[Res. 392, 10/3/2002; as amended by Res. 454, 12/15/2008]
2.
General. All documents deemed public records by the Act[1] shall be available to United States citizens for on-site
inspection or retrieval of duplicates at the Municipal Building during
established business hours, 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through
Friday, with the exception of weekends and holidays.
[1]
Editor's Note: Refers to Act 3 of 2008, the Right-to-Know
Law.
3.
Requests. Requests for copies of records must be in writing in accordance
with Section 703 of the Act. Manheim Township will provide to the
public a records request form adopted as part of this section, attached
hereto and incorporated by reference herein as "Exhibit A."[2] The Township will also accept the standardized request
form provided by the Pennsylvania Office of Open Records and marked
specifically for the Manheim Township Open Records Officer. Written
requests can be made in person, by mail, by facsimile, or by electronic
means and shall state the date of the request, the name and full address
of the requestor and a clear description of the records sought. The
written request shall also indicate whether the requestor desires
copies, certified copies, or simply to inspect the records on site.
The public record will be accessible for inspection in the existing
medium. If copies are requested, records will be provided in the requested
medium, if that medium exists. Otherwise, copies of the public record
will be provided in the medium in which it exists. Manheim Township
will not compile, maintain, format or organize a public record in
a manner in which it does not already do so.
[2]
Editor's Note: Exhibit A is on file in the Township offices.
4.
Fees. Fees for paper copies shall be $0.25 per page per side. Fees
for specialized documents, including but not limited to blueprints,
color copies, and nonstandard-sized documents shall be the actual
cost of production. If another medium is requested, it will be provided
by Manheim Township at actual cost. A new disk will be necessary each
time records are provided on floppy disks or CD's. If mail delivery
is requested, the actual cost of postage will be charged. Faxing requests
are available at actual cost. If "true and correct certification"
is requested, an additional charge of $1 will be added per record.
Manheim Township will require prepayment if the fees are expected
to exceed $100. All fees described herein may be modified from time
to time by the Office of Open Records or the Manheim Township Fee
Schedule.
5.
Response.
A.
The Township shall make a good-faith effort to provide the requested
public record(s) as promptly as possible. The Open Records Officer
shall cooperate with those requesting records to review and/or duplicate
original Township documents while utilizing reasonable measures to
protect Township documents from the possibility of theft, damage,
and/or modification. The Open Records Officer shall review all written
requests for access to public records. As soon as possible, but no
later than five business days after receiving a written request to
access public records, the Open Records Officer shall respond to such
requests in writing consistent with the Act.
B.
Manheim Township must respond to the request within five business
days from receipt of the request in accordance with the following
guidelines:
(1)
Providing notice that copies of the records are available upon payment
of fees.
(2)
Denials.
(a)
Issuing a denial, which must include:
(i)
A description of the record requested;
(ii)
The specific reason for the denial, including
a citation of supporting legal authority;
(iii)
The name, title, address, telephone number, and
signature of the public official or employee who issued the denial;
(iv)
The date of the response; and
(v)
The procedure to appeal the denial.
(b)
If there is no response from Manheim Township within five business
days from the receipt of the request, the request is deemed as a denial.
(3)
Responding in writing to explain that an exception to the five-day
response time applies. If Manheim Township claims an exception to
the time requirements, it must issue a response within five business
days explaining that the request is being reviewed, the reason for
the review, a reasonable date that a response is expected to be provided
and an estimate of the fees due when the record(s) become available.
This "response" is only permitted where one of the following exceptions
applies:
(a)
The request requires redaction (see below);
(b)
The request requires Manheim Township to retrieve documents
that are stored in a remote location;
(c)
Manheim Township cannot respond due to bona fide and specified
staffing limitations;
(d)
A legal review is necessary to determine whether the record
is a public record;
(e)
The requester has not complied with Manheim Township's
policies regarding access to records; or
(f)
The requester refuses to pay applicable fees.
(g)
The extent or nature of the request precludes a response within
the required time period.
C.
Even if one of the above exceptions applies, the anticipated final
response date must be within 30 days from the initial five-business-day
response deadline. If the response is expected to or actually does
take longer than 30 days, Manheim Township's response is treated
as a deemed denial, unless the requester has agreed, in writing, to
an extension of time. If an extension of time has been authorized,
in writing, by the requester, a deemed denial shall occur on the day
following the agreed-upon extension date specified in the written
agreement.
6.
Redaction. If a document contains public and nonpublic information,
Manheim Township must redact (strike out) the nonpublic information
and produce the remainder of the document. The matter that is redacted
is treated as a "denial," subject to denial issuance set forth above.
7.
Appealing a Manheim Township Decision.
A.
If a written request is denied or deemed denied, the requester may
file an appeal, in writing, to Terry Mutchler, Executive Director,
Office of Open Records, Commonwealth Keystone Building, 400 North
Street, Plaza Level, Harrisburg, PA 17120-0225.
B.
The appeal must be submitted within 15 business days of the mailing
date of Manheim Township's response or within 15 business days
of the deemed denial date. The appeal shall state the grounds upon
which the requester asserts the record is a public record and shall
address any grounds stated by the Township for delaying or denying
the request.
[1]
Editor's Note: Former §§ 702-704 were
superseded by Res. 454, 12/15/2008. See § 701.
[Res. 392, 10/3/2002]
Except as provided in the Act, Manheim Township, public officials
of Manheim Township or public employees of Manheim Township shall
not be liable for civil or criminal damages or penalties resulting
from compliance or noncompliance with the Act.
[Res. 392, 10/3/2002]
1.
Request for individuals and/or groups to be placed on the agenda
need to be submitted before 4:30 p.m. on the Monday before the regular
monthly Manheim Township Board of Supervisors' meeting. The request
needs to be made by the individual and/or group member who wants to
be placed on the agenda.
2.
Person wishing to address the Board in the public comment period
must come to the microphone and state their name and address prior
to speaking. Each person will be given no more than three minutes
to present their concern(s). It will be the discretion of the Chairman
to extend this time allotment.
