Todd Wallack v. Lincoln, Town of - Town Clerk (SPR 20210247)

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts William Francis Galvin, Secretary of the Commonwealth Public Records Division Rebecca S. Murray Supervisor of Records February 17, 2021 SPR21/0247 Valerie Fox Town Clerk Town of Lincoln 16 Lincoln Road Lincoln, MA 01773 Dear Ms. Fox: I have received the petition of Todd Wallack of the Boston Globe appealing the response of the Town of Lincoln (Town) to a request for public records. G. L. c. 66, § 10A; see also 950 C.M.R. 32.08(1). Mr. Wallack requested from the Town “[a]n electronic copy of the municipality’s public list of registered voters, also known as the voter file.” 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. 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. 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

Valerie Fox SPR21/0247 Page 2 February 17, 2021 Appeal On January 5, 2021, the Town provided a response and enclosed the responsive records. Subsequently, Mr. Wallack petitioned for an appeal contending the “. . . town withheld key information from the voter file, including the registration dates and dates of birth of voters.” Based on the Town’s response, it is unclear what exemption it is claiming to withhold the redacted information from disclosure. If the Town intends to withhold portions of the records pursuant to the Public Records Law, an exemption must be provided. See G. L. c. 66, § 10(b)(iv) (custodian has the burden of establishing the applicability of an exemption and provide the specific reasons for such withholding, including the specific exemption or exemptions upon which the withholding is based). Conclusion Accordingly, the Town is ordered to provide Mr. Wallack with a response to the request, provided in a manner consistent with this order, the Public Records Law and its Regulations within ten (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: Todd Wallack