Marion J. King v. Brookline, Town of - Public Schools (SPR 20220369)

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts William Francis Galvin, Secretary of the Commonwealth Public Records Division Rebecca S. Murray Supervisor of Records February 25, 2022 SPR22/0369 Suzanne McCormick - de Boer Town of Brookline Public Schools 333 Washington Street Brookline, MA 02445 Dear Ms. McCormick - de Boer: I have received the petition of Marion J. King appealing the response of the Town of Brookline Public Schools (School) to a request for public records. G. L. c. 66, § 10A; see also 950 C.M.R. 32.08(1). On January 16, 2022, Ms. King requested: “…provide LOF for PRS 5244, 5245, 5249, 5251, and 5736.” On January 31st, Qianna Price, the Program Manager of Administration and Finance for the School responded to the Ms. King, asserting, “I sent in for the request as well and was told that those are not Brookline cases.” As a result of the response, Ms. King petitioned the Supervisor of Records (Supervisor), and this appeal was opened. With her petition to the Supervisor, Ms. King included a response from the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) pertaining to the requested records. DESE’s response indicates, “… [DESE] stands by the data provided concerning Brookline Letters of Finding issued in June of 2021. Also, 3 of the 5 complaints have reached closure already, and the remaining 2 are at the CAP stage, so the [School] is well aware of those complaints and has been in contact with [DESE] throughout the investigation.” 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 town of the Commonwealth, unless falling within a statutory exemption. G. L. c. 4, § 7(26). Possession, Custody, or Control The duty to comply with requests for records extends to those records that exist and are in 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

Suzanne McCormick – de Boer SPR22/0369 Page 2 February 25, 2022 the possession, custody, or control of the custodian of records at the time of the request. See G. L. c. 66, § 10(a)(ii). Additionally, in accordance with the Public Records Law, custodians are expected to use their superior knowledge of the records in their custody to assist requestors in obtaining the desired information. See 950 C.M.R. 32.04(5). Based on the School’s and DESE’s responses, it is unclear whether the records for the School possesses the Letters of Finding for PRS 5244, 5245, 5249, 5251, and 5736, from DESE to the School. As such, I find that the School must provide additional information detailing their search in order to determine if the School has met its burden under G. L. c. 66, § 10(a)(ii) to provide records that are in the possession, custody, or control of the custodian of records at the time of the request. In addition, it is unclear whether the School instituted safeguards to ensure that the records were retained in accordance with both applicable law as well as the retention schedules promulgated by this office. G. L. c. 66, §§ 1, 8, 13, 15. I advise the School to review the records retention materials available online at www.sec.state.ma.us/arc/arcrmu/rmuidx.htm. Conclusion Accordingly, the School is ordered to provide Ms. King with a response to the request, in a manner consistent with this order, the Public Records Law and its Regulations within 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. Ms. King may appeal the substantive nature of the response within 90 calendar days. 950 C.M.R. 32.08(1). Sincerely, Rebecca S. Murray Supervisor of Records cc: Marion J. King