Geoff Beach v. Acton, Town of - Town Clerk (SPR 20241133)

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts William Francis Galvin, Secretary of the Commonwealth Public Records Division Manza Arthur Supervisor of Records April 23, 2024 SPR24/1133 Leo Mercado Town Clerk Town of Acton 472 Main Street Acton, MA 01720 Dear Mr. Mercado: On April 16, 2024, this office received the petition of Attorney Nina Pickering-Cook, on behalf of the Town of Acton (Town) seeking relief from the obligation to produce responsive records. G. L. c. 66, § 10(c); G. L. c. 66, § 10(d)(iv); see also 950 C.M.R. 32.06(4). As required by law, I understand that the Town furnished a copy of this petition to the requestor, Geoff Beach. G. L. c. 66, § 10(c); G. L. c. 66, § 10(d)(iv)(2). On April 15, 2024, Mr. Beach requested four categories of records, including numerous sub-categories, concerning “inspections,” “regulatory action,” “mitigation of Town-identified public safety hazards,” and “performance under actual storm conditions.” In a second request on the same day, Mr. Beach sought “all emails, with their attachments, that involve” a list of approximately 20 email addresses covering eight specified date ranges. The Town also notes that “since September 7, 2023 to present date (7 months), the Town has received 25 requests for Public Records” from Mr. Beach. Petitions for an Extension of Time and Relief from the Obligation to Provide Records Under the Public Records Law, upon a showing of good cause, the Supervisor of Records (Supervisor) may grant a single extension to an agency not to exceed 20 business days and a single extension to a municipality not to exceed 30 business days. In determining whether there has been a showing of good cause, the Supervisor shall consider, but shall not be limited to considering: (i) the need to search for, collect, segregate or examine records; (ii) the scope of redaction required to prevent unlawful disclosure; (iii) the capacity or the normal business hours of operation of the agency or municipality to produce the request without the extension; (iv) efforts undertaken by the agency or municipality in fulfilling the current 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

Leo Mercado SPR24/1133 Page 2 April 23, 2024 request and previous requests; (v) whether the request, either individually or as part of a series of requests from the same requestor, is frivolous or intended to harass or intimidate the agency or municipality; and (vi) the public interest served by expeditious disclosure. G. L. c. 66, § 10(c). If the Supervisor determines that the request is part of a series of contemporaneous requests that are frivolous or designed to intimidate or harass, and the requests are not intended for the broad dissemination of information to the public about actual or alleged government activity, the Supervisor may grant a longer extension or relieve the agency or municipality of its obligation to provide copies of the records sought. Id. The filing of a petition does not affect the requirement that a Records Access Officer (RAO) shall provide an initial response to a requestor within ten business days after receipt of a request for public records. 950 C.M.R. 32.06(4)(b). Request for Relief In its petition, the Town states that it “is requesting relief pursuant to G.L. c. 66, § 10(c).” In support of its request, the Town argues the following: Since September 7, 2023 to present date (7 months), the Town has received 25 requests for Public Records and 12 appeals following many of the Town’s responses to those requests. . . . In addition, during this same time period, the Town has received requests concerning “Bumble Bee Way” and other matters that are often the focus of Mr. Beach’s requests from [other] email addresses . . . without identification of the Requestor (Request Nos. 24-68 and 24-78). . . . The filing of 27 requests and 12 appeals within seven months is patently unreasonable. Furthermore, these requests are not narrow or easy to fulfill. Oftentimes, Mr. Beach’s requests take dozens of hours each and involve multiple staff members to fulfill. This has put a considerable strain on the Town’s resources, particularly the Town’s Records Access Officer . . . who is trying to manage not only Mr. Beach’s requests, but all requests from other members of the public, as well as his duties to operate elections on behalf of the Town Clerk’s office. . . . The Town has put many hours into compiling the records to respond to SPR24- 0279 and is continuing to do so. This request included an extensive search of emails which the Town hopes to complete in the next week. The two requests submitted in April are . . . examples of the nature and extent of Mr. Beach’s

Leo Mercado SPR24/1133 Page 3 April 23, 2024 Public Records requests. Alone, each of these requests are estimated to take Town staff dozens of hours to fulfill. Based on the information provided in the Town’s petition, I find that the Town has not demonstrated that the requests are frivolous and not intended for the broad dissemination of information to the public about actual or alleged government activity, as required by G. L. c. 66, § 10(c). Conclusion In light of the above, I cannot grant the Town’s petition seeking relief from its obligation to produce responsive records at this time. Please note, this office may deny an appeal if, in the opinion of the Supervisor of Records, the request is designed or intended to harass, intimidate, or assist in the commission of a crime. See 950 C.M.R. 32.08(2)(b)(2). Sincerely, Manza Arthur Supervisor of Records cc: Geoff Beach Nina L. Pickering-Cook, Esq.