J.Mark Dickison v. Swansea, Town of - Town Administrator (SPR 20251063)

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts William Francis Galvin, Secretary of the Commonwealth Public Records Division Manza Arthur Supervisor of Records April 24, 2025 SPR25/1063 Mallory E. Aronstein Town Administrator Town of Swansea 81 Main Street Swansea, MA 02777 Dear Ms. Aronstein: On April 16, 2025, this office received your petition on behalf of the Town of Swansea (Town) seeking an extension of time to produce records, permission to charge for time spent segregating or redacting responsive records, and a waiver of statutory limits on fees that may be assessed in responding to the request. G. L. c. 66, § 10(c); G. L. c. 66, § 10(d)(iv); see also 950 C.M.R. 32.06(4). As required by law, I understand that the Town furnished a copy of this petition to the requestor, J. Mark Dickison, Esq. G. L. c. 66, § 10(c); G. L. c. 66, § 10(d)(iv)(2). It is my understanding that on April 3, 2025, the Town received a subpoena regarding Docket No. 2584-CV-00206. In correspondence included with its petition, the Town indicates that “the Town will treat this subpoena as a Public Records Request and will respond accordingly.” Pending Litigation 950 C.M.R. 32.08(2)(b) provides in pertinent part: The Supervisor may deny an appeal for, among other reasons if, in the opinion of the Supervisor: 1. the public records in question are the subjects of disputes in active litigation, administrative hearings or mediation. This office has reviewed the trial court’s docket and verified that the civil litigation, relating to the records at issue in the Town’s petition, is still active and ongoing in the Suffolk Superior Court. See CHA Consulting, Inc. vs. LeftField, LLC, et al., (Suffolk Superior Court Docket No. 2584-CV-00206). 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

Mallory E. Aronstein SPR25/1063 Page 2 April 24, 2025 In light of the pending litigation, I decline to opine on the Town’s petition at this time. See 950 C.M.R. 32.08(2)(b). It should be noted that a change in the status of this action could impact the applicability of 950 C.M.R. 32.08(2)(b). Sincerely, Manza Arthur Supervisor of Records cc: J. Mark Dickison, Esq. Anthony C. Savastano, Esq.