Framingham Mayor Hires New Public Records Officer

FRAMINGHAM, MA — Mayor Charlie Sisitsky has hired a local attorney to oversee the city's public records operation, a key post that determines how documents and other items get shared with people who request it.

Paul Iversen, an attorney with New York-based Weltz Law, will take over the Records Access Officer title from Todd Palmer, who served under former mayor Yvonne Spicer.

Iversen, 41, is a Framingham resident and a Suffolk University and UMass graduate.

“P.J. is no stranger to deadlines, statutes, and juggling many requests," Sisitsky said in a news release.“During multiple conversations with him, his commitment to transparency and responsiveness was clear. I believe he has the instincts and expertise to make the records request process clear, expedient, and user-friendly."

Palmer sometimes clashed with local public records-seekers and the City Council. He was asked to speak to the Council several times about the city's public records operation, but declined to appear citing a health condition.

In general, any member of the public can requests records from local governments, per the state's open records law. Governments are required to appoint people to oversee records requests. Those overseers also decide whether to release records, or withhold them based on exemptions in the state law.

Iversen will start in the job on Feb. 28 and will be a member of Sisitsky's cabinet.