Public Records

Public Record Requests

As a Municipality most of the records in our possession are public record. Please be advised that this includes correspondence regarding Town matters on personal email, text or social media platforms. For this reason, the Town highly recommends having a separate email address for Town business. 

Anyone can request copies of any public record, for any reason and unless exemptions apply as detailed in the quick guide below, the Town must supply the records in a timely fashion. 

Typically public records requests are received through the RAO's (Record Access Officers) of the Town. The chief RAO is the Town Administrator. The Town Clerk and the Administrative Assistant to the Police Department are also RAOs of the Town. Once a public record request is made the Town typically has 10 business days to respond and provide the information. Extensions may be granted for particularly large or time consuming requests. Board and Committees should keep their files in an organized fashion so that if a public record request is made the data can be provided to the RAO in a timely fashion. 

Retention Schedule

Each Board/Committee is required by State Law to retain documents as listed on the Municipal Records Retention Schedule. You can go to the quick guide and search for your individual board or committee to see what you are legally required to keep.  Also there are some records listed under records in common. Please note that unless it specifically states "Permission from Supervisor not required for destruction", you MUST obtain permission before destroying any Town documents. Typically, you will need to file an RMU-2 to request permission. 

Municipal Records Retention Schedule Quick Guide (Updated 9/1/2022) 

A Guide to the Massachusetts Public Records Law (Updated February 2022)

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