The Collier Township Municipal Authority ("Authority") is a
body corporate and politic, duly organized under the laws of the Commonwealth
of Pennsylvania by the Board of Commissioners of the Township of Collier,
Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, under the former Municipality Authorities
Act of 1945, repealed by Act 2001, June 19, P.L. 287, No. 22, § 3,
now known as the "Municipality Authorities Act," Act 2001, June 19,
P.L. 287, No. 22, § 4, 53 Pa. C.S.A. § 5601 et
seq. As such, the Authority is a local agency for purposes of the
new Right-to-Know Law.
All local agencies shall provide public records in accordance
with the Right-to-Know Law. Generally, any record in the possession
of the Authority 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.
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.
The Authority intends 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 Authority'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 Authority or that of an individual or employee
of the Authority.
Appointed Authority Board members, the Authority Engineer and
the Authority Solicitor shall be provided with public records for
their use without the need to complete a written request form and
without charge for photocopies requested by such Board members, Engineer
or Solicitor.
In the event that a public record is available on the Authority
website, requesters will be advised upon their first request of their
ability to obtain such records from the website pursuant to § 704
of the Act. Requestors may nevertheless request that a website record
be converted to paper under § 704(b) of the Act as well
as following all other requirements of the Act.
This policy is to be effective as of September 8, 2011.