Sara Hincapie v. Bristol Community College (SPR 20250286)

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts William Francis Galvin, Secretary of the Commonwealth Public Records Division Manza Arthur Supervisor of Records February 7, 2025 SPR25/0286 Joyce Brennan Vice President of Marketing & Communication Bristol Community College 777 Elsbree Street Fall River, MA 02720 Dear Ms. Brennan: I have received the petition of Sara Hincapie appealing the response of the Bristol Community College (College) to a request for public records. See G. L. c. 66, § 10A; see also 950 C.M.R. 32.08(1). On January 14, 2025, Ms. Hincapie requested: [1.] . . . the Job Description and Job Requirements for the Senior Mental Health Counselor position, and for the Adjunct Psychology Professor as would have applied to someone holding the position in 2019-2023. It is my understanding that this information was already provided to the Ethics Commission, which should help reduce the time and costs for this item. [2.] . . . a formal statement from the college clarifying if they have granted to any of their Student Wellness Staff any special permissions to treat patients/students without licensing and supervision. I have heard that the college gave such special permission to one of your staff, and would like a formal verification or denial of this…. The College responded on January 28, 2025, providing records responsive to the request. Unsatisfied with the College’s response, Ms. Hincapie appealed, and this case, SPR25/0286, 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

Joyce Brennan SPR25/0286 Page 2 February 7, 2025 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 College’s January 28th Response In its January 28, 2025 response, the College provided records responsive to Ms. Hincapie’s request. The College states, “[w]e have included (1) job descriptions/hiring parameters and (2) documentation of those who have ‘special permission for counselors to practice without a license.’” Current Appeal In her appeal, Ms. Hincapie states, “[t]he contracts I received are for interns. However, that is not what I had asked for. I had asked for the information of Student Wellness Staff, the senior staff at the college. Please let me know if you are able to send the contracts of your senior staff at the time, instead of the interns. Paying particular attention to the ‘EdD, NCSP’ member…” The College 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, under the Public Records Law, a public employee is not required to answer questions, or do research, or create documents in response to questions. See G. L. c. 66, § 10(a); 32 Op. Att’y Gen. 157, 165 (May 18, 1977). However, in accordance with the Public Records Law, 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 information provided in Ms. Hincapie’s appeal petition, it is unclear whether the College possesses additional responsive records. The College must clarify this. Conclusion Accordingly, the College is ordered to provide Ms. Hincapie with a response to the request, provided in a manner consistent with this order, the Public Records Law and its

Joyce Brennan SPR25/0286 Page 3 February 7, 2025 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: Sara Hincapie