Stevan Johnson v. Boston, City of - Public Records (SPR 20230032)

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts William Francis Galvin, Secretary of the Commonwealth Public Records Division Manza Arthur Supervisor of Records January 19, 2023 SPR23/0032 Shawn A. Williams, Esq. Director of Public Records Records Access Officer City of Boston One City Hall Square Boston, MA 02201 Dear Attorney Williams: I have received the petition of Stevan Johnson appealing the response of the City of Boston (City) to a request for public records. G. L. c. 66, § 10A; see also 950 C.M.R. 32.08(1). On December 21, 2022, Mr. Johnson requested the following records: [1.] A copy of records indicating the seller of the eleven (11) medallions …; and [2.] A copy of records of the eleven (11) most recent medallion sales showing the: [a.] Sale price of medallion; and [b.] Date of medallion sale. [3.] Records indicating the exact date in 2016 [a named individual] transferred 362 City of Boston taxicab medallions to [a named individual][.] The City provided a response on January 6, 2023. Unsatisfied with the response, Mr. Johnson petitioned this office and this appeal, SPR23/0032, 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, § l0A(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. 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

Shawn A. Williams, Esq. SPR23/0032 Page 2 January 19, 2023 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. If there are any fees associated with a response a written, good faith estimate must be provided. G. L. c. 66, § 10(b)(viii); see also 950 C.M.R. 32.07(2). Once fees are paid, a records custodian must provide the responsive records. The City’s January 6th Response In its January 6, 2023 response, the City stated, “[t]he records responsive to this request have been released to Public Records Center…” Current appeal In his appeal, Mr. Johnson states, “… [the] response did not adequately respond to the following records sought… most notably, that January 6, 2023 written response completely ignored the request seeking records about the ‘eleven (11) most recent’ City of Boston taxicab medallion sales.” In light of the claims made by Mr. Johnson, it is unclear if the City possesses additional records that may be 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). To the extent that responsive records exist, I find the City must provide them in a manner consistent with the Public Records Law or identify an exemption that applies to withhold the records from disclosure. G. L. c. 66, § 10(b). Conclusion Accordingly, the City is ordered to provide Mr. Johnson with a response to the request, provided 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. Sincerely, Manza Arthur Supervisor of Records cc: Stevan Johnson