Zurada, Mark v. Barnstable, Town of - Town Clerk (SPR 20261040)

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts William Francis Galvin, Secretary of the Commonwealth Public Records Division Manza Arthur Supervisor of Records April 3, 2026 SPR26/1040 Ann Quirk Record Access Officer Town of Barnstable 367 Main Street Hyannis, MA 02601 Dear Ms. Quirk: I have received the petition of Attorney Mark Zurada, of PinPoint Analytics, appealing the response of the Town of Barnstable (Town) to a request for public records. See G. L. c. 66, § 10A; see also 950 C.M.R. 32.08(1). On February 22, 2026, Attorney Zurada requested: . . . the final and compiled bid tabulation (bid tally), including all quantities and unit pricing for each bidder, for “2019 Barnstable Village Improvements” that was submitted on 03/25/2019. We specifically request the line-item bid tabulation showing each material, quantity, unit, and unit price for every bidder. If no such line-item tally was created, please provide the full bid submissions from each contractor. A grand total sheet alone is not sufficient to satisfy this request unless it was a lump sum bid. . . . My public interest justification is as follows:  Bid tabulations obtained through this request are made publicly available at no cost. This ensures that taxpayers, businesses, journalists, and policymakers have free access to procurement data that impacts public funds. . . . Attestations: . . .  I, or another person, will use the requested government records for a commercial purpose. The Town responded on March 18, 2026. Unsatisfied with the Town’s response, Attorney Zurada petitioned this office and this appeal, SPR26/1040, was opened as a result. 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

Ann Quirk SPR26/1040 Page 2 April 3, 2026 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. The Town’s March 18th Response In its March 18, 2026 response, the Town asserted: As you are aware, you have submitted multiple records requests to my office in the period of January 16, 2026 to present day seeking information on various projects including final and compiled bid tabulations, including quantities, and unit pricing for each bidder that was submitted. Pursuant to 950 CMR 32.08(2)(b)(3), your public records request is made solely for commercial purposes, inconsistent with the legislative intent behind the public records law to promote the broad dissemination of information to the public, the Town hereby denies your public records request. Current Appeal In his appeal petition, Attorney Zurada contends: The Town’s response is conclusory and does not establish that this request is made solely for commercial purposes. The records sought concern a public procurement process and the expenditure of public funds. These materials directly bear on transparency, competition, pricing, and accountability in government contracting. Importantly, the requested records are made publicly available free of charge after receipt via [a specified hyperlink]. They are not obtained for exclusive private

Ann Quirk SPR26/1040 Page 3 April 3, 2026 use, proprietary suppression, or resale behind a paywall. To the contrary, once obtained, the records are released for public access so that taxpayers, contractors, journalists, researchers, and other members of the public may review the underlying procurement documents without cost. That public dissemination is inconsistent with the Town’s assertion that the request is solely commercial in nature. While the requester may also use aggregated procurement data to analyze broader market conditions, that does not transform a request for routine public bid records into one made solely for commercial purposes. The requested records retain an obvious and substantial public value independent of any downstream business use. Bid tabulations and bidder pricing for public projects are classic transparency records. They allow the public to assess competitiveness, pricing patterns, public spending, and the integrity of contract awards. The Town also failed to provide a record-specific justification for withholding responsive documents in full. Its denial does not identify any exemption applicable to the records requested, does not explain why completed bid- tabulation materials may be categorically withheld, and does not address whether non-exempt portions can be produced with redactions if necessary. If any specific responsive record or portion thereof is claimed to be exempt, the Town should be required to justify that withholding with specificity and produce all reasonably segregable non-exempt material. The request was also narrow and specific. It identified a single project, a single bid date, and a discrete category of procurement records ordinarily maintained in the normal course of business. If the exact compiled line-item tabulation does not exist, then the underlying bid submissions reflecting the requested line-item pricing should be produced. Requests Solely for a Commercial Purpose The Supervisor of Records may deny an appeal for, among other reasons, if, in the opinion of the Supervisor: the public records request is made solely for a commercial purpose. 950 C.M.R. 32.08(2)(b)(3). Please be advised that the term “commercial purpose” as used in the Public Records Law shall mean: the sale or resale of any portion of the public record or the use of information from the public record to advance the requester’s strategic business interests in a manner that the requester can reasonably expect to make a profit, and shall not include gathering or reporting news or gathering information to promote citizen oversight or further the understanding of the operation or activities of government or for academic, scientific, journalistic or public research or education.

Ann Quirk SPR26/1040 Page 4 April 3, 2026 G. L. c. 66, § 10(d)(ix). Please note that an attorney of the Public Records Division viewed the hyperlink provided by Attorney Zurada in his appeal petition, and found that only a portion of line-item bid tabulations are made available to the public for free on his private company’s website. Where the request is being made on behalf of a private company in furtherance of the company’s commercial purpose, I decline to opine on this matter. See 950 C.M.R. 32.08(2)(b); 950 C.M.R. 32.02. Conclusion Accordingly, I will now consider this administrative appeal closed. If Attorney Zurada is not satisfied with the resolution of this administrative appeal, please be advised that this office shares jurisdiction with the Superior Court of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. See G. L. c. 66, § 10A(c) (pursuing administrative appeal does not limit availability of applicable judicial remedies). Sincerely, Manza Arthur Supervisor of Records cc: Mark Zurada, Esq.