Karen Tatro v. North Adams, City of (SPR 20241940)

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts William Francis Galvin, Secretary of the Commonwealth Public Records Division Manza Arthur Supervisor of Records July 22, 2024 SPR24/1940 Stacy Abuisi Records Officer City of North Adams 10 Main Street North Adams, MA 01247 Dear Ms. Abuisi: I have received the petition of Karen Tatro appealing the response of the City of North Adams (City) to a request for public records. See G. L. c. 66, § 10A; see also 950 C.M.R. 32.08(1). On January 2, 2024, Ms. Tatro requested the following: [1.] All and any communications to or from [a named individual]’s City Provided Cell phone, including text messages, emails and social media accounts for the period January 1, 2023 through January 1, 2024. [2.] All and any communications to or from [a named individual], at [a specified email address] for the period of January 1, 2023 through December 31, 2023. [3.] [a]ll and any communications to or from [a named individual], from all other elected city councilors for the period of January 1, 2023 through December 31, 2023. [4.] [a]ny and all communications to or from [a named individual’s] City issued cell phone, including text messages, emails, and social media accounts for the period January 1, 2022 through December 31, 2022. Previous Appeals This request was the subject of previous appeals. See SPR24/0144; SPR24/0149; SPR24/0150; and SPR24/0151 Determination of the Supervisor of Records (January 31, 2024); SPR24/1163 Determination of the Supervisor of Records (May 1, 2024); and SPR24/1164; SPR24/1165; SPR24/1167 Determinations of the Supervisor of Records (May 2, 2024); and SPR24/1587 Determination of the Supervisor of Records (June 10, 2024). In my June 10, 2024 determination, I reiterated my previous finding that the City may not charge a fee for public records under G. L. c. 66, § 10(e). Subsequently, the City provided a response on June 18, 2024. Unsatisfied with the response, Ms. Tatro petitioned this office and this appeal, SPR24/1940, was 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

Stacy Abuisi SPR24/1940 Page 2 July 22, 2024 opened as a result. The City’s June 18th Response In its June 18, 2024 response, the City stated, “[g]iven the extensive nature of [Ms. Tatro’s] requests, we currently do not have the available resources to process them within a reasonable timeframe. To better serve your needs and comply with the law efficiently, we kindly request that you narrow the scope of your requests. This will help us focus our efforts and ensure that we provide the most relevant information without unnecessary use of time and resources. Please let us know if there are specific documents or subsets of information you are particularly interested in. We are committed to working with you to fulfill your request in a manageable and timely manner.” Current Appeal In her appeal, Ms. Tatro stated, “[t]he City of North Adams has not provided the records…” In light of the City’s suggestion to modify the request, this office encourages both parties to communicate further to enable the City to provide the requested records if Ms. Tatro wishes to modify her request. G. L. c. 66, § 10(b)(vii) (a 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 municipality to produce records sought more efficiently and affordably). The City is advised that to the extent possible, the City must provide responsive records on a rolling basis. See G. L. c. 66, § 10(a) (records must be provided without unreasonable delay). Order Accordingly, the City is ordered to provide Ms. Tatro with a response to her 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. Sincerely, Manza Arthur Supervisor of Records cc: Karen Tatro