Corey Spaulding v. Palmer, Town of - Public Schools (SPR 20240607)

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts William Francis Galvin, Secretary of the Commonwealth Public Records Division Manza Arthur Supervisor of Records March 12, 2024 SPR24/0607 Superintendent Matthew Francis Palmer Public Schools 4107 Main Street Palmer, MA 01069 Dear Superintendent Francis: I have received the petition of Corey Spaulding appealing the response of the Palmer 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 February 21, 2024, Ms. Spaulding requested the following information: [1.] all internal emails from Palmer School Committee to each other, or to others, from October 15, 2023 to present. [2.] minutes from December 2023, January 2024 and February, 2024[.] The School responded on February 28, 2024, providing a fee estimate. Unsatisfied with the School’s response, Ms. Spaulding petitioned this office and this appeal, SPR24/0607, was opened as a result. Fee Estimates 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 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 hour if such rate is approved by the 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

Superintendent Matthew Francis SPR24/0607 Page 2 March 12, 2024 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). Petitions relating to fees must be submitted to the Supervisor within ten business days after receipt of a request for public records. 950 C.M.R. 32.06(4)(g). The School’s February 28th Fee Estimate In its February 28, 2024 response, the School provided a fee estimate of $502.30 and stated: [The School has] determined that it would take approximately 12 hours to locate and copy the requested documents. In accordance with the Public Records Law, the hourly fee assessed cannot exceed $25.00 per hour. For communities with a population of more than 20,000, the hourly fee for the first two hours is waived. [An identified employee] is the lowest paid employee of the Palmer Public Schools who could perform this task. Said employee makes more than the $25.00 per hour threshold. I estimate [an identified employee] will need 12 hours to perform the task. I anticipate that there would be approximately 2,023 of copies at a charge of $0.05 per page, and there would be approximately 2,023 of computer printout copies at a charge of $0.05 per page consistent with the law. Based upon the above information, I request that you send the Palmer Public Schools a check for $502.30… Although the School has estimated that the process of searching the responsive records for production will take 12 hours of employee time, it is uncertain why it would take this many hours to search for the responsive records. As such, the School must provide additional information regarding the tasks involved in producing these records. Additionally, the School must clarify if the 12 hours includes the first free 2 hours to search for, compile, segregate, redact or reproduce records. 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). Further, the School indicates that it will charge $0.05 for “2,023 of copies” and for “2,023 of computer printout copies.” I find that it is unclear how these are separate fees. The School must provide additional information explaining these charges. See G. L. c. 66, § 10(d)(iv) (requiring the amount of the fee be reasonable).

Superintendent Matthew Francis SPR24/0607 Page 3 March 12, 2024 For the reasons discussed above, I find the School must revise its fee estimate or provide further explanation of how the fee assessed in its February 28th estimate is consistent with G. L. c. 66, § 10(d). I encourage Ms. Spaulding and the School to communicate further in order to facilitate producing records efficiently and affordably. Ms. Spaulding 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 School 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 School is ordered to provide Ms. Spaulding 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: Corey Spaulding