Ksen, Kevin v. Worcester, City of (SPR 20261511)

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts William Francis Galvin, Secretary of the Commonwealth Public Records Division Manza Arthur Supervisor of Records April 28, 2026 SPR26/1511 Michael Manning Records Access Officer City of Worcester 455 Main Street Worcester, MA 01609 Dear Mr. Manning: On April 22, 2026, this office received your petition on behalf of the City of Worcester (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, it is my understanding that the City furnished a copy of the petition to the requestor, Kevin Ksen, of the North Atlantic States Regional Council of Carpenters. G. L. c. 66, § 10(c); G. L.c. 66, § 10(d)(iv)(2). On March 25, 2026, Mr. Ksen requested the following: [1] OSHA certification cards from [identified individuals] that worked or are working on [an identified corporation] project at [identified address][;] [2] [A] copy of whatever compliance tracker/spreadsheet the City of Worcester uses to oversee these list of workers from [identified businesses] on the [identified address] project and whether a copy of their OSHA card has been submitted[;] [3] …all communications, emails and letters to [identified businesses] informing them that OSHA cards were not submitted for these workers. Petition 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; 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

Michael Manning SPR26/1511 Page 2 April 28, 2026 (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) must provide an initial response to a requestor within ten business days after receipt of a request for public records. 950 C.M.R. 36.06(4)(b). Request for Additional Time to Produce Records In its petition, the City requests “an extension of time to fulfill the above-mentioned request.” In support of its request, the City provides the following information: It is my understanding that there are extensive amounts of documentation relating to the project referenced in Mr. Ksen’s request. The Executive Office of Economic Development’s staff must mount a comprehensive search to locate the records sought amongst other non-responsive material. The Executive Office of Economic Development serves many important functions within the City including assisting in all aspects of the development process, including identifying a site, securing financing, and obtaining permits. This request requires the Executive Office of Economic Development to designate available staff resources to complete the onerous search tasks necessary to complete this request. Once the responsive records have been complied, they will be provided to the City’s Law Department for review and redaction to protect exempt information. Specifically, the City expects to review the responsive records and make redactions pursuant to Exceptions (a) and (c). Under MGL c.93H as it operates through Exemption (a), the City will redact any social security numbers present in the responsive records. The City will also review for and redact any personal email addresses present in the records responsive to item three under the second clause of Exemption (c). See SPR25/3777 Determination of the Supervisor of Records (January 8, 2025) (The public interest in disclosure of personal email addresses and personal phone

Michael Manning SPR26/1511 Page 3 April 28, 2026 numbers does not outweigh the privacy interests associated with the redacted information.) Finally, in the time span since this request was placed the City has received 1,336 additional public records requests. It is likely that a substantial portion of these additional requests may also require review and redaction by the City’s Law Department. In light of the need to collect and examine the records, and the capacity of the City to produce the records without an extension, the City has established good cause to permit an extension of time. G. L. c. 66, § 10(c)(i)-(iii). The City is granted an extension of 25 business days. Conclusion Accordingly, I find that the City has established good cause for a time extension of 25 business days as described above. Please note, Mr. Ksen 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: Kevin Ksen