[Res. 284, 4/13/2009]
1.
Jefferson Township (the "Township"), Butler County, Pennsylvania,
is a body corporate and politic, being a second class township, governed
by the Second Class Township Code, 53 P.S. § 65101 et seq.
As such, the Township is local agency for purposes of the Pennsylvania
Right to Know Law, Act 3 of 2008 (the "Right to Know Law").
2.
All local agencies shall provide public records in accordance with
the Right-to-Know Law. Therefore, any record in the possession of
the Township shall be presumed to be a public record, except in the
following circumstances:
A.
The record is exempt under Section 708 of the Right-to-Know Law;
B.
The record is protected by the attorney-work product doctrine, the
attorney-client privilege, or other privilege recognized by the laws
of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania (i.e., statute or case law); or
C.
The record is exempt from disclosure under any other federal or state
law or regulation, or judicial order or decree.
3.
Records are broadly defined under the Right-to-Know Law. The term
includes a document, paper, letter, map, book, tape, photograph, film
or sound recording, information stored or maintained electronically,
and a data-processed or image-processed document. Requests for public
records can be made by any person who is a legal resident of the United
States, including resident aliens. Requests to the Township can also
be made by other local agencies, Commonwealth agencies (e.g., the
Department of the Auditor General or the Treasury Department), judicial
agencies (i.e., the courts), or legislative agencies (e.g., the Senate
and House of Representatives).
[Res. 284, 4/13/2009]
1.
Requesters may make oral requests for access to records. However,
if the requester wishes to pursue the relief and remedies provided
for in the Right-to-Know Law, the request for access to records must
be a written request. A written request for access to records may
be submitted in person, by mail, by email, or by facsimile.
2.
The Township has designated the Township Secretary/Treasurer, Lois
Fennell, to act as the Open Records Officer ("Officer"). The Officer's
contact information is set forth below:
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Jefferson Township
157 Great Belt Road
Butler, PA 16002-9026
phone: (724) 352-2324
fax: (724) 352-8850
jefftwpbutlerpa@zoominternet.net
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3.
Questions regarding this policy may be directed to the Officer at
the telephone or email address listed above.
4.
All written requests must be addressed to the Officer. In the event
that a written request for records is addressed to a Township employee
other than the Officer, the Township employee is hereby directed to
promptly forward such requests to the Officer. Requests for records
must be in writing on the required form and directed to the Open Records
Officer.
5.
Written requests should identify or describe the record sought with
sufficient specificity to enable the Township to ascertain which records
are being requested. Unless otherwise required by law, a written request
need not include any explanation of the requester's reason for
requesting the records or the intended use of such records. A form
which may be used to file a request is attached hereto and posted
on the Township's internet website at http://jeffersonbutler.com/images/Righttoknowrequestform.pdf.
The Township shall assign a tracking number to each filed form so
as to track the Township's progress in responding to requests
under the Right-to-Know Law. Requests must identify the medium in
which the record is requested. Requests must include a name and address
to which the Township may address its response.
6.
Prior to granting a request for access in accordance with the Right-to-Know
Law, the Township may require a requester to prepay an estimate of
the fees authorized by law if the fees required to fulfill the request
are expected to exceed $100. The fees must be reasonable and based
on prevailing fees for comparable duplication services provided by
local business entities. Except as otherwise provided by statute,
no other fees may be imposed unless the agency necessarily incurs
costs for complying with the request, and such fees must be reasonable.
A list of fees shall be posted and provided to each requester.
7.
In all circumstances, the requester must agree to pay applicable
fees authorized by the Right-to-Know Law, such as (but not limited
to) postage (not to exceed actual cost of mailing), duplication and
certification. All applicable fees shall be paid before a requester
receives access to the record(s) requested.
8.
A record being provided to a requester shall be provided in the medium
requested if it exists in that medium; otherwise, it shall be provided
in the medium in which it exists. In other words, the Township shall
not be required to create a record which does not currently exist
or to otherwise compile, maintain, format or organize a record in
a manner in which it does not currently compile, maintain, format
or organize such record. The Township may impose reasonable fees for
official certification of copies if the certification is at the behest
of the requester and for the purpose of legally verifying the public
record.
9.
Upon receipt of a written request for a public record, the Officer
shall do the following:
A.
Note the date of the receipt on the written request;
B.
Compute the day on which the five-business-day period (see discussion
of response below) will expire and make a notation of that date on
the written request; and
C.
Create a file for the retention of the original request, a copy of
the response, a record of written communications with the requester,
and a copy of other communications.
[Res. 284, 4/13/2009]
1.
Upon receipt of a written request for access to a record, the Township
shall make a good faith effort to determine if the record requested
is a public record and whether the Township has possession, custody
or control of the identified record.
2.
The Township shall respond to requests within five business days
of receipt of the request by the Open Records Officer.
3.
If the Township does not respond to a request within five business
days of receipt of a written request, the request shall be deemed
denied.
4.
The Open Records Officer shall determine as to each written request:
A.
Whether redaction of records is required.
B.
Whether access requires retrieval of records stored in a remote location.
C.
Whether timely response is not possible due to staffing limitations.
D.
Whether legal review is necessary to determine whether the record
is accessible.
E.
Whether the requestor has complied with the Township's policies
regarding access to records.
F.
Whether the requestor refuses to pay applicable fees.
G.
Whether the extent or nature of the request precludes a response
within the required time period.
5.
If one of the above factors applies, the Open Records Officer shall
send written notice to the requestor within five business days of
receipt of the request which notice includes:
6.
If the date a response is expected under § 1-703.4 above
is greater than 30 days after the five business days allowed for the
initial response, the request shall be deemed denied unless the requester
agrees in writing to an extension to the date specified in the notice.
7.
If the requester agrees to an extension as provided in § 1-703.5
above, the request shall be deemed denied on the day following the
date specified in the notice if no response if provided by that date.
8.
For purposes of this policy, the "mailing date" shall be the date
affixed to a: (1) response from the Officer to a request, which is
to be the date the response is deposited in the United States mail;
(2) final determination from the Officer, which is to be the date
the final determination is deposited in the United States mail.
[Res. 284, 4/13/2009]
A denial of a request, in whole, or in part, shall include:
A.
A description of the record requested.
B.
The specific reasons for the denial, including citation of supporting
legal authority.
C.
The typed or printed name, title, business address, business telephone
number and signature of the Open Records Officer on whose authority
the denial is issued.
D.
Date of the response.
E.
The procedure for appeal.
[Res. 284, 4/13/2009]
1.
If a request is denied or deemed denied, the requester may file an
appeal with the Office of Open Records within 15 business days of
the mailing date of the Township's response or within 15 business
days of a deemed denial.
2.
The appeal must state the grounds on which the requester asserts
that the record is a public record and shall address any grounds stated
by the Township for delaying or denying the request.
3.
The address for the Office of Open Records is:
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Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
Office of Open Records
Commonwealth Keystone Building
400 North Street, Plaza Level
Harrisburg, PA 17120-0225
(717) 346-9903
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The Office of Open Records has established an internet website
with information relating to the Right-to-Know Law, including information
on fees, advisory opinions and decisions, plus the name and address
of all Open Records Officers in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.
For information on the Office of Open Records, please go to openrecords.state.pa.us.
(Please note: among other matters, the Office of Open Records shall
establish fees for duplication by photocopying, printing from electronic
media or microfilm, copying onto electronic media, and other means
of duplication.)
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[Res. 284, 4/13/2009]
1.
If the Township produces a record that is not a public record in
response to a request, the Open Records Officer shall notify any third
party that provided the record to the Township, the person that is
the subject of the record, and the requestor.
2.
The Open Records Officer shall notify a third party of a record request
if the requested record contains a trade secret or confidential proprietary
information.
[Res. 284, 4/13/2009]
By adoption of Resolution No. 285, the Township publicly declared
its intention to follow the Municipal Records Act, 53 Pa. C.S.A. § 1381
et seq., with respect to the retention and disposition of public records.
Nothing in the Right-to-Know Law shall be construed to modify, rescind
or supersede the Township's lawfully adopted record retention
and disposition policy. Moreover, nothing in the Right-to-Know Law
shall be construed to require access to any computer of the Township,
or that of an individual or employee of the Township.
