Herschler, Nathan v. Barnstable, Town of - Town Attorney (SPR 20260865)

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts William Francis Galvin, Secretary of the Commonwealth Public Records Division Manza Arthur Supervisor of Records March 16, 2026 SPR26/0865 Allison M. Cogliano, Esq. Assistant Town Attorney Town of Barnstable 367 Main Street Hyannis, MA 02601 Dear Attorney Cogliano: On March 11, 2026, this office received your petition on behalf of the Town of Barnstable (Town) 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 Town furnished a copy of this petition to the requestor, Nathan Herschler. G. L. c. 66, § 10(c); G. L. c. 66, § 10(d)(iv)(2). On February 9, 2026, Mr. Herschler requested: all public records, including but not limited to emails, attachments, forwards, replies, calendar invites, and metadata, sent to, from, or copied on [five identified email addresses.] Timeframe: January 1, 2022 through January 1, 2026 Scope and Subject Matter This request includes any records concerning Town of Barnstable business, including but not limited to:  Town Council business, leadership votes, agendas, or internal strategy  Zoning, housing, short-term rentals, DCPC matters, or Planning/ZBA issues  Communications with or about Town Councilors, ZBA members, Planning Board members, Town staff, or outside advocates  Communications with, copied to, or referencing [eight identified individuals] or other civic actors  Communications referencing Town policy, votes, procedural rules, 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

Allison M. Cogliano, Esq. SPR26/0865 Page 2 March 16, 2025 leadership changes, or coordination outside posted meetings from the same Requestor seeking email communications from five other Town Councilor email accounts. This subsequent request significantly expands the anticipated volume of records and further increases the administrative burden on the Town’s staff resources. Previous Petition This request is the subject of a previous fee petition. See SPR26/0896 Determination of the Supervisor of Records (March 13, 2026). Please see SPR26/0896 for analysis of that issue. 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).

Allison M. Cogliano, Esq. SPR26/0865 Page 3 March 16, 2025 Current Petition In its petition, the Town seeks an extension of 30 business days to produce records. The Town states: The initial search has identified over 28,000 responsive emails, many of which include attachments and/or range from one to four pages in length. Based on prior experience processing similar requests from this Requestor, the Town estimates that each email requires approximately one minute for review in order to accurately segregate and redact pursuant to MGL c. 66 s. 10B, Massachusetts state laws, attorney-client privileged communications and attorney work product. The total time required for this request is approximately 465 hours. On February 23, 2026, the Town issued a fee estimate for $11,575. On that same day, the Town filed a petition to charge more than the statutory $25 per hour. The Town has not received a determination with regards to that petition to date. This task will profoundly burden the IT and Legal Departments and will hinder each department’s ability to timely address its other day-to-day responsibilities. The Town further explains: We received Mr. Herschler’s request on February 9, 2026. President’s Day, a legal holiday, fell on February 16. Then, due to the snow storm that took place between Sunday, February 22 and Monday, February 23, Barnstable Town Hall was closed Monday, February 23, Tuesday, February 24, Wednesday, February 25, and Thursday, February 26. This was due to a large majority of the cape being without power and other safety concerns in town. The definition of business day very clearly excludes unexpected closures of town offices which led us to skip over those days when counting our twenty business days. Therefore, the twentieth business day from February 9, 2026 falls on March 14, 2026. Conclusion In light of the need to collect and examine the records, and the capacity of the Town to produce the records without an extension, the Town has established good cause to permit an extension of time. G. L. c. 66, § 10(c)(i)-(iii). The Town is granted an extension of 30 business days.

Allison M. Cogliano, Esq. SPR26/0865 Page 4 March 16, 2025 Sincerely, Manza Arthur Supervisor of Records cc: Nathan Herschler