Joseph Pecevich v. Marshfield, Town of - (SPR 20211174)

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts William Francis Galvin, Secretary of the Commonwealth Public Records Division Rebecca S. Murray Supervisor of Records May 18, 2021 SPR21/1174 Narice A. Casper II Town Clerk Town of Marshfield 870 Moraine Street Marshfield, MA 02050 Dear Ms. Casper: I have received the petition of Joseph Pecevich appealing the response of the Town of Marshfield (Town) to a request for public records. G. L. c. 66, § 10A; see also 950 C.M.R. 32.08(1). On March 22, 2021, Mr. Pecevich requested elections related records. The Town responded on the same day, providing answers to Mr. Pecevich’s questions along with responsive records. Unsatisfied with the Town’s response, Mr. Pecevich appealed, and this case was opened as a result. Current Appeal In an email to this office on May 11, 2021, a representative of the Town indicated that they “replied to Mr. Pecevich’s email and provided him all the information [the Town] had on hand.” The Town further explained: [The Town does] have inconsistencies with the voter updates from [the] elections in 2020. [The Town will] have to work this out with [the] vendor. The files are safe and if necessary [the Town] will have someone scan each and every ballot receipt. When [the Town does] work it out [the Town] will happily provide those updated files. Records in Existence It is unclear whether the Town may be able to provide additional records responsive to Mr. Pecevich’s request. 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). 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

Narice A. Casper II SPR21/1174 Page 2 May 18, 2021 This office encourages Mr. Pecevich and the Town to continue communicating to facilitate providing records more efficiently and affordably. See G. L. c. 66, § 10(b)(vii) (a municipality 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 municipality to produce records sought more efficiently and affordably). Conclusion Accordingly, the Town is ordered to provide Mr. Pecevich with a response to his request, 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: Joseph Pecevich