Charles Miles v. South Hadley, Town of - Fire District (SPR 20230561)

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts William Francis Galvin, Secretary of the Commonwealth Public Records Division Manza Arthur Supervisor of Records April 6, 2023 SPR23/0561; SPR23/0562 Terie B. Fleury Clerk/Treasurer South Hadley Fire District No. 1 Fire Department 144 Newton Street South Hadley, MA 01075 Dear Ms. Fleury: I have received the petition of Charles Miles appealing the response of the South Hadley Fire District (District) to requests for public records. G. L. c. 66 § 10A; see also 950 C.M.R. 32.08(1). On March 8, 2023, in two separate requests, Mr. Miles sought: 1. [Copy of] a legal document [that] was referenced by the board which allegedly required that the election date be moved; and 2. Copies of all emails, text messages and memos of any kind related to the preparation for and agenda items on the March 8, 2023 Prudential Committee meeting. The District provided a response on March 24. 2023. Unsatisfied with the response, Mr. Miles petitioned this office and these appeals, SPR23/0561 and SPR23/0562, were 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 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

Terie B. Fleury SPR23/0561; SPR23/0562 Page 2 April 6, 2023 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 District’s March 24th response On March 24, 2023, the District stated that “I am researching your request and will hopefully be able to respond with the results soon.” Current appeal In his appeal, Mr. Miles states that “[t]he response does not ‘identify a reasonable timeframe’ in which the agency will produce the records sought[.]” G. L. c. 66, § 10(b) G. L. c. 66, § 10(b) provides, in pertinent part, that if the magnitude or difficulty of the request unduly burdens the other responsibilities of the agency or municipality such that the agency or municipality cannot provide records within 10 business days, the agency or municipality must inform the requestor in writing within 10 business days. With respect to the timeframe to produce responsive records, the written response shall: identify a reasonable timeframe in which the agency or municipality shall produce the public records sought; provided, that for an agency, the timeframe shall not exceed 15 business days following the initial receipt of the request for public records and for a municipality the timeframe shall not exceed 25 business days following the initial receipt of the request for public records; and provided further, that the requestor may voluntarily agree to a response date beyond the timeframes set forth herein. G. L. c. 66, § 10(b)(vi). Whereas Mr. Miles’ request was submitted on March 8, 2023, and the District has not provided responsive records, I find that the District has not met its burden in responding to the request in accordance with G. L. c. 66, § 10(b)(vi). Consequently, I find the District must provide an estimated date as to when it intends to complete the search and provide the records. See G. L. c. 66, § 10(a) (records must be provided without unreasonable delay). To the extent possible, the District must provide responsive records on a rolling basis.

Terie B. Fleury SPR23/0561; SPR23/0562 Page 3 April 6, 2023 Conclusion Accordingly, the District is ordered to provide Mr. Miles 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. Mr. Miles may appeal the substantive nature of the District’s response within 90 calendar days. See 950 C.M.R. 32.08(1). Sincerely, Manza Arthur Supervisor of Records cc: Charles Miles