Herman, Colman v. Boston, City of - Public Records (SPR 20260491)

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts William Francis Galvin, Secretary of the Commonwealth Public Records Division Manza Arthur Supervisor of Records February 13, 2026 SPR26/0491 Grace Jung Director of Public Records City of Boston 1 City Hall Square, Room 615 Boston, MA 02201 Dear Ms. Jung: I have received the petition of Colman Herman appealing the response of the City of Boston (City) to a request for public records. See G. L. c. 66, § 10A; see also 950 C.M.R. 32.08(1). On January 30, 2026, Mr. Herman requested, “[a]ny and all agreements and memoranda of understanding executed by the City Of Boston with any and all of the entities participating in Boston Family Days in 2025.” The City responded on February 9, 2026. Unsatisfied with the response, Mr. Herman petitioned this office and this appeal, SPR26/0491, 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 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 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

Grace Jung SPR26/0491 Page 2 February 13, 2026 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 City’s February 9th Response In its February 9, 2026 response, the City stated, “[t]here are no agreements or memoranda of understanding with the institutions participating in Boston Family Days. Therefore, there are no records responsive to this request.” Current Appeal In his appeal, Mr. Herman states, “[o]n December 14, 2026, I wrote the following to a press official at Museum of Fine Arts (MFA). ‘As a reminder, I am a freelance reporter in Boston and am working on a story about the City of Boston’s ‘Boston Family Days’ program. I have been told that the museums participating in the program, including MFA, are operating without an agreement with the city. Would you please confirm that?’ On December 16, 2026, the MFA official responded as follows. ‘Yes, we do have an agreement.’ This directly and clearly contradicts the City of Boston’s claim that there are no responsive records.” Mr. Herman further stated in his appeal, “‘New England Aquarium are operating without an agreement with the city. Would you please confirm that?’ On December 17, 2026, the aquarium official responded as follows. ‘I checked with our team and we ‘do’ have an agreement with the City of Boston for Boston Family Days.’ Here too this directly and clearly contradicts the City of Boston’s claim that there are no responsive records.” Records in Existence 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). 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 32 Op. Att’y Gen. 157, 165 (May 18, 1977). 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 City’s response, in conjunction with the information provided in Mr. Herman’s appeal, it is unclear whether the City possesses records responsive to Mr. Herman’s request. If the City does possess responsive records, it must either provide the records, or cite an exemption to the Public Records Law, and explain with specificity how such an exemption applies to withhold or redact the records. See G. L. c. 66, § 10(b)(iv) (a written response must “identify any records, categories of records or portions of records that the agency or municipality intends to withhold, and provide the specific reasons for such withholding, including the specific exemption or exemptions upon which the withholding is based”).

Grace Jung SPR26/0491 Page 3 February 13, 2026 Conclusion Accordingly, the City is ordered to provide Mr. Herman with a response to the request, provided in a manner consistent with this order, the Public Records Law, and its Regulations within ten (10) 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. Herman may appeal the substantive nature of the City’s response within ninety days. See 950 C.M.R. 32.08(1). Sincerely, Manza Arthur Supervisor of Records cc: Colman Herman