Michael Saccone v. Hanover, Town of - Town Clerk (SPR 20202439)

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts William Francis Galvin, Secretary of the Commonwealth Public Records Division Rebecca S. Murray Supervisor of Records December 17, 2020 SPR20/2439 Lincoln Heineman Town of Hanover 550 Hanover Street Hanover, MA 02339 Dear Mr. Heineman: I have received the petition of Mike Saccone of Boston 25 News appealing the response of the Town of Hanover (Town) to his request for public records. G. L. c. 66, §10A; see also 950 C.M.R. 32.08(1). On November 15, 2020, Mr. Saccone requested that the following documents be provided in electronic form, where available: • “A copy of any and all payroll records (timecards, pay stubs, etc.) for [a named individual] from August 1, 2020 to present • A copy of any and all signed & dated employment contracts between [a named individual] and the Town of Hanover.” Unsatisfied with the Town’s response, Mr. Saccone appealed and SPR20/2439 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) (written response must “identify any records, categories of records or portions of records that the agency or municipality intends to withhold, and provide the specific reasons for such withholding is based…”); 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). 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

Lincoln Heineman SPR20/2439 Page 2 December 17, 2020 Current appeal In his December 9th appeal, Mr. Saccone stated, in part, that the Town sent an employment agreement and “… the contract is not signed or dated ... Also, [the named individual] had more than one contract with the Town [and] the attached payroll document is also not full payroll records …”. Based on Mr. Saccone’s claim, I find the Town must confirm if it possesses additional responsive records. The duty to comply with requests for records extends to those records that exist and are in the possession, custody, or control of the custodian of records at the time of the request. See G. L. c. 66, § 10(a)(ii). To the extent that the requested records exist, I find the Town must provide them in a manner consistent with the Public Records Law or identify an exemption that applies to withhold the records from disclosure. G. L. c. 66, § 10(b). Conclusion Accordingly, the Town is ordered to provide Mr. Saccone with a response to the request, provided in a manner consistent with this order, the Public Records Law and its Regulations within 10 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: Mike Saccone