Lee Jundanian v. Uxbridge, Town of - Town Clerk (SPR 20230452)

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts William Francis Galvin, Secretary of the Commonwealth Public Records Town Manza Arthur Supervisor of Records March 21, 2023 SPR23/0452 Kelly J. Cote, CMC Town Clerk Town of Uxbridge 21 South Main Street Uxbridge, MA 01569 Dear Ms. Cote: I have received the petition of Lee Jundanian appealing the response of the Town of Uxbridge (Town) to a request for public records. G. L. c. 66, § 10A; see also 950 C.M.R. 32.08(1). On February 21, 2023, Mr. Jundanian requested the following: [1] A copy of the moratorium prohibiting access to additional town water connections (“Moratorium”) that was issued after my Woodlands Park SubTown was approved by the Planning Board on or about June 9, 2016 (“Certificate of Approval”). [2] A copy of the minutes and/or all correspondence, following the date of issuance of the Certificate of Approval, regarding the Moratorium. [3] … information regarding any additional connections to Town water granted in the East/Kempton district, where my property is located, following the issuance of the Moratorium (“Water Connections”). Specifically, please provide: a) the date of issuance of any and all such Water Connections; b) the address(es) for all such Water Connections; and c) the owner(s) of all such properties for whom Water Connections were granted. The Town provided a response on March 6, 2023. Unsatisfied with the response, Mr. Jundanian petitioned this office and this appeal, SPR23/0452, was opened as a result. While this appeal was pending, the Town provided a supplemental response on March 13, 2023. The Public Records Law The Public Records Law strongly favors disclosure by creating a presumption that all 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

Kelly J. Cote, CMC SPR23/0452 Page 2 March 21, 2023 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. 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 Town’s March 6th and 13thResponses In its March 6, 2023 response, the Town provided records via email. Further, in an email dated March 13, 2023, the Town provided additional records. Current appeal In his appeal, Mr. Jundanian states, “[I] did not see a formal approval of a moratorium for new water connections after my June 9, 2016 final approval by the Planning Board… The only thing that I saw regarding the above were minutes of the June 13, 2016 meeting… I would like to see the actual approval and issuance of the moratorium itself and how that process unfolded… the questions I posed (regarding the moratorium) were not fully addressed.” In response to the Town’s March 13, 2023 email, Mr. Jundanian stated, “I would ask that the appeal still be valid as to #3 as this question was not answered.” In light of the appeal made by Mr. Jundanian, it is unclear if the Town 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 Town 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 Town is ordered to provide Mr. Jundanian with a response to the request, provided in a manner consistent with this order, the Public Records Law and its

Kelly J. Cote, CMC SPR23/0452 Page 3 March 21, 2023 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: Lee Jundanian