Karen Bartholomew v. Webster, Town of - Town Clerk (SPR 20231998)

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts William Francis Galvin, Secretary of the Commonwealth Public Records Division Manza Arthur Supervisor of Records September 7, 2023 SPR23/1998 Robert T. Craver Town Clerk Webster Town Hall 350 Main Street Webster, MA 01570 Dear Mr. Craver: I have received the petition of Karen Bartholomew appealing the nonresponse of the Town of Webster (Town) to a request for public records. See G. L. c. 66, § 10A; see also 950 C.M.R. 32.08(1). On August 2, 2023, Ms. Bartholomew stated “[i]n June of 2022 I applied for a variance with the Town. I paid for the newspaper advertising and the variance fee. Can I have a copy of whatever is on record that shows payment of those fees.” Claiming to not yet have received responsive records, Ms. Bartholomew petitioned this office and this appeal, SPR23/1998, was opened as a result. Despite being notified of the opening of this appeal, it remains unclear whether the Town has provided a response. Accordingly, the Town is ordered to provide Ms. Bartholomew with a response to her 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 the response to this office at pre@sec.state.ma.us. Ms. Bartholomew may appeal the substantive nature of the Town’s response within ninety (90) days. See 950 C.M.R. 32.08(1). Sincerely, Manza Arthur Supervisor of Records cc: Karen Bartholomew 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