Murphy, Edward v. Uxbridge, Town of - Town Clerk (SPR 20260985)

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts William Francis Galvin, Secretary of the Commonwealth Public Records Division Manza Arthur Supervisor of Records April 1, 2026 SPR26/0985 Kelly J. Cote Town Clerk Town of Uxbridge 21 South Main Street Uxbridge, MA 01569 Dear Ms. Cote: I have received the petition of Edward J. Murphy appealing the response of the Town of Uxbridge (Town) to a request for public records. See G. L. c. 66, § 10A; see also 950 C.M.R. 32.08(1). On January 29, 2026, Mr. Murphy requested, “records maintained by the Town of Uxbridge, including the Board of Health and any other relevant departments, relating to . . . South Main Street and . . . South Main Street, Uxbridge, Massachusetts, or any reasonable variation of those addresses, for the period November 17, 2025 through January 29, 2026, including the following:” [1] All records reflecting dates of inspection, site visits, or other attendance by Town personnel at either property[;] [2] Any logs, records, or documentation of phone calls, text messages, emails, or other communications between Town personnel and the following [five identified] individuals or [three identified] businesses, including any reasonable variation of these names or contact information . . .[;] [3] Any internal emails, text messages, memoranda, notes, or communications containing references to [variations of an identified individual’s name and an identified business] . . . or any reasonable variation of those names or business references[;] [4] Any notes, reports, inspection findings, correspondence, or internal communications relating to or referencing . . . South Main Street, . . . South Main Street, or any reasonable variation of those addresses during the time period identified above. 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

Kelly J. Cote SPR26/0985 Page 2 April 1, 2026 The Town provided a response on February 10, 2026, which included multiple responsive records. In subsequent email correspondence to Mr. Murphy on February 11, 2026, the Town advised that one of the variations of an identified individual’s name that Mr. Murphy provided in Item 3 of his request “[caused] the amount of emails to be very large” and asked him to “narrow the scope” of his request. In an email responding to the Town on the same date, Mr. Murphy narrowed his request to exclude the specific variation of an identified individual’s name that the Town indicated in its February 11th response had created difficulty in its “attempts to pull the emails and digital files[.]” Claiming to not yet have received responsive records to his narrowed request, Mr. Murphy petitioned this office and this appeal, SPR26/0985, 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 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. Current Appeal In his March 18, 2026 appeal petition, Mr. Murphy explains that “[o]n February 11, 2026, the Town requested that we remove [an identified] search term . . . claiming it resulted in an overly broad volume of emails. He states that, “[t]he same day, we agreed to [a] modification” but notes that “[d]espite this cooperation, no . . . response has been provided” to the narrowed February 11, 2026 request. Mr. Murphy additionally provides a copy of his March 11, 2026 email to the Town in which he “followed up directly with the Town’s Records Access Officer . . . advising that absent a complete response we would seek relief from [this] office.” He further states that he “received no response” from the Town to his March 11th email correspondence.

Kelly J. Cote SPR26/0985 Page 3 April 1, 2026 Timeliness in Providing Records G. L. c. 66, § 10(b) provides, in pertinent part, that if the magnitude or difficulty of the request unduly burdens the other responsibilities of the agency or municipality such that the agency or municipality cannot provide records within 10 business days, the agency or municipality must inform the requestor in writing within 10 business days. With respect to the timeframe to produce responsive records, the written response shall: identify a reasonable timeframe in which the agency or municipality shall produce the public records sought; provided, that for an agency, the timeframe shall not exceed 15 business days following the initial receipt of the request for public records and for a municipality the timeframe shall not exceed 25 business days following the initial receipt of the request for public records; and provided further, that the requestor may voluntarily agree to a response date beyond the timeframes set forth herein. G. L. c. 66, § 10(b)(vi). Where Mr. Murphy submitted his narrowed request on February 11, 2026, and the Town has not provided the responsive records, nor cited an exemption for withholding records, I find that the Town has not met its burden in responding to the request in accordance with G. L c. 66, § 10(b)(vi). Consequently, the Town must provide an estimated date as to when it intends to complete the search and provide any responsive records. See G. L. c. 66, § 10(a) (records must be provided without unreasonable delay). To the extent possible, the Town must provide responsive records on a rolling basis. Conclusion Accordingly, the Town is ordered to provide Mr. Murphy with a response to his narrowed February 11, 2026 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. Murphy 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: Edward J. Murphy