Steven M. Patterson v. Braintree, Town of - Town Clerk (SPR 20221611)

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts William Francis Galvin, Secretary of the Commonwealth Public Records Division Manza Arthur Supervisor of Records July 27, 2022 SPR22/1611 James M. Casey Town Clerk Town of Braintree 1 John F. Kennedy Memorial Drive Braintree, MA 02184 Dear Mr. Casey: I have received the petition of Stephen Patterson appealing the response of the Town of Braintree (Town) to a request for public records. G. L. c. 66, § 10A; see also 950 C.M.R. 32.08(1). On May 2, 2022, Mr. Patterson requested “information that will explain the due dates of all money collected by the Tax Collectors Office from residents such as real estate taxes, excise taxes, municipal fees, and any amounts that may be collected from residents because of their habituating in the town of Braintree or because of what they own from today until May 1, 2023.” Previous Appeal This request was the subject of a previous appeal. See SPR22/1466 Determination of the Supervisor of Records (July 7, 2022). In my July 7th determination, I ordered the Town to provide Mr. Patterson with a response to his request. Subsequently, the Town responded on July 8, 2022. Unsatisfied with the Town’s response, Mr. Patterson appealed, and this case was opened as a result. No Duty to Answer Questions, Conduct Research, Create Documents Please be advised that 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). 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). However, under the Public Records Law, a public employee is not required to answer questions, or do research, or create documents in response to questions. See G. L. c. 66, § 10(a); 32 Op. Att’y Gen. 157, 165 (May 18, 1977). 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

James M. Casey SPR22/1611 Page 2 July 27, 2022 Current Appeal In his appeal petition, Mr. Patterson contends that “the response from the Town is incomplete,” and specifically notes that “the auto excise tax is collected by the town but was excluded.” Subsequent to the opening of this appeal, I learned that the Town provided a supplemental response by email to Mr. Patterson on July 18, 2022, including additional records. As this appeal was opened based on the Town’s July 8th response, I will now consider this administrative appeal closed. If issues remain unresolved, Mr. Patterson may further appeal the substantive nature of the Town’s July 18th response within ninety days. See 950 C.M.R. 32.08(1). Sincerely, Manza Arthur Supervisor of Records cc: Stephen Patterson