Mark White v. Boxborough, Town of - Town Clerk (SPR 20230874)

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts William Francis Galvin, Secretary of the Commonwealth Public Records Division Manza Arthur Supervisor of Records May 15, 2023 SPR23/0874 Rebecca J. Harris, Ph.D. Town Clerk Town of Boxborough 29 Middle Road Boxborough, MA 01719 Dear Dr. Harris: I have received the petition of Mark White appealing the response of the Town of Boxborough (Town) to a request for public records. See G. L. c. 66, § 10A; see also 950 C.M.R. 32.08(1). On April 13, 2023, Mr. White requested the following: “[1] …an updated list of Public Records requested since 2023-24; [2] Given as “the investigation the Select Board commissioned has concluded” I would request the following: [a] a complete list, with dates and subject included, along with itemized amounts billed, of all legal bills associated with the Investigation, to include research, review of correspondence, and any opinions given, or any other associated legal expenses; [b] a detailed accounting of all salaries, bonuses, educational incentives, and any other expenses, paid to the Temporary Chief(s) while the Investigation was ongoing; [c] a detailed accounting of any additional expenses associated with the investigation such as Police or Town Administrator overtime, bonuses, payouts, mileage or any other incidentary expenses attributable to the investigation and its prosecution; [d] a detailed accounting of all payments made to L’Italien Investigative services by either the town, or any agent of the town, in regards to the [i]nvestigation; and [e] all requested documents to include incurred as well as accrued amounts.” The Town provided records responsive to Request Number 1; however, Mr. White petitioned the Supervisor of Records (Supervisor) on May 2, 2023 because he had not been provided records responsive to his Request Number 2. As a result, this appeal was opened. 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

Rebecca J. Harris, Ph.D. SPR23/0874 Page 2 May 15, 2023 On April 24, 2023, the Town sent Mr. White a response regarding his Request Number 2. The April 24th response from the Town asserted, “…the Town would like to request an extension because we want to ensure that all bills related to this have been received, and there may be a few that are outstanding.” The Town further indicated it believed it possible to complete its response with a 10 day extension. 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) (written response must “identify any records, categories of records or portions of records that the agency or municipality intends to withhold, and provide the specific reasons for such withholding, including the specific exemption or exemptions upon which the withholding is based…”); 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). On May 4, 2023, the Town provided a further response including links to download the records responsive to Mr. White’s Request Number 2. On May 5th, Mr. White provided a response to this office indicating he believed he received most, if not all, of the responsive records. Conclusion Accordingly, where the Town has provided Mr. White with records responsive to his April 13, 2023 request, I will consider this appeal closed. If unresolved issues remain, Mr. White may appeal the substantive nature of the Town’s response within ninety days. See 950 C.M.R. 32.08(1).

Rebecca J. Harris, Ph.D. SPR23/0874 Page 3 May 15, 2023 Sincerely, Manza Arthur Supervisor of Records cc: Mark White