[Ord. 2141,[1] 4/14/2009, § 1]
The purpose of this policy is to assure compliance with Act
3 of 2008, the Pennsylvania Right-to-Know Law, as amended, 65 P.S.
§ 67.101 et seq., to provide access to public records of
the Borough; to preserve the integrity of the Borough's records; and
to minimize the financial impact to the residents of the Borough regarding
the resources utilized in the receipt and processing of public record
requests and the retrieval and copying of public records.
[1]
Editor's Note: This ordinance also repealed former Part 10,
Open Records Policy, adopted 4-15-2008 by Ord. No. 2118.
[Ord. 2141, 4/14/2009, § 1]
It is the policy of the Borough to require the presence of a
designated employee when public records are examined and inspected
and to charge reasonable fees for duplication of public records of
the Borough. The Borough has designated the Borough Manager as the
Open Records Officer, responsible for assuring compliance with the
Pennsylvania Right-to-Know Law, in accordance with the following guidelines
(in addition to the further guidelines provided for in this policy):
A.
The Borough Manager may designate certain employee(s) to process
public record requests.
B.
The Borough Manager is responsible for minimizing, where possible,
the financial impact to the Borough regarding the resources utilized
in the receipt and processing of public record requests and the retrieval
and copying of public records.
C.
The Open Records Officer shall receive requests submitted to the
Borough under this policy, review and respond to written requests
in accordance with law, Borough policy and administrative regulations,
direct requests to other appropriate persons within the Borough or
legal counsel, track the Borough's progress in responding to the requests,
issue interim and final responses under this policy and maintain a
log of all record requests and their disposition.
[Ord. 2141, 4/14/2009, § 1]
1.
All requests for public records of the Borough under this policy
shall be specific in identifying and describing each public record
requested. In no case shall the Borough be required to create a public
record which does not exist or to compile, maintain, format or organize
a public record in a manner in which the Borough does not currently
compile, maintain, format or organize the public record. All requests
for public records shall be submitted in writing on the Borough's
or the Office of Open Record's form and include the date of the request;
requestor's name, address, and telephone number; and signature of
requestor.
2.
The Open Records Officer or designated employee shall make a good-faith
effort to determine whether each record requested is a public record.
3.
The Borough shall facilitate a reasonable response to a request for
the Borough's public records. In no case is the Borough expected to
provide extraordinary staff to respond to the request, but will respond
in a manner consistent with the Borough's administrative responsibilities
and consistent with the requirements of the Pennsylvania Right-to-Know
Law.
4.
The Open Records Officer or designated employee shall respond to
the requester within five business days from the date of receipt of
the written request. If the Borough does not respond within five business
days of receipt thereof, the request is deemed denied.
5.
The response provided by the Borough shall consist of one of the following: (1) approval for access to the public record; (2) a written statement that the request for access requires further review (See Subsection 7 below for additional detail.); or (3) denial of access to the record requested.
6.
If access to the public record requested is approved, the public
record shall be available for access during the regular business hours
of the Borough. The designated employee shall cooperate fully with
the requester, while also taking reasonable measures to protect the
Borough public records from theft or modification. The presence of
a designated employee is required when public records are examined
and inspected.
7.
If the request is being reviewed, the notice of such review shall
be provided by the Borough in writing within five days of receipt
of the request and shall include the reason for the review, an estimate
of applicable fees owed when the record becomes available, and the
expected response date, which shall be within 30 days of the notice
of review. If the Borough does not respond within at least 30 days,
the request is deemed denied. Review of the request is limited to
situations where:
A.
The record requested contains information which is subject to access,
as well as information which is not subject to access that must be
redacted prior to a grant of access;
B.
The record requires retrieval from a remote location;
C.
A timely response cannot be accomplished due to staffing limitations;
D.
A legal review is necessary to determine whether the record requested
is a public record;
E.
The requester has failed to comply with the Borough's policy and
procedure requirements;
F.
The requester refuses to pay the applicable fees; or
G.
The extent or nature of the request precludes a response within the
required time period.
8.
If the response is expected to be provided in excess of 30 days (following
the five business days allowed for), the request for access shall
be deemed denied unless the requester has agreed in writing to an
extension to the date specified in the notice. If the requester agrees
to the extension, the request shall be deemed denied on the day following
the date specified in the notice if the agency has not provided a
response by that extended date.
[Ord. 2141, 4/14/2009, § 1]
1.
The Borough shall provide requesters with a form to complete in order
to submit a request for access and should also notify the requestor
in writing as to determinations made upon requests for access. The
following forms have been created and may be utilized (with updates
to the forms as needed) by the Borough to accept requests and to respond
to requests:
2.
Fees for duplication of public records shall be consistent with the
fees as established by the commonwealth's Office of Open Records.
If permitted by law, additional reasonable fees may be charged if
incurred by the Borough in fulfilling a request. The Borough may at
its discretion waive fees.
3.
In the event the estimated cost of fulfilling a request submitted
under this policy is expected to exceed $100, the designated employee(s)
may obtain the expected cost in advance of fulfilling the request.
[Ord. 2141, 4/14/2009, § 1]
1.
If the request is denied or deemed denied, the requester may file
an appeal with the commonwealth's Office of Open Records within 15
business days of the mailing date of the Borough's notice of denial,
or within 15 days of a deemed denial. The appeal shall state the grounds
upon which the requester asserts that the record is a public record
and shall address any grounds stated by the agency for delaying or
denying the request.
2.
Within 30 days of the mailing date of the final determination of
the appeals officer, the requester or Borough may file a petition
for review or other document as required by rule of court with the
Court of Common Pleas of Chester County. A petition for review under
this section shall stay the release of documents until a decision
is issued.
