[Res. 1-2009, 1/5/2009, § 1]
ACT
Act 3 of 2008, the Pennsylvania Right-to-Know Law.
OPEN RECORDS OFFICER
The official or employee of the Township, appointed from
time to time by official resolution or motion, to act as the Township's
Open Records Officer under this Policy and the Act.
PUBLIC RECORD
A record, including a financial record, of the Township that:
A.
Is not exempt under § 708 of the Act.
B.
Is not exempt from being disclosed under any other Federal or
State law or regulation or judicial order or decree.
C.
Is not protected by privilege.
RECORD
Information, regardless of physical form or characteristics,
that documents a transaction or activity of the Township that is created,
received or retained pursuant to law or in connection with a transaction,
business activity of the Township. 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.
REQUESTER
A person who is a resident of the United States and requests
a record pursuant to the Act.
RESPONSE
Access to a record or the Township's written notice to a
requester granting, denying or partially granting and partially denying
access to a record.
TOWNSHIP
Thornbury Township.
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Other capitalized terms used herein but not defined shall have
the meanings ascribed to them in the Act.
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[Res. 1-2009, 1/5/2009, § 2]
1. The Open Records Officer shall receive requests submitted to the
Township pursuant to the Act, direct requests to other appropriate
persons within the Township or to other appropriate persons in another
agency, track the Township's progress in responding to requests and
issue interim and final responses under the Act.
2. Upon receiving a request for a public record, the Open Records Officer
shall do the following:
A. Note the date of receipt on the written request.
B. Compute the day on which the five business day period for response
expires.
C. Maintain an electronic or paper copy of a written request, including
all documents submitted with the request until the request has been
fulfilled. If the request is denied, the written request shall be
maintained for 30 days or, if an appeal is filed, until a final determination
is issued or the appeal is deemed denied.
3. The following information shall be posted at the Township office
and on the Township website if it maintains one:
A. Contact information for the Open Records Officer.
B. Contact information for the Office of Open Records.
C. A form which may be used to file a request.
D. Regulations, policies and procedures of the Township relating to
the Act.
4. Maintain a copy of the Act at the Township's office.
[Res. 1-2009, 1/5/2009, § 3]
1. The Township shall provide public records under this Policy in accordance
with the Act.
2. The Township shall not deny a requester access to a public record
due to the intended use of the public record by the requester unless
otherwise provided by law or this Policy.
3. Public records shall be available for access during regular business
hours of the Township and in accordance with this Policy.
4. Nothing herein shall provide or permit access to a record(s) which
is not a public record or which is otherwise exempt under the Act.
5. A record in the possession of the Township shall be presumed to be
a public record. The presumption shall not apply if:
A. The record is exempt under § 708 of the Act.
B. The record is protected by privilege.
C. The record is exempt from disclosure under any other Federal or State
law or regulation or judicial order or decree.
6. Nothing in this Policy or the Act shall be construed to require or
permit access to any computer of the Township or any individual employee
or official of the Township.
[Res. 1-2009, 1/5/2009, § 4]
1. The Township shall not fulfill verbal requests for access to public
records or anonymous requests for access to public records. Requesters
who do not make their requests in writing will not be able to pursue
the relief and remedies provided for in the Act.
2. A written request for access to records may be submitted to the Open
Records Officer in person, by mail, by e-mail or by facsimile.
3. A written request shall identify or describe the records sought with
sufficient specificity to enable the Open Records Officer and the
Township to ascertain which records are being requested and shall
include the name and address to which the Township should address
its response. The request need not include any explanation of the
requester's request or intended use, unless otherwise required by
law.
4. At the time the Township receives 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 record, and to respond as
promptly as possible under the circumstances existing at the time
of the request. The time for response shall comply with this Policy.
[Res. 1-2009, 1/5/2009, § 5]
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 to respond as promptly as possible under the
circumstances existing at the time the request is received, but shall
not exceed five business days from the date the written request is
received by the Open Records Officer.
2. If the Township fails to send the response within five business days
of receipt of the written request for access, the written request
will be deemed denied by the Township.
3. If the Township grants the request for access, the Township shall
also, upon request, provide the requester with a certified copy of
the public record if the requester pays the applicable fees.
4. Notwithstanding the foregoing, if the Township determines:
A. The request for access requires redaction of a public record in accordance
with the Act.
B. The request for access requires the retrieval of a record stored
in a remote location.
C. A timely response to the request for access cannot be accomplished
due to a bona fide and specified staffing limitations.
D. A legal review is necessary to determine whether the record is a
public record subject to access.
E. The requester has not complied with the Township's policy regarding
access to public records.
F. The requester refuses to pay the applicable fees.
G. The extent or nature of the response precludes a response within
the required time period under this Policy.
5. If the Township determines that any of the conditions of subsection
.4 above, apply, the Township shall send written notice to the requester
within five business days of the Township's receipt of the request
notifying the requester that the request for access is being reviewed,
the reason for the review and a reasonable date that a response is
expected to be provided.
A. If the date that a response is expected to be provided is in excess
of 30 days (after the fifth business day following receipt of the
request), the request for access shall be deemed denied.
B. 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
Township has not provided a response by that date.
6. If the Township response states that copies of the requested records
are available for delivery at the Township office and the requester
fails to retrieve the records within 60 days of the Township's response,
the Township may dispose of any copies which have not been retrieved
and may retain any fees paid.
[Res. 1-2009, 1/5/2009, § 6]
1. When responding to a request for access, the Township shall not be
required to create a record which does not currently exist or to compile,
maintain, format or organize a record in a manner which the Township
does not currently compile, maintain, format or organize the record.
2. 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.
3. The Township may respond to a request by notifying the requester
that the record is available through publicly accessible electronic
means or that the Township will provide access to inspect the records
electronically. If the requester is unwilling or unable to access
the record electronically, the requester may, within 30 days following
receipt of the Township notification, submit a written request to
the Township to have the record converted to paper. The Township shall
provide access to the record in printed form within five days of the
receipt of the written request for conversion to paper.
4. To the extent possible and except as otherwise provided for herein
or in the Act, the contents of a record shall be made accessible to
a requester even when the record is physically unavailable.
[Res. 1-2009, 1/5/2009, § 7]
If the Township determines that a public record contains information
which is subject to access as well as information which is not, the
Township's response shall grant access to the information which is
subject to access and deny access to the information which is not
subject to access. If the information which is not subject to access
is an integral part of the public record and cannot be separated,
the Township shall redact from the public record the information which
is not subject to access and the response shall grant access to the
information which is subject to access. The Township shall not deny
access to the public record if the information which is not subject
to access is able to be redacted. Any information which is redacted
shall be considered to be a denial of access to that information by
the Township.
[Res. 1-2009, 1/5/2009, § 8]
1. A public record that is not in the possession of the Township but
is in the possession of a party with whom the Township has contracted
to perform a governmental function on behalf of the Township, and
which directly relates to the governmental function and is not exempt
hereunder or under the Act, shall be considered a public record of
the Township.
2. Nothing in the Act shall be construed to require access to any other
record of the party in possession of the public record.
3. A request for a public record in possession of a party other than
the Township shall be submitted to the Open Records Officer. Upon
a determination that the record is subject to access under the Act,
the Open Records Officer shall assess the duplication fee and upon
collection shall remit the fee to the party in possession of the record
if the party duplicated the record.
4. Nothing herein or in the Act shall be construed to modify, rescind
or supersede any record retention policy or disposition schedule of
the Township.
[Res. 1-2009, 1/5/2009, § 9]
1. The Township may exercise its discretion to make any otherwise exempt
record accessible for inspection and copying, if all of the following
apply:
A. Disclosure of the record is not prohibited under any of the following:
(1)
Federal or State law or regulation.
(2)
Judicial order or decree.
B. The record is not protected by privilege.
C. The Township determines that the public interest favoring access
outweighs any individual, Township or public interest that may favor
restriction of access.
[Res. 1-2009, 1/5/2009, § 10]
1. A request may be denied if the requester has made repeated requests
for the same record and the repeated requests have placed unreasonable
burden on the Township. A denial under this section shall not restrict
the ability to request a different record.
2. A request which has been denied by the Township shall, in the Township's
response to the requester, contain:
A. A description of the record requested.
B. The specific reason for the denial, including a 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 Township
the denial is issued.
D. The date of the Township's response.
E. The procedure to appeal the denial under the Act.
[Res. 1-2009, 1/5/2009, § 11]
1. If a written request for access is denied or deemed denied, the requester
may file exceptions with the Office of Open Records, as designated
under the Act, within 15 business days of the mailing date of the
Township's response or deemed denial. The exceptions shall state the
grounds upon 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.
2. The Office of Open Records shall assign an appeals officer to review
the denial. The appeals officer shall have and perform the duties
as set forth under the Act.
[Res. 1-2009, 1/5/2009, § 12]
1. Within 30 days of the mailing date of the final determination by
the appeals officer, relating to the decision of the Township issued
under this Policy or the date that a request for access is deemed
denied, a requester or the Township may file a petition for review
or other document as required by rule of court with the Court of Common
Pleas, Delaware County. The decision of the Court of Common Pleas
shall contain findings of fact and conclusions of law based upon evidence
as a whole. The decision shall clearly and concisely explain the rationale
for the decision.
2. A petition for judicial review shall stay the release of the documents
until a decision is issued.
3. The Township, the requester and the Office of Open Records shall
be served written notice of any actions commenced and shall be provided
an opportunity to respond in accordance with applicable court rules.
4. The record before the court on appeal shall consist of:
A. The written request for access to public records.
C. The appeal filed with the Open Records Office.
D. The hearing transcript before the appeals officer, if any.
E. The final written determination of the appeals officer.
5. If a court reverses the final determination of the appeals officer
or grants access to a record after a request for access was denied,
the court may award reasonable attorney fees and costs of litigation
or an appropriate portion thereof to a requester if the court finds
either of the following:
A. The Township willfully or with wanton disregard deprived the requester
of access to a public record subject to access or otherwise acted
in bad faith under the provisions of the Act.
B. The exemptions, exclusions or defenses asserted by the Township in
its final determination were not based on a reasonable interpretation
of law.
6. The court may award reasonable attorney fees and costs of litigation
or an appropriate portion thereof to the Township or the requester
if the court finds that the legal challenge was frivolous.
7. The court may impose other such sanctions in accordance with applicable
rules of court.
8. The court may impose a civil penalty of not more than $1,500 if the
Township denied access to a public record in bad faith.
9. If the Township or any public official fails to promptly comply with
a court order under the Act, they may be subject to a civil penalty
of not more than $500 per day until the public records are provided.
[Res. 1-2009, 1/5/2009, § 13]
1. Except as otherwise provided by law governing the release of records,
the Township, and its officials and employees shall not be liable
for civil penalties resulting from compliance or failure to comply
with this Policy or the Act.
2. The Township and its officials and employees shall not be liable
for civil or criminal damages or penalties under this Policy or the
Act for complying with any written public record retention and disposition
schedule. Nothing herein is intended to modify, rescind or supersede
any record retention and disposition schedule established pursuant
to law.
[Res. 1-2009, 1/5/2009, § 14]
1. Fees for duplication by photocopying, printing from electronic media
or microfilm, copying onto electronic media, transmission by facsimile
or other electronic means and other means of duplication shall be
established by the Township by resolution from time-to-time.
2. Fees for postage shall not exceed the actual cost of mailing.
3. Fees for certification of a public record by the Township shall be
established by the Township by resolution from time-to-time.
4. Fees for conversion of a public record maintained electronically
or in other non-paper media, shall be limited to the lesser of the
fee for duplication on paper or the fee for duplication in the native
media, unless the requester specifically requests for the public record
to be duplicated in the more expensive medium. Fees charged under
this section shall be established by the Township by resolution from
time-to-time.
5. In the event that the Office of Open Records establishes fees for
the same public records access services which are different from those
established by the Township under this Policy, those fees shall apply.
6. The Township may waive the fees for duplication of a public record.
7. The requester shall pre-pay to the Township an estimate of the fees
when said fees are expected to exceed $100.