Local 3159 Halifax Fire Fighters v. Halifax, Town of (SPR 20211406)

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts William Francis Galvin, Secretary of the Commonwealth Public Records Division Rebecca S. Murray Supervisor of Records June 10, 2021 SPR21/1406 Charlie Seelig Town Administrator Town of Halifax 499 Plymouth Street Halifax, MA 02338 Dear Mr. Seelig: I have received your petition on behalf of the Town of Halifax (Town) seeking an extension of time to produce records. G. L. c. 66, § 10(c). As required by law, it is my understanding that the Town furnished a copy of this petition to the requestor. Id. On June 2, 2021, the Town received a request from Halifax Fire Fighters Local 3159 (Local 3159) for 15 categories of Town financial records. 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

Charlie Seelig SPR21/1406 Page 2 June 10, 2021 If the Supervisor determines that the request is part of a series of contemporaneous requests that are frivolous or designed to intimidate or harass, and the requests are not intended for the broad dissemination of information to the public about actual or alleged government activity, the Supervisor may grant a longer extension or relieve the agency or municipality of its obligation to provide copies of the records sought. Id. The filing of a petition does not affect the requirement that a Records Access Officer (RAO) shall provide an initial response to a requestor within ten business days after receipt of a request for public records. 950 C.M.R. 32.06(4)(b). Current Petition In its June 3, 2021 petition, the Town requests an extension of time, and in an email to this office on June 7, 2021, the Town clarifies that it seeks “a total of 30 business days” to provide records, which would require an extension of 5 business days. The Town explains in the petition that it has asked for the extension “[g]iven the number of documents requested,” and “given the number of municipal officials who are involved and the length and breadth of the request.” In its June 7th email, the Town further explains: The Town Accountant, the Assistant Town Treasurer, and [the Town Administrator] will be responsible for producing the records. The number of pages is not as worrisome as the number of documents (none of which [the Town] expect[s] will need re[d]action) as some of the multi-page documents such as contracts and audit reports are already on-line. It’s simply the time to produce the records . . . although some of these are multi-page (for instance, reimbursement requests . . . may compose up to a hundred pages per reimbursement request). [The Town] expect[s] that the Town Treasurer will spend 10 hours on this task (she works part-time) and it will take the Town Accountant a similar amount of time. [The Town Administrator’s] time will probably take two to three hours. All this while individuals try to take vacation (or lose it by the end of the fiscal year) and accomplish their normal work. I find that in light of the capacity of the Town to produce the request without the extension, as well as efforts undertaken by the Town in fulfilling the current request, the Town has established good cause to permit an extension of time. See G. L. c. 66, § 10(c)(i)-(iv). I hereby grant the Town an extension of 5 business days to furnish copies of records responsive to Local 3159’s request. See G. L. c. 66, § 10(c). To the extent possible, the Town must provide responsive records on a rolling basis.

Charlie Seelig SPR21/1406 Page 3 June 10, 2021 Conclusion Accordingly, I find the Town has established good cause for a time extension of 5 business days as described above. Please note, Local 3159 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(c), 10A(c). Sincerely, Rebecca S. Murray Supervisor of Records cc: Halifax Fire Fighters Local 3159