Ryan Connor v. Tewksbury, Town of (SPR 20253664)

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts William Francis Galvin, Secretary of the Commonwealth Public Records Division Manza Arthur Supervisor of Records January 7, 2026 SPR25/3664 Denise Graffeo, CMC/CMMC Town Clerk Town of Tewksbury 1009 Main Street Tewksbury, MA 01876 Dear Ms. Graffeo: I have received the petition of Ryan Connor appealing the response of the Town of Tewksbury (Town) to a request for public records. See G. L. c. 66, § 10A; see also 950 C.M.R. 32.08(1). On December 11, 2025, Mr. Connor requested the following: [C]opies of any records held by the Town of Tewksbury or its departments relating to fire department operations, training activities, foam usage ... [for] the following categories of records, wherever they may be stored (Fire Department, Board of Health, DPW/Transfer Station, Town Manager’s Office, Select Board, or archived materials): [1] Fire Department Training Records [a] Documents listing training sites, liveburn exercises, drills, or demonstrations [b] Any training activities conducted in or near the Sutton Brook Disposal Area (Rocco’s Dump)[;] [2] Firefighting Foam (AFFF) Usage or Purchase Records [a] Purchase orders, supply logs, inventories, or invoices for firefighting foam (including AFFF)[;] [b] Training logs or memos referencing foam usage[;] [c] Any records of disposal of foam, containers, or foam-soaked debris at the town landfill[;] [3] Incident Reports/ Fire Responses [a] All fire response reports for the Sutton Brook landfill area, including: brush fires[,] car fires[,] chemical fires [and] uncontrolled burns[;] [b] Any references to burning activities or repeated fire responses at the landfill[;] 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

Denise Graffeo SPR25/3664 Page 2 January 7, 2026 [4] Landfill / Dump Operation Records Related to Fire Activity [a] Records from the Board of Health or DPW regarding landfill fires, burn permits, or fire suppression events[;] [b] Documentation of illegal dumping burn pits, or chemical waste noted during inspections[;] [c] Correspondence with the landfill [identified] operators related to fire or hazardous material concerns[;] [5] Internal Correspondence or Memos (Any Department) [a] Communications between Fire Department, Board of Health, DPW, and Town Administration referencing: landfill conditions[,] burn activities[,] foam usage[,] hazardous materials[,] training locations[,] emergency responses in South Tewksbury[;] [6] Historical Records, Notes, Photos, and Archives [a] Any archived maps, diagrams, photographs, or handwritten notes describing: fire training locations[,] landfill operations[,] fire events at Sutton Brook[.] The Town provided a response on December 12, 2025. Unsatisfied with the response, Mr. Connor petitioned this office and this appeal, SPR25/3664, was opened as a result. 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 (two) 2 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).

Denise Graffeo SPR25/3664 Page 3 January 7, 2026 Current Appeal In his appeal to this office, Mr. Connor states, “I respectfully submit that the estimate does not fully comply with the requirements of the Massachusetts Public Records Law and applicable regulations, and that it appears excessive, speculative, and insufficiently justified.” The Town’s December 12th Response In its December 12, 2025 response, the Town provided a fee estimate of $1,025.00. The Town explains, “[t]his is an extensive request of old records across multiple departments that will require research to locate the records.... Because of the population of the Town, the first two hours of research are free.” The Town further stated, “[i]f the Town is required to devote more than two hours of employee time to search for, compile, segregate, redact, and/or reproduce the responsive records, the records access officer may include as part of said fee an hourly rate equal to or less than the hourly rate of the lowest paid employee who has the necessary skill required to search for, compile, segregate, redact, and/or reproduce said records. G. L. c. 66, §10(d)(iii). Said fee shall not be more than $25.00 per hour unless such rate is approved by the Supervisor of Records.” In a supplemental response on January 5, 2026, the Town provides the following: Search & Recover, Copy, Scan Hours Cost Total First 2 hours – no charge 2 $0 $0 IT Direct = 3 hours (no charge 2 hours) 1 $25 $25 Fire Department 8 $25 $200 Department of Public Works 8 $25 $200 Board of Health/Health Department 8 $25 $200 Select Board/Town Manager 8 $25 $200 Treasurer’s/Collector’s Office 8 $25 $200 Total $1,025 Although the Town has estimated that the process of compiling, reviewing, and preparing responsive documents for production will take 41 hours of employee time, it is unclear how the Town requires this many hours to produce responsive records. The Town must provide details on why the search time for IT and each department will take 3 hours and 8 hours, respectively, and explain the tasks involved in the search process. Further, the Town must clarify if the estimated time includes time for segregation and/or redaction of the records. Additionally, the Town must advise how much of the estimated time is allocated to scanning and copying of the documents as stated in its January 5th response. As such, the Town must provide additional information regarding its fee estimate. See G. L. c. 66, § 10(d)(iv) (requiring the amount of the fee be reasonable). For the reasons discussed above, I find the Town must revise its fee estimate or provide further explanation of how the fee assessed is expressly provided for and consistent with

Denise Graffeo SPR25/3664 Page 4 January 7, 2026 G. L. c. 66, § 10(d). Modification of the Scope of the Request In his appeal, Mr. Connor states, “I am acting in good faith to obtain records of significant public interest relating to environmental contamination, public health, and historical municipal practices. I am willing to work cooperatively with the Town to narrow or sequence the request, but the current estimate presents an unreasonable barrier to access.” In light of the above, this office encourages Mr. Connor and the Town to continue to communicate directly in order to facilitate providing records more efficiently and affordably. See G. L. c. 66, § 10(b)(vii) (an agency or municipality shall suggest a reasonable modification to the scope of the request or offer to assist the requestor to modify the scope of the request if doing so would enable the agency or municipality to produce records sought more efficiently and affordably). Conclusion Accordingly, the Town is ordered to provide Mr. Connor with a response to the request, provided in a manner consistent with this order, the Public Records Law and its 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. Mr. Connor may appeal the substantive nature of the Town’s response within ninety (90) days. See 950 C.M.R. 32.08(1). Sincerely, Manza Arthur Supervisor of Records cc: Ryan Connor