Mark E. Burke v. Wilmington, Town of - Public Schools (SPR 20211813)

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts William Francis Galvin, Secretary of the Commonwealth Public Records Division Rebecca S. Murray Supervisor of Records July 29, 2021 SPR21/1813 Jacqueline E. Raffi Records Access Officer Wilmington Public Schools 161 Church Street Wilmington, MA 01887 Dear Ms. Raffi: On July 22, 2021, I received your petition on behalf of the Wilmington Public Schools (School) seeking an extension of time to produce records. G. L. c. 66, § 10(c). As required by law, it is my understanding that the School furnished a copy of this petition to the requestor, Attorney Mark E. Burke of the Law Office of Mark E. Burke. Id. In a letter dated July 13, 2021, Attorney Burke requested “…any and all records pertaining to [an identified individual] regarding any internal and/or outside investigations in connection with any complaints against [the individual], including but not limited to: The Commonwealth of Massachusetts Executive Office of Health and Human Services Department of Children and Families; as well as any and all communications, including emails, documents, records/reports or memoranda.” 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. 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

Jacqueline E. Raffi SPR21/1813 Page 2 July 29, 2021 G. L. c. 66, § 10(c). Current Petition In its July 22nd petition, the School notes that “[l]egal counsel has contacted the office of Attorney Burke several times in an attempt to get clarification on the last section of his request, without success. In light of summer staffing levels and transitioning of personnel into new roles, as well as the breadth of that part of his request identifying ‘... any and all communications, including email, documents, records/reports or memoranda,’ the Wilmington Public Schools seeks an extension to allow for the time needed to collect and possibly redact these materials.” Conclusion With respect to the School’s time petition, I find the School has established good cause to permit an extension of time. See G. L. c. 66, § 10(c)(i)-(iv). In light of the efforts undertaken by the School in fulfilling the request, I hereby grant the School an extension of 10 business days to furnish copies of records responsive to Attorney Burke’s request. See G. L. c. 66, § 10(c). The School is advised it must provide the records in a manner consistent with the Public Records Law and its Access Regulations. To the extent possible, the School must provide responsive records on a rolling basis. Further, this office encourages Attorney Burke and the School to continue to communicate to facilitate providing records more efficiently and affordably. See G. L. c. 66, § 10(b)(vii). Attorney Burke may seek judicial review of this decision by commencing a civil action in the appropriate superior court. See G. L. c. 66, §10A(c). Sincerely, Rebecca S. Murray Supervisor of Records cc: Mark E. Burke, Esq.