Amy Poftak v. Winchester, Town of - Public Schools (SPR 20220744)

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts William Francis Galvin, Secretary of the Commonwealth Public Records Division Rebecca S. Murray Supervisor of Records April 14, 2022 SPR21/0744 Dr. Frank Hackett Interim Superintendent Winchester Public Schools 40 Samoset Road Winchester, MA 01890 Dear Dr. Hackett: I have received the petition of Amy Poftak appealing the response of the Winchester Public Schools (School) to a request for public records. G. L. c. 66, § 10A; see also 950 C.M.R. 32.08(1). On March 17, 2022, Ms. Poftak requested “… information on the number of special education students at WPS with Specific Learning Disabilities (SLD), by grade, for the 2020- 2021 and 2021-2022 school years. . . .” The School responded on March 30, 2022. Unsatisfied with the response, Ms. Poftak petitioned this office and this appeal, SPR22/744, 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. 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

Dr. Frank Hackett SPR22/0744 Page 2 April 14, 2022 The School’s March 30th response In its March 30th response, the School stated that “ … there are no public records responsive to your request within the possession, custody, or control of the Winchester Public Schools, as the Winchester Public Schools.” Current appeal In her March 31st appeal petition, Ms. Poftak stated, “my request was for information on the number of special education students at WPS classified as having a Specific Learning Disability . . . [t]his data does not have to be in the report format that I referenced in the request.” Based on the Department’s response, it is unclear if the School possesses any records responsive to the request. The duty to comply with requests for records extends to those records that exist and are in the possession, custody, or control of the custodian of records at the time of the request. See G. L. c. 66, § 10(a)(ii). 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). Consequently, the School must clarify whether responsive records exist. Conclusion Accordingly, the School is ordered to provide Ms. Poftak with a response to the request, provided in a manner consistent with this order, the Public Records Law and its Regulations within ten (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. Poftak may appeal the substantive nature of the School’s response within ninety (90) days. See 950 C.M.R. 32.08(1). Sincerely, Rebecca S. Murray Supervisor of Records cc: Amy Poftak