Olufunmilola Shelly v. Framingham, City of - Public Schools Department (SPR 20220508)

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts William Francis Galvin, Secretary of the Commonwealth Public Records Division Rebecca S. Murray Supervisor of Records March 3, 2022 SPR22/0508 Amy Kane Records Access Officer Framingham Public Schools 19 Flagg Drive Framingham, MA 01702 Dear Amy Kane: I have received your petition on behalf of the City of Framingham Public Schools (School) seeking an extension of time to produce records. G. L. c. 66, § 10(c). As required by law, it is my understanding that the School furnished a copy of this petition to the requestor. Id. On February 22, 2022, Olufunmilola Shelly requested: 1. any and all contracts or invoices with outside vendors or private parties for legal, investigative or human resources work from Sep. 1, 2021 through Feb. 22, 2022 pertaining to inquiries related to allegations of abuse, bullying, harassment, discrimination or other misbehavior or misconduct by students, staff members, and/or coaches. 2. any and all related records to such services provided from Sep. 1, 2021 through Feb. 22, 2022. This includes, but is not limited to: -any prepared reports, investigations or reviews -any preparatory materials or files, including internal and external communications or electronic correspondence in the possession of the district, school board or school officials -service orders, memoranda of agreement/understanding, or other records related to retainment, cost, and scope of work -any emails, statements, news releases, or other communications to families, educators, the media, or the public about the outside vendors’ work. 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 SPR22/0508 Page 2 March 3, 2022 Petition for an Extension of Time Under the Public Records Law, upon a showing of good cause, the Supervisor of Records (Supervisor) may grant a single extension to an agency not to exceed 20 business days and a single extension to a municipality not to exceed 30 business days. In determining whether there has been a showing of good cause, the Supervisor shall consider, but shall not be limited to considering: (i)the need to search for, collect, segregate or examine records; (ii)the scope of redaction required to prevent unlawful disclosure; (iii)the capacity or the normal business hours of operation of the agency or municipality to produce the request without the extension; (iv)efforts undertaken by the agency or municipality in fulfilling the current request and previous requests; (v)whether the request, either individually or as part of a series of requests from the same requestor, is frivolous or intended to harass or intimidate the agency or municipality; and (vi)the public interest served by expeditious disclosure. G. L. c. 66, § 10(c). If the Supervisor determines that the request is part of a series of contemporaneous requests that are frivolous or designed to intimidate or harass, and the requests are not intended for the broad dissemination of information to the public about actual or alleged government activity, the Supervisor may grant a longer extension or relieve the agency or municipality of its obligation to provide copies of the records sought. Id. The filing of a petition does not affect the requirement that a Records Access Officer (RAO) shall provide an initial response to a requestor within ten business days after receipt of a request for public records. 950 C.M.R. 36.06(4)(b). Current Petition In its March 2nd petition, the School seeks “…an extension of time of 30 business days following the receipt of the Supervisor’s decision.” The School contends that “[t]he records that have been requested may contain the following exempt information: 1.The records requested may contain communications within the attorney-client privilege, which are exempt from the definition of ‘public records’ and therefore are protected from public disclosure. See Suffolk Constr. Co. v. Division of Capital Asset Mgt., 449 Mass. 444, 445-446, 455-461, 870 N.E.2d 33 (2007). 2.The records requested may contain communications regarding litigation strategy and case preparation, which are exempt from the definition of ‘public records’ and therefore

Amy Kane SPR22/0508 Page 3 March 3, 2022 are protected from public disclosure. See DaRosa v. New Bedford, 471 Mass. 446, 458- 459, 30 N.E.3rd 790, 801-802 (2015). 3. The records requested may contain personally identifiable information which is exempt from disclosure under the Public Records Law, M.G.L. c. 4, §7(26) (a) and (c). Personally identifiable information is exempt from disclosure by federal Family Education Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA); the federal Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), and the state student records statutes and regulations concerning confidentiality of student records information. Se 20 U.S.C § 1232g, 20 U.S.C. § 1400; see also G.L. c. 71, §§ 34D, 60, G.L. c. 71B, § 1; and 603 CMR 23.00 et seq. See also Champa v. Town of Weston, 473 Mass. 86 (2015).” The School notes, “[t]he initial review of the records requests determined that there are approximately 280 pages of documents and possibly thousands of emails that are potentially responsive to the records request…The additional time is needed to responsibly complete this review and redaction.” Conclusion I find that in light of the potential scope of redactions as well as the volume of responsive records, the School has established good cause to permit an extension of time. See G. L. c. 66, § 10(c)(i)-(iv). I hereby grant the School an extension of 30 business days to furnish copies of records responsive to Ms. Shelly’s request. See G. L. c. 66, § 10(c). To the extent possible, the School must provide responsive records on a rolling basis. Please note, Ms. Shelly has the right to seek judicial review of this decision by commencing a civil action in the appropriate superior court. See G. L. c. 66, § 10(d)(iv)(4), 10A(c). Sincerely, Rebecca S. Murray Supervisor of Records cc: Olufunmilola Shelly