Via Sacamay v. Cambridge, City of - Office of the City Solicitor (SPR 20251272)

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts William Francis Galvin, Secretary of the Commonwealth Public Records Division Manza Arthur Supervisor of Records May 8, 2025 SPR25/1272 Seah Levy Public Records Access Officer City of Cambridge Office of the City Solicitor 795 Massachusetts Avenue Cambridge, MA 02139 Dear Ms. Levy: On May 6, 2025, this office received your petition on behalf of the City of Cambridge (City) seeking permission to waive statutory limits to fees and to charge for time spent segregating or redacting responsive records. 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, it is my understanding that the City furnished a copy of the petition to the requestor, Via Sacamay, of Snook Law Firm. G. L. c. 66, § 10(c); G. L. c. 66, § 10(d)(iv)(2). On April 21, 2025, Ms. Sacamay requested “all Motor Vehicle Crash reports concerning any motor vehicle accidents which occurred in your jurisdiction from April 13, 2025 to April 19, 2025[.]” Petition to assess fees – Municipalities The Supervisor may approve a petition from a municipality to charge for time spent segregating or redacting or to charge in excess of $25 per hour, if the Supervisor determines that 1) the request is for a commercial purpose or 2) the fee represents an actual and good faith representation by the municipality to comply with the request. G. L. c. 66, § 10(d)(iv). In rendering such a decision, the Supervisor is required to consider the following: a) the public interest served by limiting the cost of public access to the records; b) the financial ability of the requestor to pay the additional or increased fees; and c) any other relevant extenuating circumstances. G. L. c. 66, § 10(d)(iv). The statute sets out a two-prong test for determining whether the Supervisor may approve a municipality’s petition to allow the municipality to charge for time spent segregating or redacting records or to charge in excess of $25 an hour for the provision of public records. The 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

Seah Levy SPR25/1272 Page 2 May 8, 2025 first prong is whether the request for records was made for a commercial purpose. G. L. c. 66, § 10(d)(iv). The second prong of the test is whether the fee represents an actual and good faith representation by the municipality to comply with the request. The Supervisor must consider 1) if the fee is necessary such that the request could not have been prudently completed without the redaction or segregation or fee in excess of $25 per hour; 2) the amount of the fee is reasonable; and 3) the fee is not designed to limit, deter or prevent access to requested public records. Id. Petitions seeking a waiver of statutory limits to fees assessed to segregate and/or redact public records must be made within ten business days after receipt of a request for public records. 950 C.M.R. 32.06(4)(g). Fee Estimates – Municipalities A municipality may assess a reasonable fee for the production of a public record except those records that are freely available for public inspection. G. L. c. 66, § 10(d). The fees must reflect the actual cost of complying with a particular request. Id. A maximum fee of five cents ($.05) per page may be assessed for a black and white single or double-sided photocopy of a public record. G. L. c. 66, § 10(d)(i). Municipalities may not assess a fee for the first 2 (two) hours of employee time to search for, compile, segregate, redact or reproduce the record or records requested unless the municipality has 20,000 people or less. G. L. c. 66, § 10(d)(iii). Where appropriate, municipalities may include as part of the fee an hourly rate equal to or less than the hourly rate attributed to the lowest paid employee who has the necessary skill required to search for, compile, segregate, redact or reproduce a record requested, but the fee shall not be more than $25 per hour. Id. However, municipalities may charge more than $25 per hour if such rate is approved by the Supervisor of Records under a petition under G. L. c. 66, § 10(d)(iv). A fee shall not be assessed for time spent segregating or redacting records unless such segregation or redaction is required by law or approved by the Supervisor of Records under a petition under G. L. c. 66, § 10(d)(iv). See G. L. c. 66, § 10(d)(iii); 950 C.M.R. 32.06(4). Current Petition In its petition, the City requests to charge fees for segregation and redaction of the responsive records at a rate of $46.62 per hour. Commercial Purpose In its May 6th petition, the City argues that the request is made for a commercial purpose, and provides the following information in support of its argument: Via Sacamay appears to be writing on behalf of the Snook Law Firm. This firm

Seah Levy SPR25/1272 Page 2 May 8, 2025 specializes in Personal Injury Law firm, based in Attleboro, Massachusetts, and serving the Greater Massachusetts area. Snook Law Office specializes in Personal Injury law, and their website includes categories for accident cases including auto accidents, bicycle accidents, motorcycle accidents, trucking accidents, and pedestrian accidents. The law firm therefore has a particular and specific interest in identifying the victims of motor vehicle accidents to the benefit of its business. This request does not appear to be an attempt to locate one specific accident on behalf of a client, but rather to capture all accidents which took place within the City of Cambridge. Snook Law firm has made several other blanket requests for accident reports, and to date, has not made payment on any cost estimates. The City believes that this request has been made for commercial purposes. Based on the information available to the City, we believe that these records are being collected and collated for commercial purposes, in marketing the services of the requestor Snook Law Office. Please be advised that the term “commercial purpose” as used in the Public Records Law shall mean: the sale or resale of any portion of the public record or the use of information from the public record to advance the requester’s strategic business interests in a manner that the requester can reasonably expect to make a profit, and shall not include gathering or reporting news or gathering information to promote citizen oversight or further the understanding of the operation or activities of government or for academic, scientific, journalistic or public research or education. G. L. c. 66, § 10(d)(ix). Based on the City’s petition, it is my understanding that the request made by Ms. Sacamay meets the statutory definition of “commercial purpose” within the Public Records Law. See G. L. c. 66, § 10(d)(ix); see also SPR20/2599 Determination of the Supervisor of Records (January 5, 2021). Conclusion Based on the City’s petition and my finding that the request is made for a commercial purpose, I approve the City’s fee petition. Accordingly, the City may assess a fee for segregation and redaction limited to $46.62 per hour. Please be advised, municipalities may not assess a fee for the first two hours of employee time to search for, compile, segregate, redact or reproduce the record or records requested unless the municipality has 20,000 people or less. See G. L. c. 66, § 10(d)(iii). Please note, Ms. Sacamay has the right to seek judicial review of this decision by commencing a civil action in the appropriate superior court. See G. L. c. 66, §§ 10A(c).

Seah Levy SPR25/1272 Page 2 May 8, 2025 Sincerely, Manza Arthur Supervisor of Records cc: Via Sacamay