Nathaniel Adams v. Boston, City of - Public Records (SPR 20242571)

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts William Francis Galvin, Secretary of the Commonwealth Public Records Division Manza Arthur Supervisor of Records September 26, 2024 SPR24/2570; SPR24/2571 Shawn A. Williams, Esq. Director of Public Records City of Boston One City Hall Square Boston, MA 02201 Dear Attorney Williams: I have received the petitions of Nathaniel Adams appealing the response of the City of Boston (City) to two requests for public records. See G. L. c. 66, § 10A; see also 950 C.M.R. 32.08(1). In two separate requests on August 6, 2024, Mr. Adams requested the following records: [1] [C]opy of any emails sent between any member of the City Council (or their staff), on the one hand, and [an identified] Boston Globe correspondent, on the other? [2] An article published by the Boston Globe on August 6, 2024 (“In Boston, just four of the city’s top 100 earners are women. The majority are white men.”) includes the following sentence: “The Globe obtained data on the race and gender of all employees through a public records request.” Can you please provide me all correspondence between the City and the Boston Globe related to this request, including copies of the files that the City provided to the Globe? The City responded on August 20, 2024. Unsatisfied with the City’s responses, Mr. Adams petitioned this office and these appeals, SPR24/2570 and SPR24/2571, were 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

Shawn A. Williams, Esq. SPR24/2570; SPR24/2571 Page 2 September 26, 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. 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 City’s August 20th response In its August 20, 2024 response, the City asserted, “[a] response to a public records request must be provided within ten (10) business days of receiving a written request. G. L. c. 66, § 10(a); 950 CMR 32.06(2)(b). The public records law permits a response time of up to twenty- five (25) business days from the business day a written request is received, so long as a detailed explanation is provided. G. L. c. 66, § 10(b)(vi); 950 CMR 32.06(2)(i). Due to the nature of your request, additional time is needed. As such, the City will need up to, but no more than, fifteen (15) additional business days to review and process your request.” Timeliness in providing records G. L. c. 66, § 10(b) provides, in pertinent part, that if the magnitude or difficulty of the request unduly burdens the other responsibilities of the agency or municipality such that the agency or municipality cannot provide records within 10 business days, the agency or municipality must inform the requestor in writing within 10 business days. With respect to the timeframe to produce responsive records, the written response shall: identify a reasonable timeframe in which the agency or municipality shall produce the public records sought; provided, that for an agency, the timeframe shall not exceed 15 business days following the initial receipt of the request for public records and for a municipality the timeframe shall not exceed 25 business days following the initial receipt of the request for public records; and provided further, that the requestor may voluntarily agree to a response date beyond the timeframes set forth herein. G. L. c. 66, § 10(b)(vi). Where Mr. Adams made his requests on August 6, 2024, and the City has not provided responsive records, nor cited an exemption for withholding records, I find the City has not met its burden in responding to the requests in accordance with G. L. c. 66, § 10(b). Consequently, the City must provide an estimated date as to when it intends to complete the search and provide

Shawn A. Williams, Esq. SPR24/2570; SPR24/2571 Page 3 September 26, 2024 the responsive records. See G. L. c. 66, § 10(a) (records must be provided without unreasonable delay). To the extent possible, the City must provide responsive records on a rolling basis. Conclusion Accordingly, the City is ordered to provide Mr. Adams with a response to the requests provided in a manner consistent with this order, the Public Records Law, and its Regulations within ten (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. Mr. Adams may appeal the substantive nature of the City’s response within ninety (90) days. See 950 C.M.R. 32.08(1). Sincerely, Manza Arthur Supervisor of Records cc: Nathaniel Adams