Right-to-Know FAQs

Appeal of Denial

You have a right to appeal this final response. Please see the below link for instructions on how to file an appeal with the Office of Open Records (OOR), https://www.openrecords.pa.gov/Appeals/HowToFile.cfm

All appeals must be made in writing and must be submitted to the Office of Open Records within 15 business days from the mailing date of the Agency's response or the date that the request was deemed denied. If that timeframe expires before you provide the required information to the OOR, you lose your right to appeal and may need to file a new RTK request with the Agency.

To file an appeal under the Right-to-Know Law, a requester must provide all of the following:

  • A copy of the RTK request.
  • A copy of the Agency's response (or a notation that the request was "deemed denied," meaning the Agency didn't respond at all).
  • A written statement explaining the grounds on which the requester asserts that the record is a public record.
  • A written statement addressing any grounds stated by the agency for denying the request.

Judicial Appeal

Appeals from appeals officer determinations for these agencies are taken to the Court of Common Pleas within 30 days of the mailing date of the decision. The petition for review constitutes a stay on the release of documents until a decision is rendered by the court.

Record Creation

In the course of responding to a request for access, an agency shall not be required to create a record that does not currently exist or to compile, maintain, format, or organize a record in a manner in which the agency does not currently compile, maintain, format, or organize the record.

Redaction

The County will grant access to public records according to this policy and will separate and exclude any records which are not public records or which are otherwise excluded or exempted from the definition of public records. If information which is not subject to access is an integral part of a public record and cannot be separated, the County shall redact that information. Only information subject to the act will be included in the response.

County's Response & Time for Response

Once a written request for public records, regardless of the format, the office with custody of the records shall respond to the request within five business days in one of the following manners:

  • The requested records will be provided
  • The request will be denied. If a request is denied in whole or in part, the denial will contain a description of the records requested; the reasons for the denial, including citation of supporting legal authority; the name, title, business address, business telephone number, and signature of the person on whose authority the denial is issued; a date of the response, and the procedure to appeal the denial of access under Act 3; or If it is determined that:
    • The requested records require redaction (blacking out of sections of the records that are not public)
    • The requested records require retrieval from remote location
    • The requested records require legal review
    • The requestor has not complied with the County's policy
    • The requestor refuses to pay the applicable fees set forth by this policy

The agency which received the written request will send written notice that the request is being reviewed, the reason for the review, and a reasonable date by which a response is expected to be provided. The records must be provided, or a written denial issued, within 5 business days plus 30 calendar days of the date the original written request was received.

Certain records may require the agency to notify any third party that is subject of a record or the provider of the record if the agency gives access to any record that is not a public record. If the record was submitted accompanied by a notice of trade secret or proprietary information, the agency notice must be given within five days and the third party has five days to comment on the release. Agency denial may be based on this determination or at the request of the third party.

Open Records Fees

A request for copies of public records or information produced there from must be accompanied by payment of fees to cover the direct cost of duplication as set forth below:

  • Copies: $0.25 per page (a photocopy is either a single-sided or one side of a double-sided black and white copy of a standard 8.5-inch by 11-inch page)
  • Certification of a Record: $1 per record, not per page. Please note that certification fees do not include notarization fees
  • Specialized Documents: Actual cost for example, but not limited to, blue-prints, color copies, non-standard sized documents
  • Facsimile / Microfiche / Other Media: Actual cost
  • Redaction Fee: No redaction fee may be imposed
  • Conversion to Paper: If a record is only maintained electronically or in other non-paper media, duplication fees shall be limited to the lesser of the fee for duplication on paper or the fee for duplication in the original media unless the requestor specifically requests for the record to be duplicated in the more expensive medium (Sec. 1307 (e))
  • Postage Fees: Fees for postage may not exceed the actual cost of mailing

Statutory Fees

If a separate statute authorizes an agency to charge a set amount for a certain type of record, the agency may charge no more than that statutory amount. For example, a recorder of deeds may charge a copy fee of 50 cents per uncertified page and $1.50 per certified page under 42 P.S. Section 21051. Police departments have the authority to charge up to $15 per report for providing a copy of a vehicle accident report. 75 Pa.C.S. Section 3751 (b)(2). Philadelphia police may charge up to $25 per copy. Id. at (b)(3). State police are authorized to charge "$5 for each copy of the Pennsylvania State Police full report of investigation." 75 Pa.C.S. Section 1956(b).

Inspection of Redacted Records

If a requester wishes to inspect rather than receive a copy of a record and the record contains both public and non-public information, the agency shall redact the non-public information. An agency may not charge the requester for the redaction. However, the agency may charge for the copies it must make of the redacted material in order for the requester to view the public record. The fee structure outlined above will apply. If, after inspecting the records, the requester chooses to obtain the copies, no additional fee may be charged.

Enhanced Electronic Access

If an agency offers enhanced electronic access to records in addition to making the records accessible for inspection and duplication by a requester, the agency may establish user fees specifically for the provision of the enhanced electronic access, but only to the extent that the enhanced electronic access is in addition to making the records accessible for inspection and duplication by a requester as required by this act. The user fees for enhanced electronic access may be a flat rate, a subscription fee for a period of time, a per-transaction fee, a fee based on the cumulative time of system access or any other reasonable method and any combination thereof.

Fee Limitations

Except as otherwise provided by statute, the law states that no other fees may be imposed unless the agency necessarily incurs costs for complying with the request, and such fees must be reasonable. No fee may be imposed for an agency's review of a record to determine whether the record is a public record, legislative record or financial record subject to access in accordance with this act. No fee may be charged for searching for or retrieval of documents. An agency may not charge staff time or salary for complying with a RTK request.

Prepayment

Prior to granting a request for access in accordance with this act, an agency may require a requester to prepay an estimate of the fees authorized under this section if the fees required to fulfill the request are expected to exceed $100.

  • Once the request is fulfilled and prepared for release, the requester shall submit payment in full before or at the time the records are provided.