Frank Wood & Team v. Framingham, City of - Public Schools Department (SPR 20212922)

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts William Francis Galvin, Secretary of the Commonwealth Public Records Division Rebecca S. Murray Supervisor of Records November 18, 2021 SPR21/2922 Amy Kane Records Access Officer Framingham Public Schools 150 Concord Street Framingham, MA 01702 Dear Ms. Kane: I have received the petition of Frank Wood appealing the response of the Framingham Public Schools (School) to a request for public records. G. L. c. 66, § 10A; see also 950 C.M.R. 32.08(1). On October 21, 2021, Mr. Wood requested “. . . any emails sent or received by [an identified individual] between 10/19/2021 and 10/20/2021.” The School responded on November 4, 2021, providing a fee estimate. Objecting to the fees, Mr. Wood petitioned this office and this appeal, SPR21/2922, was opened as a result. Fee estimate – municipalities A municipality may assess a reasonable fee for the production of a public record except those records that are freely available for public inspection. G. L. c. 66, § 10(d). The fees must reflect the actual cost of complying with a particular request. Id. A maximum fee of five cents ($.05) per page may be assessed for a black and white single or double-sided photocopy of a public record. G. L. c. 66, § 10(d)(i). Municipalities may not assess a fee for the first (two) 2 hours of employee time to search for, compile, segregate, redact or reproduce the record or records requested unless the municipality has 20,000 people or less. G. L. c. 66, § 10(d)(iii). Where appropriate, municipalities may include as part of the fee an hourly rate equal to or less than the hourly rate attributed to the lowest paid employee who has the necessary skill required to search for, compile, segregate, redact or reproduce a record requested, but the fee shall not be more than $25 per hour. Id. However, municipalities may charge more than $25 per hour if such rate is approved by the Supervisor of Records under a petition under G. L. c. 66, § 10(d)(iv). A fee shall not be assessed for time spent segregating or redacting records unless such segregation or redaction is required by law or approved by the Supervisor of Records under a 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

Amy Kane SPR21/2922 Page 2 November 18, 2021 petition under G. L. c. 66, § 10(d)(iv). See G. L. c. 66, § 10(d)(iii); 950 C.M.R. 32.06(4). The School’s November 4th fee estimate In its November 4, 2021 fee estimate, the School states “[t]here are approximately 388 documents responsive to your request. Some of those are likely to contain information exempt from disclosure under one or more exemptions in the Public Records Law and will need to be redacted before they can be delivered to you. . . . M.G.L. Chapter 4 Section 7 Clause a-v, Suffolk Construction v. DCAM, 449 Mass. 444 (2007) are just a few areas that may direct our redaction. Accordingly, compiling responses to your request will require a careful review of each document, segregation, and redaction of exempt information.” The School estimates that it is assessing a fee for 1.75 hours at a rate of $25 per hour, and notes that “[t]he hours estimate of 1.75 already accounts for 2 free hours per the statute. . . . [1.75 x $25.00 = $43.75].” In its fee estimate, the School indicated that it requires 3.75 hours to produce the records. Based on the School’s estimate, it is unclear how the School requires that amount of time to produce the records. Particularly, the School’s estimate does not make clear how many minutes per page the School requires to redact the responsive records. The School must clarify this estimate. In its estimate, it appears the School intends to assess a fee for time to redact records under “M.G.L. Chapter 4 Section 7 Clause a-v . . .[.]” Based on the School’s response, it is unclear if the School is assessing a fee for redactions under any of the exemptions under the Public Records Law. Please note that under the Public Records Law, a fee may not be assessed for time spent segregating or redacting records unless such segregation or redaction is required by law or approved by the Supervisor of Records under a petition under G. L. c. 66, § 10(d)(iv). See G. L. c. 66, § 10(d)(ii); 950 C.M.R. 32.06(4). The School must clarify this matter. In his appeal petition, Mr. Wood states “. . . [the School is] also claiming we must pay by check in [its] email, which is to identify ourselves. . . . That only payment by check is being allowed, an attack on our anonymity.” This office encourages Mr. Wood and the School to communicate if there is an alternative means Mr. Wood can make payment for the production of records. Conclusion Accordingly, the School is ordered to provide Mr. Wood with a response to the request, provided in a manner consistent with this order, the Public Records Law and its Regulations within ten (10) business days. A copy of any such response must be provided to this office. It is preferable to send an electronic copy of this response to this office at pre@sec.state.ma.us.

Amy Kane SPR21/2922 Page 3 November 18, 2021 Sincerely, Rebecca S. Murray Supervisor of Records cc: Frank Wood