Colman Herman v. UMASS Amherst (SPR 20220101)

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts William Francis Galvin, Secretary of the Commonwealth Public Records Division Rebecca S. Murray Supervisor of Records February 1, 2022 SPR21/0101 Christine Wilda Director of Communications & External Relations University of Massachusetts Amherst 390 Whitmore Administration Building 181 President’s Drive Amherst, MA 01003 Dear Ms. Wilda: I have received the petition of Colman Herman appealing the nonresponse of University of Massachusetts Amherst (University) to a request for public records. See G. L. c. 66, § 10A; see also 950 C.M.R. 32.08(1). On December 29, 2021, Mr. Herman requested the following records for the period January 1, 2020 to the present: 1) Copies of any and all communications between [named person] and the Philip Morris company 2) Copies of any and all communications between [named person] and The Boston Globe 3) Copies of any and all other communications between [named person] and any and all other parties related to the Philip Morris company. Claiming to not yet have received responsive records, Mr. Herman petitioned this office and this appeal, SPR22/0101, was opened as a result. Despite being notified of the opening of this appeal, it remains unclear whether the University has provided a response. Accordingly, the University is ordered to provide Mr. Herman with a response to his request, provided in a manner consistent with this order, the Public Records Law and its Access Regulations within ten (10) business days. A copy of any such response must be provided to this office. Mr. Herman may appeal the substantive nature of the University’s response within ninety (90) days. See 950 C.M.R. 32.08(1). 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

Christine Wilda SPR22/0101 Page 2 February 1, 2022 Sincerely, Rebecca S. Murray Supervisor of Records cc: Colman Herman