Sonia Gattling v. Brockton, City of - Fire Department (SPR 20241934)

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts William Francis Galvin, Secretary of the Commonwealth Public Records Division Manza Arthur Supervisor of Records July 22, 2024 SPR24/1934 Deputy Chief Edward Williams Jr. Inspector/Investigator Brockton Fire Department 560 West Street Brockton, MA 02301 Dear Deputy Chief Williams: I have received the petition of Sonia Gattling, of Sista Services Inc., appealing the response of the Brockton Fire Department (Department) to a request for public records. See G. L. c. 66, § 10A; see also 950 C.M.R. 32.08(1). On July 3, 2024, Ms. Gattling requested: …any available information on properties that have sustained fire damage within the jurisdiction over the past 30 days. Specifically, we are interested in…: [1] Address of the property[;] [2] Date and time of the fire incident[;] [3] Extent of damage[;] [4] Current status of the property (e.g., condemned, under repair, etc.)[; and] [5] Contact information for the property owner, if available. We understand the sensitive nature of this information and assure you that it will be used solely for the purpose of assessing potential investment opportunities for our assisted living projects…. The Department provided a response on July 5, 2024, and asserted Exemption (n) of the Public Records Law to withhold the records in their entirety. Unsatisfied with the Department’s response, Ms. Gattling petitioned this office and this appeal, SPR24/1934, 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 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

Deputy Chief Edward Williams SPR24/1934 Page 2 July 22, 2024 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. See G. L. c. 66, § 10(b)(iv); 950 C.M.R. 32.06(3); see also Dist. Attorney 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. 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 Department’s July 5th response In its July 5, 2024 response, the Department cited Exemption (n) of the Public Records Law to withhold the requested records. Requests Solely for a Commercial Purpose The Supervisor of Records may deny an appeal for, among other reasons, if, in the opinion of the Supervisor: the public records request is made solely for a commercial purpose. 950 C.M.R. 3208(2)(b)(3). Please be advised that the term “commercial purpose” as used in the Public Records Law shall mean: the sale or resale of any portion of the public record or the use of information from the public record to advance the requester’s strategic business interests in a manner that the requester can reasonably expect to make a profit, and shall not include gathering or reporting news or gathering information to promote citizen oversight or further the understanding of the operation or activities of government or for academic, scientific, journalistic or public research or education. G. L. c. 66, § 10(d)(ix). Please not that Ms. Gattling states in her request that the information she seeks “will be used solely for the purpose of assessing potential investment opportunities for our assisted living projects” on her affiliated company Sista Services Inc. Where the request is being made on behalf of a private company in order to help that company assess potential investment opportunities, I decline to opine on this matter. See 950 C.M.R. 32.08(2)(b); 950 C.M.R. 32.02.

Deputy Chief Edward Williams SPR24/1934 Page 3 July 22, 2024 Conclusion Accordingly, I will now consider this administrative appeal closed. If Ms. Gattling is not satisfied with the resolution of this administrative appeal, please be advised that this office shares jurisdiction with the Superior Court of the Commonwealth. See G. L. c. 66, §§ 10(b)(ix), 10A(c) (pursuing administrative appeal does not limit availability of judicial remedies). Sincerely, Manza Arthur Supervisor of Records cc: Sonia Gattling