[Adopted 9-8-2011 by Res. No. 09-08-11-01]
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Act of 1945, repealed by Act 2001, June 19, P.L. 287, No. 22, § 3,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.[1]
[1]
Editor's Note: See 65 P.S. § 67.101 et seq.
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:
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.
A.
Requests for public records can be made by any person or any person
who is a legal resident of the United States, including resident aliens.
Requests to the Authority 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).
B.
The Authority has a very limited office staff and due to office work
loads and office demands the Authority reserves the right to require
public records requested to be examined in person by a scheduled appointment,
with the record inspection time to be limited to one hour per scheduled
appointment so as to allow the Authority office to carry on its normal
office functions.
C.
Additionally, should requested records not be in the possession of
the Authority and be of the type and nature not required to be received
by the Authority and be determined to be public records in the possession
and control of consultants or contractors retained by the Authority,
the requesting party shall be responsible to advance to the Authority
all costs charged to the Authority for the inspection and/or production
of any record or records.
A.
Requesters may make oral requests for access to public records. However,
if the requester wishes to pursue the relief and remedies provided
for in the Right-to-Know Law,[1] 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 e-mail, or by facsimile.
[1]
Editor's Note: See 65 P.S. § 67.101 et seq.
B.
The Authority will annually, at the reorganization meeting, designate
an office administrator to act as the Open Records Officer ("Officer").
(1)
The Officer's contact information is set forth below:
|
Open Records Officer/Office Administrator
Collier Township Municipal Authority
2418 Hilltop Road, Suite 200
Presto, PA 15142
Phone: (412) 279-4941
Fax: (412) 278-2001
E-mail: CollierCTMA.com
ATTN: Open Records Officer
|
(2)
Questions regarding this policy may be directed to the Officer at
the telephone or e-mail address listed above.
C.
All written requests must be addressed to the Officer at the above-listed
address. In the event that a written request for records is addressed
to an Authority employee other than the Officer, the Authority employee
is hereby directed to promptly forward such requests to the Officer.
D.
Written requests must identify or describe the record sought with
sufficient specificity to enable the Authority 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 posted on the Authority's
Internet website at CollierCTMA.com.
E.
Upon receipt of a request, the Authority shall assign a tracking
number to each filed form so as to track the Authority's progress
in responding to requests under the new Right-to-Know Law.
A.
The established fee schedule is attached to this resolution and is
marked as Attachment A.[1] This fee schedule may be amended from time to time by
action of the Authority.
[1]
Editor's Note: The cost and fee structure is included as an attachment to this chapter.
C.
By filing a written request for records, the requester agrees to
pay applicable fees authorized by the new Right-to-Know Law and agrees
that all applicable fees shall be paid before a requester receives
access to the record(s) requested.
D.
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 Authority 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.
E.
Upon receipt of a written request for a public record, the Officer
shall do the following:
(1)
Note the date and time of the receipt on the written request;
(2)
Compute the day and time on which the five-day (business days) period
will expire, and make a notation of that date on the written request;
(3)
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; and
(4)
Immediately forward the written request to the Solicitor for the
Authority for review.
A.
Upon receipt of a written request for access to a record, the Authority
shall make a good-faith effort to determine if the record requested
is a public record and whether the Authority has possession, custody
or control of the identified record. When doing so, the Authority
will respond as promptly as possible under the circumstances existing
at the time of the request. Under the Right-to-Know Law,[1] the Authority must send a response within five business
days of receipt of the written request for access or else the written
request shall be deemed denied. For purposes of this policy, a business
day is any Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday or Friday, except
those days when the Authority's office is closed for all or part of
a day due to a holiday, namely: New Year's Eve; New Year's Day; Good
Friday; Memorial Day; Independence Day; Labor Day; Thanksgiving; day
after Thanksgiving; Christmas Eve; Christmas Day and two floating
holidays which are approved by the Chairman of the Board of the Authority.
[1]
Editor's Note: See 65 P.S. § 67.101 et seq.
B.
Upon receipt of a written request for access, the Officer shall determine
if one of the following applies:
(1)
The request for access requires redaction of a record in accordance
with the Right-to-Know Law;
(2)
The request for access requires the retrieval of a record stored
in a remote location;
(3)
A timely response to the request for access cannot be accomplished
due to bona fide and specified staffing limitations;
(4)
A legal review is necessary to determine whether the record is a
record subject to access under the Right-to-Know Law;
(5)
The requester has not complied with the Authority's policies regarding
access to records;
(6)
The requester refuses to pay applicable fees authorized by the Right-to-Know
Law; or
(7)
The extent or nature of the request precludes a response within the
required time period of five business days.
C.
Upon a determination that one of the factors listed above applies,
the Officer shall send written notice to the requester within five
business days of receipt of the request for access. The notice shall
include a statement notifying the requester 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. Information which the
Authority redacts in accordance with the Right-to-Know Law shall be
deemed a denial.
D.
If the date that a response is expected to be provided is in excess
of 30 calendar days following the five business days allowed for above,
the request for access shall be deemed denied unless the requester
has agreed in writing to an extension to the date specified in the
notice. 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 Authority has not provided a response by that date.
E.
For purposes of this policy, the "mailing date" shall be the date
affixed to a:
A.
If a written request for access to a record 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 Authority's response or
within 15 business day of a deemed denial. 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 Authority
for delaying or denying the request.
B.
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, go to openrecords.state.pa.us.
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.[1] 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.
[1]
Editor's Note: See 65 P.S. § 67.704, Electronic
access.
This policy is to be effective as of September 8, 2011.
