Boston Mayor Marty Walsh’s administration is refusing to comply with an order from the state’s supervisor of public records to release any documents the city has received from or turned over to the US Attorney’s office since Jan. 6, 2014.

In a seven-page letter to Boston Globe reporter Andrew Ryan, who originally requested the documents under the state Public Records Law on April 1, the Walsh administration acknowledged any recipient of a federal subpoena is not required to keep the document’s existence or contents secret. But the letter goes on to note that subpoenas are typically accompanied by a cover letter requesting that the recipient not disclose the existence of the subpoena because disclosure “could impede the investigation and thereby interfere with the enforcement of federal criminal law.”

The letter, signed by Adam Cederbaum, chief of government services, and Caroline Driscoll, senior assistant corporation counsel, said the city would not confirm or deny the receipt of any subpoenas or other documents from the US Attorney’s office because to do so would undermine the secrecy of a grand jury proceeding. The letter also said releasing any documents, if they contained the names of city workers, “could irreparably harm the reputation of those individuals.”

The Walsh administration letter cites an analogous case in New Jersey, where a court upheld a county office’s refusal to turn over to the Gannett Co. documents provided in response to a federal subpoena.

The legal battle is far from over. The Globe quotes editor Brian McGrory as saying the newspaper will continue to pursue the records through the courts.

The Globe reported on April 24 that Walsh had been drawn into a federal probe of union strong-arm tactics through wiretaps on which he was recorded in 2012. The Globe cited as its source on the wiretap “people familiar with the tapes.”

It is illegal for federal prosecutors to leak the contents of wiretaps, but leakers are rarely pursued. Interestingly, the city’s letter to the Globe suggests the best source of information on the federal probe is not the city, but the US Attorney’s Office.

“The city believes that directing you to the US Attorney’s Office is a fair way to resolve your concerns about access to any responsive records and to address the city’s concerns about interfering with any possible federal investigation,” the letter said.

BRUCE MOHL

BEACON HILL 

Reps. Colleen Garry of Dracut and James Lyons of Andover were the only lawmakers on the Judiciary Committee to oppose transgender rights legislation. Garry is a Democrat and Lyons a Republican. (State House News)

Gov. Charlie Baker moved to distance himself from a Republican fund-raising effort that promised access to the governor for big donations from to PACs to the state Republican Party. (Boston Globe)

Baker, in defending Rattlesnake Island, said it’s important to stand up for endangered species. (Masslive)

MUNICIPAL MATTERS

“So Boston is a city where half-baked ideas in search of open public wallets go to die.

Good for Boston,” writes Joan Vennochi about the flame-out of the IndyCar race. (Boston Globe) A Herald editorial calls the race “quite possibly the most ill-advised idea since, well, since the Boston 2024 Olympic bid was killed in its cradle.”

WASHINGTON/NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL 

Puerto Rico’s government failed to make $370 million in bond payments Monday as Congress continues to ignore the island’s $70 billion public debt crisis. (U.S. News & World Report) Local Puerto Ricans expect more people to flee the island and come north looking for jobs and housing as the economy worsens. (Standard-Times)

The latest target of investment for well-heeled foreigners looking to land green cards through the federal government’s questionable “pay to stay” EB-5 visa program: drug treatment facilities. (Boston Globe) CommonWealth probed the sketchy immigration program in a feature story last spring.

Teacher sick-outs close nearly every school in Detroit. (Governing)

With a new law, South Dakota presses the legal question of whether states can collect sales taxes from Internet retailers. (Governing)

As more states loosen gun regulations, law enforcement officials are increasingly siding with gun control activists because of threats to police from the increase in access. (New York Times)

ELECTIONS

Joseph Boncore of Winthrop, who won a seven-way Democratic primary special election for state Senate and is unopposed in this month’s general election, is being sued by a Boston police officer for colliding with his cruiser in East Boston in 2011 after a night in which Boncore had been drinking. Boncore was acquitted of OUI charges. (Boston Globe)

Voters in Dracut reject two overrides worth more than $1 million. (The Sun)

BUSINESS/ECONOMY

Boston-area writer Adam Feuerstein may be the most feared journalist in biotech. (STAT)

Emilie-Noelle Provost says people looking for an affordable home should investigate the state’s Gateway Cities. (WBUR)

A Facebook shareholder has filed a class action suit looking to stop a new nonvoting stock class issuance that would keep CEO Mark Zuckerberg entrenched at the top. (Reuters)

EDUCATION

A pair of scholars from the conservative American Enterprise Institute propose a novel idea for reining in college costs, which they liken to the subprime mortgage crisis — mandate schools to have “skin in the game” by guaranteeing their degrees and providing some of the funding to reduce loan burdens. (National Review)

Three students are punished for creating an image of a swastika on a football field in Georgetown. (Masslive)

The state Board of Higher Education has voted for David Podell to become the sixth president of MassBay Community College. (MetroWest Daily News)

The University of Maine is becoming popular with Massachusetts students under a new program that allows students from several Northeast states to pay the same tuition and fees they would be charged at their own state’s flagship state university. (Boston Globe)

HEALTH/HEALTH CARE

Opioid overdose deaths surge to more than 1,300 in 2015. (Masslive)

Lawrence General Hospital says it will face a cut of more than $3 million in Medicare funds due to a math error on Medicare documents by tiny Nantucket Cottage Hospital, which is owned by Partners HealthCare. (Eagle-Tribune)

State Rep. Jim Cantwell defends his bill to expand health care coverage for Lyme disease treatment. (Greater Boston)

Internet-based marijuana delivery services seem to be flourishing despite a state declaration that they are operating illegally. (Boston Globe)

TRANSPORTATION 

The MBTA estimates the cost of an all-night bus service proposed by three transportation advocates would be $5.8 million, well above initial estimates. (CommonWealth)

Are Green Line trains getting less crowded, or are the T’s numbers just off? (CommonWealth) A surge in ridership on New York City’s subway system has spawned overcrowded platforms, increased delays, and a rise in the number of assaults by disgruntled passengers. (New York Times)

Question are being raised about the safety of duck boats, which have huge blind spots, following the death of a woman riding a motor scooter after she collided with one of the huge amphibious tour vehicles on Saturday in downtown Boston. (Boston Globe) The driver of the duck boat has accrued 10 speeding tickets and had his license suspended four times since 1994. (Boston Herald)

Security lines at airports are reaching epic proportions due to tight budgets, fewer screeners, and ramped-up procedures and officials say it will only get worse as the peak summer travel months approach. (New York Times)

Uber is moving to eliminate surge pricing. (NPR)

ENERGY/ENVIRONMENT 

The Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce says hydroelectricity from Canada won’t lower electric rates, but it may do the best job of reining in prices while achieving the state’s emissions goals. (State House News)

CRIMINAL JUSTICE/COURTS 

A New Jersey football player on a recruiting visit to Merrimack College in North Andover is accused of raping a student during the visit. (Eagle-Tribune)

A Globe editorial says the Boston Police Department should stop the foot-dragging when it comes to using police-worn body cameras.

MEDIA 

The acquisition of struggling newspapers by rich individuals from cost-cutting large corporations can cut both ways, say media watchers. They put the Globe’s ownership by John Henry in the plus column. (Associated Press)

Fredric Rutberg, the new president of the Berkshire Eagle, lays out the commitment of the newspaper’s new owners.