Howard Knickerbocker v. Middlefield, Town of - Town Administrator (SPR 20220174)

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts William Francis Galvin, Secretary of the Commonwealth Public Records Division Rebecca S. Murray Supervisor of Records February 1, 2022 SPR22/0174 Duane Pease Records Access Officer Town of Middlefield 188 Skyline Trail Middlefield, MA 01243 Dear Mr. Pease: I have received the petition of Howard Knickerbocker appealing the response of the Town of Middlefield (Town) to a request for public records. G. L. c. 66, § 10A; see also 950 C.M.R. 32.08(1). On November 28, 2021, Mr. Knickerbocker requested, “three account ledgers and related book-keeping information from the Records Officers of the town of Middlefield…” The Town provided a response on January 6, 2022. Unsatisfied with the Town’s response, Mr. Knickerbocker petitioned this office and this appeal, SPR22/0174, was opened as a result. Subsequently, I learned that the Town intends on providing a supplementary response to Mr. Knickerbocker. Accordingly, the Town is ordered to provide Mr. Knickerbocker with a written response in accordance with the Public Records Law, its Regulations, and this order within ten business days. It is preferable to send an electronic copy of this response to this office at pre@sec.state.ma.us. Mr. Knickerbocker may appeal the substantive nature of the Town’s response within ninety days. See 950 C.M.R. 32.08(1). Sincerely, Rebecca S. Murray Supervisor of Records cc: Howard Knickerbocker 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