Borough of Tullytown, PA Chapter 30 Records

[HISTORY: Adopted by the Borough Council of the Borough of Tullytown as indicated in article histories. Amendments noted where applicable.]

Article I Open Records Policy

[Adopted 8-5-2008 by Ord. No. 321]

§ 30-1 Purpose.

The purpose of this policy is to assure compliance with Act 3 of 2008, The Pennsylvania Right-to-Know Law,[1] as amended; to provide access to public records of Tullytown Borough; to preserve the integrity of Tullytown 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: See 65 P.S. § 67.101 et seq.

§ 30-2 Designated Open Records Officer; requests for access; duplication fees.

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. Tullytown Borough designates the Borough Manager as the Open Records Officer, responsible for assuring compliance with the Pennsylvania Right-to-Know Law,[1] in accordance with the following guidelines:

A. The Borough Coordinator is designated and appointed as the Open Records Officer for requests made to the administrative, nonpolice operations of the Borough.

[Amended 4-1-2014 by Ord. No. 357]

B. The Chief of Police is designated and appointed as the Open Records Officer for all requests made to the Borough of Tullytown relating police operations.

[Amended 4-1-2014 by Ord. No. 357]

C. 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 and include the date of the request; requestor's name, address and telephone number; certification of United States residency; signature of requestor; and, if duplication is requested, appropriate payment.

D. The appropriate designated Open Records Officer as authorized above shall make a good faith effort to determine whether each record requested is a public record.

[Amended 4-1-2014 by Ord. No. 357]

E. The Borough shall facilitate a reasonable response to a request for Tullytown 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.[2]

[2] Editor's Note: See 65 P.S. § 67.101 et seq.

F. The appropriate Open Records Officer shall respond to the requestor within five business days from the date of the written request. If the Borough does not respond within five business days of receipt thereof, the request is deemed denied.

[Amended 4-1-2014 by Ord. No. 357]

G. The response provided by the Borough shall consist of:

(1) Approval for access to public record;

(2) Review of the request by the appropriate Open Records Officer; or

[Amended 4-1-2014 by Ord. No. 357]

(3) Denial of access to the record requested.

H. 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 appropriate Open Records Officer shall cooperate fully with the requestor, while also taking reasonable measures to protect Borough public records from the possibility of theft and/or modification. The presence of an appropriate Open Records Officer is required when public records are examined and inspected.

[Amended 4-1-2014 by Ord. No. 357]

I. Fees for duplication of public records shall be as established by the Commonwealth's Office of Open Records. The Borough may, at its discretion, waive fees.

J. In the event the estimated cost of fulfilling a request submitted under this policy is expected to exceed $100, the appropriate Open Records Officer(s) shall obtain the expected cost in advance of fulfilling the request to avoid unwarranted expense of Borough resources.

[Amended 4-1-2014 by Ord. No. 357]

K. If the request is being reviewed, the notice provided by the Borough shall be in writing and include the reason for the review and the expected response date, which shall be within 30 days of the notice of review. If the Borough does not respond within 30 days thereof, the request is deemed denied.

(1) 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. The redacted information is considered a denial as to that information;

(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 requestor has failed to comply with the Borough's policy and procedure requirements;

(f) The requestor refuses to pay the applicable fees; or

(g) The extent or nature of the request precludes a response within the required time period.

(2) Upon a determination that one of the factors listed above applies, the Borough shall send written notice to the requestor within five business days of receipt of the request for access. The notice shall include a statement notifying the requestor that the request for access is being reviewed, the reason for the review, a reasonable date that a response is expected to be provided and an estimate of applicable fees owed when the record becomes available. If the date that a response is expected to be provided is in excess of 30 days following the five business days allowed for, the request for access shall be deemed denied, unless the requestor has agreed, in writing, to an extension to the date specified in the notice. If the requestor 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 date.

L. If access to the record requested is denied, the notice provided by the Borough shall be in writing as indicated on the form attached hereto, entitled "Denial of Request to Review and/or Duplicate Tullytown Borough Records."[3]

[3] Editor's Note: Said form is on file in the Borough offices.

M. If the request is denied or deemed denied, the requestor 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 requestor asserts that the record is a public record and shall address any grounds stated by the agency for delaying or denying the request.

N. Within 30 days of the mailing date of the final determination of the appeals officer, the requestor or Borough may file a petition for review or other document as required by rule of court with the Court of Common Pleas for Bucks County. The decision of the Court shall contain findings of fact and conclusions of law based upon the evidence as a whole. The decision shall clearly and concisely explain the rationale for the decision. A petition for review under this section shall stay the release of documents until a decision is issued.

O. This policy shall be available for review at the Borough offices.

[1] Editor's Note: See 65 P.S. § 67.101 et seq.