Deric Farley v. Framingham State University (SPR 20202502)

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts William Francis Galvin, Secretary of the Commonwealth Public Records Division Rebecca S. Murray Supervisor of Records December 21, 2020 SPR20/2502 Ann S. McDonald, Esq. General Counsel and Chief of Staff Framingham State University 100 State Street Framingham, MA 01701 Dear Attorney McDonald: I have received your petition on behalf of Framingham State University (University) seeking an extension of time to produce records. G. L. c. 66, § 10(c). As required by law, it is my understanding that the University furnished a copy of this petition to the requestor. Id. In a letter dated December 8, 2020, Deric R. Farley requested any and all records concerning himself. 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

Ann S. McDonald, Esq. SPR20/2502 Page 2 December 21, 2020 Current Petition In its petition dated December 16, 2020, the University seeks “an extension of time to furnish copies of records described in the attached public records request for records described pertaining to the named individual, Mr. Deric Farley.” The University notes it is “requesting an extension of a minimum of 30 days due to the following reasons: • The scope and the breadth of the records is significant; • The content requested will require significant redaction due to the content contained therein and consistent with Exemption (a) and (c) allowances; • Redactions must necessarily be completed by the Chief of Police given the sensitive nature of the redacted material that contains Exemption (c) content; • Hard copy records will need to be converted to electronically scanned records to eliminate the need for the requestor to come in to view the records which would create concerns due to current workplace restrictions in place because of the COVID-19 pandemic and given the requestor’s preferred method of transmission via digital media; • The University continues to operate with a reduced on campus work schedule due to COVID-19 restrictions and this work cannot be accomplished in a telework environment; • The timing of the request lands during a term break with two holidays and key personnel will be absent for a significant amount of time.” The University also expressed a response was sent via mail on December 5, 2020, however, they are not able to reach Mr. Farley via his mobile phone and a preferred email address has not been provided. Conclusion I find that in light of the capacity of the University to produce the request without the extension, and the efforts undertaken by the University in fulfilling the request, the University has established good cause to permit an extension of time. See G. L. c. 66, § 10(c)(i)-(iv). I hereby grant the University an extension of 30 business days to furnish copies of records responsive to Mr. Farley’s request. See G. L. c. 66, § 10(c). The University is advised it must provide the records in a manner consistent with the Public Records Law and its Access Regulations. To the extent possible, the University must provide responsive records on a rolling basis. Mr. Farley may seek judicial review of this decision by commencing a civil action in the appropriate superior court. See G. L. c. 66, §§ 10(c), 10A(c). This office encourages Mr. Farley and the University to continue to communicate to facilitate providing records more efficiently and affordably. See G. L. c. 66, § 10(b)(vii) (an agency shall suggest a reasonable modification of the scope of the request or offer to assist the requestor to modify the scope of the request if doing so would enable the agency to produce records sought more efficiently and affordably).

Ann S. McDonald, Esq. SPR20/2502 Page 3 December 21, 2020 Please note, Mr. Farley 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). Sincerely, Rebecca S. Murray Supervisor of Records cc: Deric R. Farley