Jeffrey Von Dauber v. Warren, Town of - Town Clerk (SPR 20221728)

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts William Francis Galvin, Secretary of the Commonwealth Public Records Division Manza Arthur Supervisor of Records August 1, 2022 SPR22/1728 Laura J. Stockley Records Access Officer Town of Warren 48 High Street, P.O. Box 603 Warren, MA 01083 Dear Ms. Stockley: I have received your petition on behalf of the Town of Warren (Town) seeking an extension of time to produce records. G. L. c. 66, § 10(c). As required by law, it is my understanding that the Town furnished a copy of this petition to the requestor. Id. In a letter dated July 13, 2022, Jeffery Von Dauber requested “…any and all emails or text messages sent to or sent by [the former Police Chief] regarding me . . . from October 2017 until the end of his…employment.” 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). 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

Laura J. Stockley SPR22/1728 Page 2 August 1, 2022 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) must 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 your petition dated July 27, 2022, you state the following: I am the Town Clerk/RAO of Warren. I became Town Clerk/RAO in May of this year. I was sent the attached public records request on July 13th. Due to a staffing shortage, my office was closed July 11- July 15th. I re-opened on July 18th, which is when I started working on the request. Currently I am home in isolation, due to Covid. I am hoping to return to work on Monday August 1st. Due to the fact that this request is so broad in nature, covering multiple years of emails, and the fact that the emails requested are from an employee of the Town who separated employment back in June of 2019, I respectfully request an extension of at least twenty days to locate and sort through such emails, if any exist. Conclusion In light of the above, I find the Town has established good cause to permit an extension of time. See G. L. c. 66, § 10(c)(i)-(iv). I hereby grant the Town an extension of 20 business days to furnish copies of records responsive to Mr. Von Dauber’s request. See G. L. c. 66, § 10(c). To the extent possible, the Town must provide responsive records on a rolling basis. Please note, Mr. Von Dauber 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, Manza Arthur Supervisor of Records cc: Jeffery Von Dauber