Lisa Parr v. Braintree, Town of - Town Clerk (SPR 20213265)

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts William Francis Galvin, Secretary of the Commonwealth Public Records Division Rebecca S. Murray Supervisor of Records December 28, 2021 SPR21/3265 James M. Casey Town Clerk Chief Records Access Officer Town of Braintree One JFK Memorial Drive Braintree, MA 02184 Dear Mr. Casey: I have received the petition of Lisa Parr appealing the response of the Town of Braintree (Town) to a request for public records. G. L. c. 66, § 10A; see also 950 C.M.R. 32.08(1). On December 13, 2021, Ms. Parr requested “a copy of the most recent town resident list in electronic tabular format.” The Town responded on December 15, 2021. Unsatisfied with the Town’s response, Ms. Parr appealed, and this case was opened as a result. The Public Records Law The Public Records Law strongly favors disclosure by creating a presumption that all governmental records are public records. G. L. c. 66, § 10A(d); 950 C.M.R. 32.03(4). “Public records” is broadly defined to include all documentary materials or data, regardless of physical form or characteristics, made or received by any officer or employee of any agency or municipality of the Commonwealth, unless falling within a statutory exemption. G. L. c. 4, § 7(26). It is the burden of the records custodian to demonstrate the application of an exemption in order to withhold a requested record. G. L. c. 66, § 10(b)(iv); 950 C.M.R. 32.06(3); see also Dist. Attorney for the Norfolk Dist. v. Flatley, 419 Mass. 507, 511 (1995) (custodian has the burden of establishing the applicability of an exemption). To meet the specificity requirement a custodian must not only cite an exemption, but must also state why the exemption applies to the withheld or redacted portion of the responsive record. If there are any fees associated with a response, a written good faith estimate must be provided. G. L. c. 66, § 10(b)(viii); see also 950 C.M.R. 32.07(2). Once fees are paid, a records custodian must provide the responsive records. 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

James M. Casey SPR21/3265 Page 2 December 28, 2021 Current Appeal In correspondence with the Town on December 15, 2021, Ms. Parr indicated that she had previously received the resident list in electronic format. In an email to Ms. Parr on the same day, the Town explained that in her previous 2017 request, Ms. Parr was “sent a voter registration file; not a resident list,” and asked her to clarify whether her current “2021 public records request was to receive a voter registration digital file.” In her appeal petition, Ms. Parr states that “the Clerk for Braintree [is] denying release of Resident List.” In its response, the Town is seeking clarification regarding the scope of Ms. Parr’s request. Please be advised that it is valid for the custodian of records to suggest a “reasonable modification of the scope of the request or offer to assist the requestor to modify the scope of the request if doing so would enable the agency or municipality to produce records sought more efficiently and affordably.” See G. L. c. 66, § 10(b)(vii). Given that Ms. Parr’s previous 2017 request was for a voter registration file, Ms. Parr is encouraged to provide the Town with the needed clarification regarding the records she now seeks. G. L. c. 66, § 10(a)(i) (the request must reasonably describe the public records sought). Based on the foregoing, it is unclear what the basis of Ms. Parr’s appeal is. Ms. Parr is advised that all petitions for appeal “shall specifically describe the nature of the requestor’s objections to the response or failure to timely respond.” 950 C.M.R. 32.08(l)(f). Conclusion Accordingly, I will consider this administrative appeal closed. If Ms. Parr is not satisfied with the resolution of this administrative appeal, please be advised that this office shares jurisdiction with the Superior Court of the Commonwealth. See G. L. c. 66, §§ 10(b)(ix), 10A(c) (pursuing administrative appeal does not limit availability of judicial remedies). Sincerely, Rebecca S. Murray Supervisor of Records cc: Lisa Parr