Nataly Gomez v. Easthampton, City of - Public Schools (SPR 20231290)

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts William Francis Galvin, Secretary of the Commonwealth Public Records Division Manza Arthur Supervisor of Records June 27, 2023 SPR23/1290 Dr. Allison LeClair Superintendent of Schools Easthampton Public Schools 50 Payson Avenue Easthampton, MA 01027 Dear Dr. LeClair: I have received the petition of Nataly Gomez appealing the response of the Easthampton Public Schools (School) to a request for public records. See G. L. c. 66, § 10A; see also 950 C.M.R. 32.08(1). On May 26, 2023, Ms. Gomez requested: [1] Any and all communications, including but not limited to, emails and text messages regarding myself or [an identified individual] – from August 1, 2021 to August 1, 2022; and [2] Any and all administrative documents or forms regarding myself or [an identified individual] from August 1, 2021 to August 1, 2022. On May 30, 2023, the Easthampton City Clerk/Records Access Officer, emailed Ms. Gomez indicating, “[r]eceipt of your public records request is hereby acknowledged. I have forwarded it onto the [School] for their response.” On June 13, 2023, Ms. Gomez petitioned the Supervisor of Records (Supervisor) for an appeal, and as a result, this appeal was opened. In her petition Ms. Gomez states, “[t]here has been an acknowledgment by Barbara Lombard, who is in charge of the PRR in Easthampton, that it was received but with no return correspondence.” 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 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

Dr. Allison LeClair SPR23/1290 Page 2 June 27, 2023 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). 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. Communications Involved in this Appeal After this appeal was opened, on June 13, 2023, the School provided a response stating, “[h]ere are the files you requested from [the School] (see attached).” On June 14th, Dr. LeClair informed this office, “…this information was sent to [Ms.] Gomez on June 13, 2023 via email.” In a June 14th email, Dr. LeClair informed a senior attorney in the Public Records Division, “…after reaching out to [Ms. Gomez], she indicates she did not receive the first email, so our records person resent. [Ms. Gomez] now indicates she did not receive the correct information she requested. I will review her request again and see what was sent to her and what might be missing…” During a June 20, 2023 telephone conversation between a senior attorney in the Public Records Division and Ms. Gomez, I learned that no further response or records have been provided. In accordance with the Public Records Law, custodians are expected to use their superior knowledge of the records in their custody to assist requestors in obtaining the desired information. See 950 C.M.R. 32.04(5). The School is advised, 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,

Dr. Allison LeClair SPR23/1290 Page 3 June 27, 2023 that the requestor may voluntarily agree to a response date beyond the timeframes set forth herein. G. L. c. 66, § 10(b)(vi). Whereas Ms. Gomez’s request was submitted on May 26, 2023, and the School has not provided the responsive records pertaining to her request, I find the School has not met its burden in responding to the request in accordance with G. L. c. 66, § 10(b)(vi). Consequently, I find the School must provide an estimated date as to when it intends to complete the search and provide the outstanding records. See G. L. c. 66, § 10(a) (records must be provided without unreasonable delay). To the extent possible, the School must provide responsive records on a rolling basis. Conclusion Accordingly, the School is ordered to provide Ms. Gomez with a response to her request 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 the response to this office at pre@sec.state.ma.us. Sincerely, Manza Arthur Supervisor of Records cc: Nataly Gomez