Lead level testing
| Submitted | Aug. 30, 2016 |
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Communications
From: Beryl Lipton
To Whom It May Concern:
Pursuant to the Massachusetts Public Records Law, M.G.L. c.66, §10, I hereby request the following records:
Any and all reports and associated materials from January 1, 2015 though the date this request is processed regarding the levels of lead found in water used by schools under the jurisdiction of this agency
I also request that, if appropriate, fees be waived as we believe this request is in the public interest, as suggested but not stipulated by the recommendations of the Massachusetts Supervisor of Public Records. The requested documents will be made available to the general public free of charge as part of the public information service at MuckRock.com, processed by a representative of the news media/press and is made in the process of news gathering and not for commercial usage.
I expect the request to be filled in an accessible format, including for screen readers, which provide text-to-speech for persons unable to read print. Files that are not accessible to screen readers include, for example, .pdf image files as well as physical documents.
In the event that there are fees, I would be grateful if you would inform me of the total charges in advance of fulfilling my request. I would prefer the request filled electronically, by e-mail attachment if available or CD-ROM if not.
Thank you in advance for your anticipated cooperation in this matter. I look forward to receiving your response to this request within 10 calendar days, as the statute requires.
Sincerely,
Beryl Lipton
From: Cambridge Public Schools
A letter stating the requester must agree to or prepay assessed or estimated fees in order for the agency to continue processing the request.
From: Maureen MacFarlane
Dear Ms. Lipton:
Your email of August 30, 2016 sent to the attention of the central administrative offices of the Cambridge Public Schools, requesting copies of any and all reports and associated materials from January 1, 2015 through the date of request regarding
the levels of lead found in water used by the Cambridge Public Schools has been directed to the attention of this office for response.
With respect to your request for waiver of fees pursuant to 950 C.M.R. 32.06(5), please be advised that it is the practice of the school district not to waive applicable copying, search time and segregation time fees associated with public records
requests (unless the number of pages provided and the search and segregation time are minimal). Such charges are expressly permitted by the public records statute, M.G.L.c. 66, §10, and its regulations, and function to reimburse the public entity
for actual costs incurred in responding to a public records request.
Although you correctly note in your letter that the regulations provide that the custodian of the public records may waive such charges, the school district does not believe a practice of waiving such charges would be appropriate. The school
district receives a number of public records requests from private citizens and organization each year. Such requests often can require school district staff to devote substantial amounts of time locating, segregating and preparing public records
for production. The school district also incurs substantial photocopying and/or other reproduction costs in connection with its response to public records requests. Nor would it be fair for the school district to waive costs for some individuals
or organizations and not for others. Thus, while you are correct that the regulations encourage waiver where disclosure would benefit the public interest, the school district does not believe it would be appropriate or desirable to make a
determination as to which of the requests received are in the public interest and which are not. For the reasons above and in the interest of fairness to all users of public records, the school district declines to waive the costs associated with
your public records request. Note, however, that in declining to waive the fees, the school district is not making a determination regarding whether or not your specific request for public records is in the public interest.
In light of the foregoing, the Cambridge Public Schools hereby provides a good faith estimate, pursuant to 950 C.M.R. 32.06(2), of the cost of searching for and segregating responsive documents from Cambridge Public Schools files and records in
response to your request of August 30, 2016. The school district estimates the cost to be $56.77 (fifty-six dollars and seventy-seven cents). The cost is comprised of approximately one and one-half (1 1/2) hours for search and segregation costs
at the rate of $37.19 (thirty-seven dollars and nineteen cents) per hour. Please be advised that this is only an estimate and the actual costs associated with your public records request can only be determined after the search and document
preparation is actually completed.
Please provide a check payable to the City of Cambridge, in the amount of $56.77 (fifty-six dollars and seventy-seven cents). This check should be mailed to the attention of the Cambridge Public Schools, Office of Legal Counsel, 159 Thorndike,
Cambridge, Massachusetts 02141. Upon receipt of this check, the process of review, segregation and redaction of responsive documentation will be undertaken. In the event that the estimate is greater than the actual cost of the review and
segregation, the overage will be refunded. In the event that the cost of the review is underestimated, the review will be stopped at the point when the estimate has been reached, a further estimate will be performed, and upon payment of the
additional estimate, the review will continue.
Maureen A. MacFarlane
Legal Counsel
Cambridge Public Schools
159 Thorndike Street
Cambridge, MA 02141
Phone: 617-349-6425
Facsimile: 617-349-6499
Email: MMacFarlane@cpsd.us
The email and any attachments are intended only for the designated recipient(s) and may contain confidential or proprietary information and/or be subject to the attorney-client privilege or other confidentiality protections. The information is
intended for the use of the designated recipient(s). If you are not a designated recipient(s), you may not review, copy or distribute this message or any of its attachments. If you have received this email in error, please notify the sender by
reply email and immediately delete this message and any attachments.
Pursuant to IRS Circular 230, please be advised that, to the extent this communication contains any tax advice, it is not intended to be, was not written to be, and cannot be used by any taxpayer for the purpose of avoiding penalties under U.S.
federal tax law.
From: MuckRock
Cambridge Public Schools, Office of Legal Counsel
159 Thorndike
Cambridge, Massachusetts 02141
To Whom It May Concern:
Please find enclosed a check for $56.77 to satisfy the fee associated with the attached public records request.
Thank you.
From: MuckRock
Cambridge Public Schools, Office of Legal Counsel
159 Thorndike
Cambridge, Massachusetts 02141
To Whom It May Concern:
Please find enclosed a check for $56.77 to satisfy the fee associated with the attached public records request.
Thank you.
From: Cambridge Public Schools
A cover letter granting the request and outlining any exempted materials, if any.
From: Cambridge Public Schools
A copy of documents responsive to the request.
There are too many files to display on this communication. See all files
From: MuckRock.com
To Whom It May Concern:
I wanted to follow up on the following Freedom of Information request, copied below, and originally submitted on Aug. 30, 2016. Please let me know when I can expect to receive a response, or if further clarification is needed.
Thanks for your help, and let me know if further clarification is needed.
From: Maureen MacFarlane
I will be out of the office from Friday, December 23, 2016 through Monday, January 1, 2017. I will not be checking messages during this time period but will respond after my return to the office on Tuesday, January 2, 2017.
If this is an emergency, please call 617-349-6425 or email my assistant, Eileen McHugh, at emchugh@cpsd.us and you will be directed to someone who can assist you in my absence.
Please note that the school district offices are closed on Monday, December 26, 2016, Friday, December 30, 2016 and Monday, January 1, 2017.
From: Maureen MacFarlane
The records were mailed out to you yesterday.
requests@muckrock.com writes:
From: Beryl Lipton
Hello Ms. MacFarlane,
Thanks so much for letting me know. I'll look forward to receiving them.
Best wishes,
Beryl
From: Maureen MacFarlane
I will be out of the office from Friday, December 23, 2016 through Monday, January 1, 2017. I will not be checking messages during this time period but will respond after my return to the office on Tuesday, January 2, 2017.
If this is an emergency, please call 617-349-6425 or email my assistant, Eileen McHugh, at emchugh@cpsd.us and you will be directed to someone who can assist you in my absence.
Please note that the school district offices are closed on Monday, December 26, 2016, Friday, December 30, 2016 and Monday, January 1, 2017.
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