Chesley Oriel v. Division of Occupational Licensure (SPR 20212339)

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts William Francis Galvin, Secretary of the Commonwealth Public Records Division Rebecca S. Murray Supervisor of Records September 16, 2021 SPR21/2339 Araceli Avila Ging, Esq. Division of Occupational Licensure 1000 Washington Street, Suite 710 Boston, MA 02118 Dear Attorney Ging: On September 10, 2021, this office received your petition on behalf of the Division of Occupational Licensure (Division) seeking an extension of time to produce records. G. L. c. 66, § 10(c). As required by law, it is my understanding that the Division furnished a copy of this petition to the requestor, Attorney Chesley Oriel of the Law Offices of Goldberg & Oriel. Id. In a letter dated August 17, 2021, Attorney Oriel requested four categories of records concerning “…the Board of Registration in Veterinary Medicine.” 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

Araceli A. Ging, Esq. SPR21/2339 Page 2 September 16, 2021 Current Petition In its September 10th letter, the Division seeks “…an extension of time to furnish copies of requested records with regards to the above referenced request pursuant to 950 CMR 32.06(4).” The Division explains, “[t]he request in question, which contained four itemized requests, involve a voluminous number of documents.” In addition, “[w]hile some of these records may require withholding certain information pursuant to M.G.L. c. 4, § 7 and other applicable laws, the Division anticipates that it will ultimately provide the requestor in excess of 2,300 pages of responsive records.” The Division contends that “[t]he size, scope, and complexity of this response means that the Division requires additional time to gather, segregate, and prepare the records for production…Accordingly, per 950 CMR 32.06(4)(e), the Division is seeking an extension of ten (10) business days from the date of this letter.” Conclusion In light of the above, I find the Division has established good cause to permit an extension of time. See G. L. c. 66, § 10(c)(i)-(iv). I hereby grant the Division an extension of 10 business days to furnish copies of records responsive to Attorney Oriel’s request. See G. L. c. 66, § 10(c). To the extent possible, the Division must provide responsive records on a rolling basis. Please note, Attorney Oriel 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(d)(iv)(4),10A(c). Sincerely, Rebecca S. Murray Supervisor of Records cc: Chesley Oriel, Esq.