Craig Swinson v. Richmond, Town of - Office of the Town Clerk (SPR 20210163)

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts William Francis Galvin, Secretary of the Commonwealth Public Records Division Rebecca S. Murray Supervisor of Records February 8, 2021 SPR21/0163 Angela Garrity Town Clerk Town of Richmond 1529 State Road Richmond, MA 01254 Dear Ms. Garrity: I have received the petition of Craig Swinson appealing the response of the Town of Richmond (Town) to a request for public records. G. L. c. 66, § 10A; see also 950 C.M.R. 32.08(1). On December 23, 2020, Mr. Swinson requested “all emails, mail, applications, meeting notes (of all participants), minutes, phone logs, meeting postings, filings to the DEP or other state agencies” relating to a certain project. Previous appeal This request was the subject of a previous appeal. See SPR21/0072 Determination of the Supervisor of Records (January 25, 2021). On January 7, 2021, the Town responded. Unsatisfied with the Town’s response, Mr. Swinson appealed, and SPR21/0163 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

Angela Garrity SPR21/0163 Page 2 February 8, 2021 The Town’s January 7th response On January 7, 2021, the Town provided Mr. Swinson with responsive documents and stated, “[p]lease see attached documents …for your Public Request Record.” Current Appeal In his current appeal Mr. Swinson states “[t]he response from the town was incomplete. It did not include emails, meeting notes, attendance logs etc.” Based on the Town’s response, it is unclear if it possesses additional records responsive to Mr. Swinson’s request. Specifically, the Town must clarify whether it possesses the requested 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). Conclusion Accordingly, the Town is ordered to provide Mr. Swinson with a response to the request, in 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: Craig Swinson