Bill Shein v. Department of Public Health (SPR 20252743)

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts William Francis Galvin, Secretary of the Commonwealth Public Records Division Manza Arthur Supervisor of Records September 24, 2025 SPR25/2743 Helen Rush-Lloyd Records Access Officer Massachusetts Department of Public Health 250 Washington Street Boston, MA 02108 Dear Ms. Rush-Lloyd: I have received the petition of Bill Shein, of The Berkshire Argus, appealing the response of the Department of Public Health (Department) to a request for public records. See G. L. c. 66, § 10A; see also 950 C.M.R. 32.08(1). On August 8, 2025, Mr. Shein requested “... copies of public records related to two federally funded biomonitoring initiatives administered by the Massachusetts Department of Public Health (DPH). These grants were awarded by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)” as follows: [1] CDC Biomonitoring Grant (2014–2019/2021)[;] Including but not limited to: Grant Opportunity #CDC-RFA-EH14-1402 Grant Award ID # NU88EH001144 Cooperative Agreement #5 U88 EH 001144 Please provide for the entire life of the award: [1] The grant application and all related documents, including submissions, attachments, correspondence, and award letters[;] [2] Budget documents (proposed, approved, and amended)[;] [3] Progress, interim, and final reports[;] [4] Presentations, published or unpublished findings, and summaries prepared for public or internal use[;] [5] Internal DPH memos, meeting notes, and correspondence discussing the design, implementation, evaluation, data interpretation, or public communication plans[;] [6] Outreach materials for participants and collaborators, including templates for results communication to participants, welcome packages, and questionnaires [7] Technical and other resources used for health-based interpretation of Biomonitoring results[;] 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

Helen Rush-Lloyd SPR25/2743 Page 2 September 24, 2025 [8] Materials related to the establishment of health-based thresholds for analytes of interest[;] [9] Materials related to responses under the grant to drinking water concerns Including manganese in municipal drinking water[;] [10] Any data summaries or de-identified public-use datasets generated by this project, including but not limited to number/geographic location of participants in the study’s three groups: “residents in communities with a high risk of potential exposure to certain chemicals, individuals involved in a chemical emergency, and adults (18+) across the state.” [11] Communications with CDC or other partners regarding the project[.] [12] CDC Biomonitoring Grant (2024–2027)[;] Including but not limited to: Grant Opportunity # CDC-RFA-EH-24-0043 Grant ID #NU88EH001345 This ongoing grant appears to support the Mass Measures program, which offers free blood and urine testing for environmental contaminants, including PCBs, in selected Massachusetts communities. Please provide the following, to date: [1] The full grant application and all attachments submitted[;] [2] Drafts, redlines, memos, correspondence, and other material related to the preparation of the grant application[;] [3] Funding award letters and other communications from to/from HHS/CDC[;] [4] Budget documents (proposed, approved, and amended)[;] [5] Internal DPH documents—including memos, correspondence, and presentations— planning and outlining the scope, design, and/or goals of the Mass Measures program[;] [6] Criteria, memos, spreadsheets, scoring, correspondence, and any other material related to the selection of participating sites/communities[;] [7] Outreach materials, community meeting summaries, press releases, and any Data summaries produced to date[;] [8] Draft and final exposure-assessment questionnaire(s) and any results report template(s)[;] [9] Correspondence among and between DPH staff as well as external parties (e.g., CDC, municipalities, local/state/federal officials, researchers, contractors, advocacy groups, and local partners) related to this program to date[.] The Department responded on August 13, 2025. Unsatisfied with the Department’s response, Mr. Shein petitioned this office and this appeal, SPR25/2743, was opened as a result. Subsequently, I learned that the Department sent a supplemental response to Mr. Shein on September 24, 2025 providing the initial requested records and the Department stated, “[t]his is the first installment in a rolling production.” Where the basis of this appeal was opened as a result of the Department’s August 13, 2025 response, I will now consider this administrative appeal closed. Mr. Shein may appeal the substantive nature of the Department’s September 24th response within ninety (90) days. See 950 C.M.R. 32.08(1). --

Helen Rush-Lloyd SPR25/2743 Page 3 September 24, 2025 Sincerely, Manza Arthur Supervisor of Records cc: Bill Shein