Ben Tobin v. Braintree, Town of - Public Schools (SPR 20232530)

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts William Francis Galvin, Secretary of the Commonwealth Public Records Division Manza Arthur Supervisor of Records November 6, 2023 SPR23/2530 Petra W. Platt, EdD. Director of Special Services Braintree Public Schools 348 Pond Street Braintree, MA 02184 Dear Ms. Platt: I have received the petition of Ben Tobin appealing the response of the Braintree 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 October 23, 2023, Mr. Tobin requested “…the district’s Conditions of Funding for IDEA part B as well as the corresponding special education policies and procedures.” The School provided responsive records on October 23, 2023. Unsatisfied with the School’s response, Mr. Tobin petitioned this office and this appeal, SPR23/2530, was 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. Att’y 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. 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

Petra W. Platt, EdD SPR23/2530 Page 2 November 6, 2023 The School’s October 23rd Response In its October 23, 2023 response, the School provided the requested conditions of funding records and addressed the special educations polices by stating “[o]ur policies and procedures are not currently in digital form. I believe you have made this request previously and have corresponded with Jim Lee about how you could obtain those.” In a telephone call with a staff member from this office, a representative from the School confirmed that all responsive records regarding conditions of funding have been provided. Current Appeal In Mr. Tobin’s current appeal, he stated “[t]he documents requested, per the Conditions of Funding document, are supposed to be readily available to the public.” Where it appears the records reflected in Mr. Tobin’s appeal have been provided, it is unclear what the basis of Mr. Tobin’s appeal is. Mr. Tobin is advised that all petitions for appeal “shall specifically describe the nature of the requestor’s objections to the response or failure to timely respond.” 950 C.M.R. 32.08(l)(f). Mr. Tobin may wish to clarify this matter and his objections to the School’s response. Please be aware that all petitions for appeal of a response by a records access officer must be made within 90 calendar days of the date of the response by a records access officer. See 32.08(1)(d). Sincerely, Manza Arthur Supervisor of Records cc: Ben Tobin