Thomas Siefert v. Shutesbury, Town of (SPR 20241189)

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts William Francis Galvin, Secretary of the Commonwealth Public Records Division Manza Arthur Supervisor of Records May 3, 2024 SPR24/1189 Grace Bannasch Town Clerk Town of Shutesbury 1 Cooleyville Road P.O. Box 264 Shutesbury, MA 01072 Dear Ms. Bannasch: I have received the petition of Thomas Siefert appealing the response of the Town of Shutesbury (Town) to a request for public records. See G. L. c. 66, § 10A; see also 950 C.M.R. 32.08(1). On March 29, 2024, Mr. Siefert requested “copies of all of the records related to the Article on the 2024 [t]own [w]arrant related to the Shutesbury Athletic Club[.] … This includes … any communication to or from the Town and any communication to or from the Shutesbury Athletic Club about this article.” The Town responded on April 16, 2024. Unsatisfied with the Town’s response, Mr. Siefert appealed, and this case was opened as a result. The Public Records Law The Public Records Law strongly favors disclosure by creating a presumption that all governmental records are public records. G. L. c. 66, § 10A(d); 950 C.M.R. 32.03(4). “Public records” is broadly defined to include all documentary materials or data, regardless of physical form or characteristics, made or received by any officer or employee of any agency or municipality of the Commonwealth, unless falling within a statutory exemption. G. L. c. 4, § 7(26). It is the burden of the records custodian to demonstrate the application of an exemption in order to withhold a requested record. G. L. c. 66, § 10(b)(iv); 950 C.M.R. 32.06(3); see also Dist. Att’y for the Norfolk Dist. v. Flatley, 419 Mass. 507, 511 (1995) (custodian has the burden of establishing the applicability of an exemption). To meet the specificity requirement a custodian must not only cite an exemption, but must also state why the exemption applies to the withheld or redacted portion of the responsive record. 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

Grace Bannasch SPR24/1189 Page 2 May 3, 2024 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. The Town’s April 16th Response In its April 16, 2024 response, the Town responded to Mr. Siefert’s request providing numerous responsive records. Current Appeal In his appeal petition, Mr. Siefert contended that the Town’s response was incomplete. Specifically, he stated that he “received no records showing any chain of events between the 2 email conversations that were provided to me and the generation of the Article and the placement of the Article onto the Warrant.” Possession, Custody, or Control The Town is advised that the duty to comply with requests for records extends to those records that exist and are in the possession, custody, or control of the custodian of records at the time of the request. See G. L. c. 66, § 10(a)(ii). Additionally, custodians are expected to use their superior knowledge of the records in their custody to assist requestors in obtaining the desired information. See 950 C.M.R. 32.04(5). Based on the Town’s response, and the information provided by Mr. Siefert in his appeal petition, it is unclear whether the Town possesses additional records responsive to Mr. Siefert’s request. If the Town does possess additional responsive records, it must either provide the records, or cite an exemption to the Public Records Law, and explain with specificity how such an exemption applies to withhold or redact the records. See G. L. c. 66, § 10(b)(iv) (a written response must “identify any records, categories of records or portions of records that the agency or municipality intends to withhold, and provide the specific reasons for such withholding, including the specific exemption or exemptions upon which the withholding is based”). Conclusion Accordingly, the Town is ordered to provide Mr. Siefert with a response to his request, provided in a manner consistent with this order, the Public Records Law, and its Regulations within ten 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.

Grace Bannasch SPR24/1189 Page 3 May 3, 2024 Sincerely, Manza Arthur Supervisor of Records cc: Thomas Siefert