Renee LaPlume v. Ayer, Town of - Police Department (SPR 20240482)

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts William Francis Galvin, Secretary of the Commonwealth Public Records Division Manza Arthur Supervisor of Records February 29, 2024 SPR24/0482 Brian Gill Chief of Police Ayer Police Department 54 Park Street Ayer, MA 01432 Dear Chief Gill: I have received the petition of Renee LaPlume appealing the response of the Ayer Police Department to a request for public records. See G. L. c. 66, § 10A; see also 950 C.M.R. 32.08(1). On January 4, 2024, Ms. Renee requested the following records: [E]very record with my name in it[,] every record that I have made a call to you in terms of the recordings and any documentation and any police reports or notations that you make in regard to me since 2014, the record of anything that you have ever submitted into the Ayer Court. I need all of your records pertaining to me from the beginning to the present. I want the same thing all of those records for anything of anyone else’s calls regarding me or reports made regarding me anything that my name appears in, any calls or paperwork, anything that is about me, written and audio, prepared and made ready for my or another’s pick up. Additionally, on January 8, 2024, Ms. LaPlume requested all audio recordings involving her name. On January 18, 2024, the Department responded, providing a fee estimate. Unsatisfied with the Department’s response, Ms. LaPlume petitioned this office and this appeal, SPR24/0482, was opened as a result. Fees - Municipalities 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

Chief Brian Gill SPR24/0482 Page 2 February 29, 2024 A municipality may assess a reasonable fee for the production of a public record except those records that are freely available for public inspection. G. L. c. 66, § 10(d). The fees must reflect the actual cost of complying with a particular request. Id. A maximum fee of five cents ($.05) per page may be assessed for a black and white single or double-sided photocopy of a public record. G. L. c. 66, § 10(d)(i). Municipalities may not assess a fee for the first (two) 2 hours of employee time to search for, compile, segregate, redact or reproduce the record or records requested unless the municipality has 20,000 people or less. G. L. c. 66, § 10(d)(iii). Where appropriate, municipalities may include as part of the fee an hourly rate equal to or less than the hourly rate attributed to the lowest paid employee who has the necessary skill required to search for, compile, segregate, redact or reproduce a record requested, but the fee shall not be more than $25 per hour. Id. However, municipalities may charge more than $25 per how if such rate is approved by the Supervisor of Records under a petition under G. L. c. 66, § 10(d)(iv). A fee shall not be assessed for time spent segregating or redacting records unless such segregation or redaction is required by law or approved by the Supervisor of Records under a petition under G. L. c. 66, § 10(d)(iv). See G. L. c. 66, § 10(d)(iii); 950 C.M.R. 32.06(4). The Department’s January 18th response In its January 18, 2024 response, the Department provided a fee estimate of $800.00 and stated, “[t]his rate shall not exceed $25 .00 per hour, unless otherwise authorized by the Supervisor of Records. Please note that because the Department has less than 20,000 residents, pursuant to the last Decennial U.S. Census (8,749), [Ms. LaPlume] will be charged for all hours of work associated with this request.” The Department further explains that redactions to the records will likely have to be made under Exemptions (a) and (c) of the Public Records Law. Additionally, the Department breaks down the fee estimate as follows: 96 Incidents x 20 minutes (Per Incident) = 1,920 Minutes / 32 Hours 32 hours x $25.00/hour = $800.00 Current Appeal In her appeal petition, Ms. LaPlume states, “[a]s to the reasons I need this waiver of the fee it is because I live on little more than this per month and it would be a hardship…” Although the Department has estimated that the process of compiling, reviewing, and preparing requested records requires 32 hours to produce responsive records, it is not clear from the Department’s estimate how much time is allocated to search, and how much time is allocated for segregation and/or redaction of the records. Further, the Department must provide additional information regarding the tasks involved in producing these records. Additionally, the Department’s fee estimate lacks confirmation that the rate of $25 per hour is of the lowest paid employee who is capable of performing the task(s). Accordingly, the Department must provide

Chief Brian Gill SPR24/0482 Page 3 February 29, 2024 further details regarding its fee estimate. See G. L. c. 66, § 10(d)(iv) (requiring the amount of the fee be reasonable). Further, although the Department claims that it is assessing a fee for redactions under Exemptions (a) and (c), it is unclear how the Department can assess a fee for redactions under Exemption (c) in this matter. Under the Public Records Law, a fee may not be assessed for time spent segregating or redacting records unless such segregation or redaction is required by law or approved by the Supervisor of Records under a petition under G. L. c. 66, § 10(d)(iv). See G. L. c. 66, § 10(d)(ii); 950 C.M.R. 32.06(4). I am not aware that the Department has submitted a petition under G. L. c. 66, § 10(d)(iv). As such, although the Department may assess a fee for redactions required by law as in Exemption (a), it is uncertain whether the fees include time to redact records under Exemption (c). The Department must clarify this. I encourage Ms. LaPlume and the Department to communicate in order to facilitate producing records efficiently and affordably. Ms. LaPlume may wish to narrow the parameters or include applicable time periods or factors to enable the search to be processed. G. L. c. 66, § l0(a)(i). The Department must use its knowledge of the records to facilitate providing any responsive records. G. L. c. 66, § l0(a)(vii) (an agency or municipality shall suggest a reasonable modification of the scope of the request or offer to assist the requestor to modify the scope of the request if doing so would enable the agency or municipality to produce records sought more efficiently and affordably). Conclusion Accordingly, the Department is ordered to provide Ms. LaPlume with a response to the request, provided in a manner consistent with this order, the Public Records Law and its Regulations within 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: Renee LaPlume Robert Mackie