Cruz Ruiz, Jose v. Lawrence, City of - Office of the City Clerk (SPR 20260860)

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts William Francis Galvin, Secretary of the Commonwealth Public Records Division Manza Arthur Supervisor of Records March 17, 2026 SPR26/0860 Eileen O’Connor Bernal City Clerk City of Lawrence 200 Common Street, Room 107 Lawrence, MA 01840 Dear Ms. O’Connor Bernal: On March 11, 2026, this office received your petition on behalf of the City of Lawrence (City) seeking an extension of time to produce 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, I understand that the City furnished a copy of this petition to the requestor, Jose Cruz. G. L. c. 66, § 10(c); G. L. c. 66, § 10(d)(iv)(2). On February 23, 2026, Mr. Cruz sought the following: [A]ll available meeting minutes for all public meetings held by the City of Lawrence from January 1, 2016 through the present (February 2026). This request covers all boards, commissions, committees, and councils, including but not limited to . . .[:] [1] City Council and Council Committees: City Council[,] Budget & Finance Committee[,] Committee of the Whole[,] Housing Committee[,] Personnel Committee[,] Public Safety Committee[,] Vendor Committee[,] Economic Development Committee[,] Ordinance & Intergovernmental Relations Committee[,] [and] Small Business Revolving Loan Fund Committee[;] [2] Boards: Bellevue Cemetery Board[,] Board of Health[,] Board of Registrars[,] Library Board of Trustees[,] Licensing Board[,] Planning Board[,] Retirement Board[,] [and] Zoning Board of Appeals[;] [3] Commissions: Airport Commission[,] Commission on Disability[,] Conservation Commission[,] Greater Lawrence Sanitary District[,] Historical Commission[,] Human Rights Commission[,] [and] Prospect Hill Historical District Commission[;] 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

Eileen O’Connor Bernal SPR26/0860 Page 2 March 17, 2026 [4] Other Committees and Councils: Community Development Advisory Board[,] Lawrence Housing Authority[,] Lawrence Redevelopment Authority[,] Alliance for Education[,] School Committee[,] Council for the Aging[,] [and] Cultural Council[.] Petitions for an Extension of Time Under the Public Records Law, upon a showing of good cause, the Supervisor of Records (Supervisor) may grant a single extension to an agency not to exceed 20 business days and a single extension to a municipality not to exceed 30 business days. In determining whether there has been a showing of good cause, the Supervisor shall consider, but shall not be limited to considering: (i) the need to search for, collect, segregate or examine records; (ii) the scope of redaction required to prevent unlawful disclosure; (iii) the capacity or the normal business hours of operation of the agency or municipality to produce the request without the extension; (iv) efforts undertaken by the agency or municipality in fulfilling the current request and previous requests; (v) whether the request, either individually or as part of a series of requests from the same requestor, is frivolous or intended to harass or intimidate the agency or municipality; and (vi) the public interest served by expeditious disclosure. G. L. c. 66, § 10(c). If the Supervisor determines that the request is part of a series of contemporaneous requests that are frivolous or designed to intimidate or harass, and the requests are not intended for the broad dissemination of information to the public about actual or alleged government activity, the Supervisor may grant a longer extension or relieve the agency or municipality of its obligation to provide copies of the records sought. Id. The filing of a petition does not affect the requirement that a Records Access Officer (RAO) shall provide an initial response to a requestor within ten business days after receipt of a request for public records. 950 C.M.R. 32.06(4)(b). Current Petition In its petition, the City seeks an additional 25 business days to respond to the request and provides the following information in support of its petition: The City of Lawrence received a request for Public Records from [Mr. Cruz] . . . on or about February 23rd. Our initial response was sent out that same day. . . . Our response contained a LOG # for Mr. Cruz to use as a reference with regard to any future inquiries on this, as well as an outline of his rights under the MA

Eileen O’Connor Bernal SPR26/0860 Page 3 March 17, 2026 Public Records Law. . . . . . . [Mr. Cruz’s] request entails all of the minutes of all of the city’s boards and commissions going back ten (10) years. This is an extensive request that will take a large amount of time to fulfil as it requires coordination from numerous departments, boards and agencies. We are respectfully asking the Supervisor to grant the city an additional twenty five (25) business days to complete this request. . . . We have told the requesting party that we will waive any fees for time as these are items that should accessible. . . . In light of the need to collect, segregate and examine the records, as well as the capacity of the City to produce the request without the extension and the efforts undertaken by City in fulfilling the current request, the City has established good cause to permit an extension of time. G. L. c. 66, § 10(c)(i)-(iv). The City is granted an extension of 25 business days. Conclusion As described above, I find that the City has established good cause for a time extension of 25 business days. Please note, Mr. Cruz 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, §§ 10(c), 10(d)(iv)(4), 10A(c). Sincerely, Manza Arthur Supervisor of Records cc: Jose Cruz