Michael Marino v. Canton, Town of - Public Schools (SPR 20243078)

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts William Francis Galvin, Secretary of the Commonwealth Public Records Division Manza Arthur Supervisor of Records November 20, 2024 SPR24/3078 Brian Lynch Assistant Superintendent of Finance and Operations Canton Public Schools 960 Washington Street Canton, MA 02021 Dear Mr. Lynch: I have received the petition of Michael Marino appealing the response of the Canton Public Schools (School) to a request for public records. See G. L. c. 66, § 10A; see also 950 C.M.R. 32.08(1). On October 15, 2024, Mr. Marino requested “the latest record available and . . . a record from the 2016 fiscal year and a record from the 2017 fiscal year for the [following] information”: [1] A full list of employees first and last names employed under the Canton Public Schools[;] [2] Their job title[;] [3] Their yearly salary[;] [4] Their birth year[;] [5] How many years they have been employed under Canton Public Schools[.] The School responded on October 29, 2024, requesting clarification regarding the specific records Mr. Marino was seeking and inquiring as to whether he “[w]ould . . . be amenable to an extension of one day to respond to [the] request[.]” In an email to the School on the same date, Mr. Marino agreed to the one-day extension and clarified his request by stating, “[a]s for the FY2016 and FY2017 information, I am indeed seeking the same information listed for those years. Please pull data from the last day of FY2016 and FY2017.” Subsequently, the School responded on the same date and indicated that it would “send [Mr. Marino] a spreadsheet with all available data tomorrow.” Unsatisfied with the School’s response and claiming to not yet have received responsive records, Mr. Marino petitioned this office and this appeal, SPR24/3078, was opened as a result. 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

Brian Lynch SPR24/3078 Page 2 November 20, 2024 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. 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. Timeliness in Providing Records In correspondence between the parties dated October 29, 2024, as described above, Mr. Marino agreed to the School’s request for a one-day extension “to respond to [the] request[.]” The School subsequently indicated in its October 29, 2024 response, as described above, that it intended to provide the responsive 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. Marino submitted the request on October 15, 2024, and the School has not provided the responsive records, nor cited an exemption for withholding records, I find the School has not met its burden in responding to the request in accordance with G. L c. 66, § 10(b).

Brian Lynch SPR24/3078 Page 3 November 20, 2024 Consequently, the School must provide an estimated date as to when it intends to complete the search and provide any responsive records. See G. L. c. 66, § 10(a) (records must be provided without unreasonable delay). Conclusion Accordingly, the School is ordered to provide Mr. Marino with a response to his request, 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. Sincerely, Manza Arthur Supervisor of Records cc: Michael Marino