[A.O.]
A requestor of records shall complete an information request
form provided by the Office of Open Records and/or the Borough and
shall identify the requested records with sufficient specificity.
[A.O.]
The Borough hereby designates the Borough Secretary as the Open
Records Officer in accordance with the Pennsylvania Right-to-Know
Law,[1] and said Open Records Officer shall receive requests submitted
to the Borough under the Right-to-Know Law, direct requests to other
appropriate persons within the Borough or to appropriate persons in
another agency, track the Borough's progress in responding to requests
and issue interim and final responses.
[1]
Editor's Note: See 65 P.S. § 67.101 et seq.
[A.O.]
If a requested record contains both public record information
as well as nonpublic record information, the Borough may redact the
nonpublic record information from the record.
[A.O.]
1.
Upon receipt of a written request for access to a public record,
the Borough shall make a good faith effort to respond as promptly
as possible under the circumstances existing at the time of the request.
The response shall not exceed five business days from the date of
the written request. The failure of the Borough to respond in the
designated time frame shall be deemed a denial of the request unless
one of the following exceptions applies:
A.
The request
requires the redaction of information within a public record.
B.
The request
requires the retrieval of the document from a remote location.
C.
A timely
response cannot be accomplished due to legitimate staffing limitations.
D.
A legal
review is necessary.
E.
Requester
did not comply with the Borough's policies regarding public access.
F.
The Requester
refuses to pay fees.
G.
The extent
or nature of the request precludes a response within the required
time period.
H.
The requester
has made repeated requests for the same record and the repeated requests
have placed an unreasonable burden on the Borough.
2.
In the event of one or more of the above exceptions, the Borough
shall send written notice to the requester within five business days
of the request stating the request is being reviewed, the reason for
the review and the exception that applies, the expected response date
and an estimate of applicable fees owed when the record becomes available.
If a response is expected to be more than 30 days after the five-day
period, the request is deemed denied unless otherwise agreed to by
the requester in writing.
[A.O.]
If the request is denied, the following must be included with
the denial:
1.
Description of the record requested.
2.
Specific reasons for the denial, including a citation of supporting
legal authority.
3.
Typed or
printed name, title, business address, business telephone number and
signature of the open records officer on whose authority the denial
was issued.
4.
Date of
response
5.
Appeal
procedure.
[A.O.]
If the request is denied or deemed denied, the requester may
file an appeal with the Office of the Open Records or judicial, legislative
or other appeals officer designated under the Pennsylvania Right-to-Know
Law within 15 business days of the mailing date of the Borough's response
or deemed denial. The appeal shall proceed in accordance with the
Pennsylvania Right-to-Know Act. 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 Borough for denying or
delaying the request.
[A.O.]
The Borough shall post the following information on its Internet
website:
1.
The name
and contact information for the Open Records Officer.
2.
Contact
information for the Pennsylvania Office of Open Records.
3.
A link
to the form the requester may use to file a request.
4.
A copy
of this policy and any other procedures that may be established from
time to time by the Borough relating to public record requests. This
policy also shall be available for review at the Borough Office.
[A.O.]
The fee schedule for information and/or record requests shall
be set forth in the Borough's current Fee Resolution, as amended.
