Jack Riemer v. Truro, Town of - Town Clerk (SPR 20240919)

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts William Francis Galvin, Secretary of the Commonwealth Public Records Division Manza Arthur Supervisor of Records April 9, 2024 SPR24/0919 Elisabeth Verde Town Clerk Town of Truro Town Hall, P. O. Box 2030 24 Town Hall Road Truro, MA 02666 Dear Ms. Verde: I have received the petition of Jack Riemer appealing the response of the Town of Truro (Town) to a request for public records. See G. L. c. 66, § 10A; see also 950 C.M.R. 32.08(1). On March 18, 2024, Mr. Riemer requested the following: [1.] Any communications during the stated period on which [a named individual’s] name appears as a recipient, sender, or in the title or text of such communication to or among Town officials or employees; to or among Town of Truro Boards or Committee members, vendors and contractors; to and from any State elected official or staff member; to and from any taxpayer or resident or resident (full or part-time); to or from any nonprofit; to and from any newspaper or other media outlet. [2.] Any communications during the stated period which [a second individual’s] name appears as a recipient, sender, or in the title or text of such communications to or among Town officials or employees; to or among Town of Truro Board or Committee members, vendors and contractors; to and from any State elected official or staff member; to and from any taxpayer or resident (full or part-time), to or from any non-profit; to and from any newspaper or other media outlet. Prior Petition This request was the subject of a prior petition. See SPR24/0973 Determination of the Supervisor of Records (April 4, 2024). In my April 4th determination, I granted the Town an extension of 14 business days to produce responsive records and I found that the Town did not meet its burden to assess a fee in excess of $25.00. 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

Elisabeth Verde SPR24/0919 Page 2 April 9, 2024 On March 22, 2024, the Town responded, providing a fee estimate. Unsatisfied with the Town’s response, Mr. Riemer petitioned this office and this appeal, SPR24/0919, 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. 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 Town’s March 22nd Response In its March 22, 2024 response, the Town provided a fee estimate of $525.00 and stated, “[a]s permitted by law, you will be charged for all employee search time to locate and identify responsive records, at the hourly rate of the lowest paid person capable of compiling, segregating, redacting where required by law, and reproducing responsive records… This rate shall not exceed $25.00 per hour unless otherwise authorized by the Supervisor of Records.” Additionally, the Town breaks down the fee estimate as follows: Title Hours Per Hour Cost Total IT Department Staff 1 hours (to locate or Reduced to $25.00 $25.00 convert electronic per hour, as required. information on Town e-mail server using

Elisabeth Verde SPR24/0919 Page 3 April 9, 2024 appropriate search terms) Staff in the Town 19 hours (to review Reduced to $25.00 $475.00 Manager’s Office responsive, privilege per hour, as required. or PII in electronic and hard copy records) Staff in the Town 1 hours (to search for Reduced to $25.00 $25.00 Clerk’s Office responsive electronic per hour, as required. and hard copy records) Approx. 2,310 files to review for privilege or PII (Personal information) Total $525.00 Although the Town has estimated that the process of reviewing or redacting requested records requires staff in the Town Manager’s Office 19 hours, it is not clear from the Town’s estimate the number of minutes that the Town must spend per page to redact the records. Accordingly, the Town must provide further details regarding its fee estimate. See G. L. c. 66, § 10(d)(iv) (requiring the amount of the fee be reasonable). Additionally, the Town must clarify if the 21 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). I encourage Mr. Riemer and the Town to communicate in order to facilitate producing records efficiently and affordably. Mr. Riemer 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 Town 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 Town is ordered to provide Mr. Riemer 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.

Elisabeth Verde SPR24/0919 Page 4 April 9, 2024 Sincerely, Manza Arthur Supervisor of Records cc: Jack Riemer Noelle Scoullar