Malden Transparency v. Minuteman Regional Vocational Technical School (SPR 20212692)

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts William Francis Galvin, Secretary of the Commonwealth Public Records Division Rebecca S. Murray Supervisor of Records October 18, 2021 SPR21/2692 Edward A. Bouquillon, Ph.D. Superintendent-Director Records Access Officer Minuteman Regional Vocational Technical School District 758 Marrett Road Lexington, MA 02421 Dear Dr. Bouquillon: I have received your petition on behalf of the Minuteman Regional Vocational Technical School District (School) requesting an extension of time to produce records, a waiver of statutory limits on fees that may be assessed in responding to the request, permission to charge for time spent segregating or redacting responsive records, and relief from the obligation to respond to the request. G. L. c. 66, § 10(c); G. L. c. 66, § 10(d)(iv); see also 950 C.M.R. 32.06(4). As required by law, the School furnished a copy of this petition to the requestor. G. L. c. 66, § 10(c). On September 26, 2021, OpenMalden.com requested the following: For the time period January 1, 2019 through the date [the School] respond[s] with the responsive documents . . . 1. All billing statements and/or invoices from [a named law firm]. 2. All documents evidencing payments made to [a named law firm]. Petitions 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; 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

Edward A. Bouquillon, Ph.D. SPR21/2692 Page 2 October 18, 2021 (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). 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. 36.06(4)(b). Extension of Time to Produce Responsive Records In its October 13, 2021 petition, the School states the following: Open Malden appears to have made an identical request to every school district in the state. As a result, MHTL [Murphy, Hesse, Toomey & Lehane, LLP, the law firm representing the School] will have to complete the necessary redactions for each of the districts it represents. It is not possible for MHTL to review and redact the bills of all its clients within 10 business days. Therefore, [the School] hereby petitions for an extension of time to respond to that portion of the request that seeks legal invoices given that the scope of redaction required to prevent unlawful disclosure is significant. The [School] will be unable to produce the records during normal business hours of operation without an extension in light of the fact that its attorneys will have to respond to similar requests for other districts and only counsel is able to review the bills to determine the application of the attorney-client privilege. Pursuant to M.G.L. c. 66, section 10(c), the [School] requests an additional 30 business days beyond the time specified under the statute (25 business days) – for a total of 55 business days from the date of receipt payment for the work, to respond to the portion of the request that seeks legal invoices. I find in light of the need to collect and segregate the request, as well as the the capacity of the School to produce the request without an extension, the efforts already undertaken by the School to provide responsive records, and that the request is part of a series of requests from the same requestor, the School has established good cause to permit an extension of time. G. L. c. 66, § 10(c)(i)-(ii). The School is granted an extension of 30 business days. Petition to Assess Fees The School submitted its petition on October 13, 2021, more than ten business days after receipt of the request. In light of the fact that the School has not demonstrated it submitted a

Edward A. Bouquillon, Ph.D. SPR21/2692 Page 3 October 18, 2021 timely petition, permission to charge for time spent segregating or redacting responsive records cannot be granted. 950 C.M.R. 32.06(4)(g). Request for Relief In its petition, the School “requests that [this office] determine, pursuant to G. L. c. 66, § 10(c), that this request is part of a series of requests that is intended to harass the [School] (by overburdening counsel for the district) and thereby relieve the [School] of its obligation to provide copies of the records sought.” The School provides the following information: Open Malden appears to have made public records requests, identical to the instant request, to every school district in the state. Each of these requests seeks records related to Murphy, Hesse, Toomey & Lehane, LLP (“MHTL”). MHTL represents the [School] and also represents many other school districts in the Commonwealth, including one particular district that is currently engaged in litigation, in multiple forums, with the individual behind Open Malden. Given the targeted nature of Open Malden’s request and the parties involved, the request does not appear to have been made in good faith, or for any genuine public purpose, or in the public interest. Rather, on its face, it seems that the purpose of this request, as part of a series of requests issued to other districts represented by MHTL, is to overwhelm the law firm that represents the [School], and thereby harass the [School], since MHTL will need to review the records sought to determine if they contain information protected by the attorney-client privilege. Based on the information provided in the School’s petition, I find that the School has not demonstrated the requests are frivolous and not intended for the broad dissemination of information to the public about actual or alleged government activity, as required by G. L. c. 66, § 10(c). Conclusion Accordingly, I find the School has established good cause for a time extension of 30 business days as described above. Please note, OpenMalden.com 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: OpenMalden.com