records; review for privilege and exemption.” Despite the Department’s statement, it is unclear how much time the Town intends to devote to each task. Additionally, the Town does not indicate the number of records it must search through, or the amount of records it expects to produce. It is therefore unclear how the Town arrived at the 4 hour figure. The Town must provide further information regarding this matter. Conclusion Accordingly, the Town is ordered to provide a response to Mr. Lampert, 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: Craig Lampert

Kerri Ann McManus SPR20/1959 Page 3 October 26, 2020