Sean Murphy v. Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (SPR 20232779)

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts William Francis Galvin, Secretary of the Commonwealth Public Records Division Manza Arthur Supervisor of Records November 28, 2023 SPR23/2779 Julie A. Ciollo, Esq. Assistant General Counsel Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority 10 Park Plaza, Suite 7760 Boston, MA 02116 Dear Attorney Ciollo: I have received the petition of Sean Murphy, of the Boston Globe, appealing the nonresponse of the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) to a request for public records. See G. L. c. 66, § 10A; see also 950 C.M.R. 32.08(1). On October 27, 2023, Mr. Murphy requested “…any and all requests for ‘design waivers’ submitted in compliance with the memo, and the chief engineer’s responses to any design waiver requests submitted ... [and] records of ‘final track geometry tolerance inspection’.” Claiming to not yet have received responsive records, Mr. Murphy petitioned this office and this appeal, SPR23/2779, was opened as a result. Despite being notified of the opening of this appeal, it remains unclear whether the MBTA has provided a response. Accordingly, the MBTA is ordered to provide Mr. Murphy with a response to his 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. Mr. Murphy may appeal the substantive nature of the MBTA’s response within ninety (90) days. See 950 C.M.R. 32.08(1). Sincerely, Manza Arthur Supervisor of Records cc: Sean Murphy 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