John J. Ferriter v. Department of Labor Standards (SPR 20211333)

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts William Francis Galvin, Secretary of the Commonwealth Public Records Division Rebecca S. Murray Supervisor of Records May 28, 2021 SPR21/1333 Kathleen Coyne Program Coordinator Department of Labor and Standards 19 Staniford Street, 2nd Floor Boston, MA 02114 Dear Ms. Coyne: I have received the petition of Attorney John J. Ferriter of Ferriter & Ferriter, LLC appealing the nonresponse of the Department of Labor and Standards (Department) to a request for public records. G. L. c. 66, § 10A; see also 950 C.M.R. 32.08(1). On March 22, 2021, Attorney Ferriter requested the following documents: 1. Any internal memorandums, communications with outside individuals, agencies, or other entities, internal communications, notes, and other research documents used in drafting the Department of Labor Standards (DLS) opinion letter dated February 18, 2020, copy attached; 2. Any internal memorandums, communications with outside individuals, agencies, or other entities, internal communications, notes, and other research documents used in setting the prevailing wage rate for tree trimmers and tree trimmer grounds men before the February 18, 2020 DLS opinion letter attached; 3. Any and all private labor and employment agreements consulted in drafting the DLS opinion dated February 18, 2020 attached; 4. Any and all private labor and employment agreements used in setting the prevailing wage rate for tree trimmers and tree trimmer grounds men prior to February 18, 2020; 5. Other professional, academic, or industry related materials sources consulted in drafting the February 18, 2020 DLS opinion letter attached; 6. Other professional, academic, or industry related materials sources consulted in setting the prevailing wage rate prior for tree trimmers and tree trimmer grounds men prior to February 18, 2020. Claiming to not yet have received responsive records, Attorney Ferriter petitioned this office and SPR21/1333, was opened as a result. 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

Kathleen Coyne SPR17/276 Page 2 May 28, 2021 Subsequently, I learned that the Department intends on providing a written response to Attorney Ferriter. Accordingly, the Department is ordered to provide Attorney Ferriter with a response in accordance with the Public Records Law, its Access Regulations and this order within ten business days. It is preferable to send an electronic copy of this response to this office at pre@sec.state.ma.us. Attorney Ferriter may appeal the substantive nature of the Department’s response within ninety days. See 950 C.M.R. 32.08(1). Sincerely, Rebecca S. Murray Supervisor of Records cc: John J. Ferriter, Esq.