Ruling: Government employee birth dates are public records in Pa.
By NICHOLE DOBO
York Daily Record/Sunday News
The new state Office of Open Records ruled on six appeals, offering access to government employee dates of birth, names of government contractor employees and school board committee reports.
The determinations, posted Tuesday on the office's Web site, represent a tiny fraction of what's ahead. As of Tuesday the office had 113 appeals filed, said Barry Fox, the deputy director of the open records office.
Among the yet-to-be-determined appeals is one from a York County couple. Linda and Kurt Kurzmiller, of Shrewsbury Township, who are seeking IRS records from their township. A decision on their appeal is due Wednesday.
The first few appeal rulings filed by the open records office "sends a strong message" that times have changed in Pennsylvania, said Craig J. Staudenmaier, a managing partner in the law firm that successfully sought disclosure of Penn State football coach Joe Paterno's salary and records of the Pennsylvania Higher Education Assistance Agency.
In the three appeals it granted, the open records office noted requested documents were clearly public under the law, and that the agencies did not meet the burden of proof to keep the records private.
Staudenmaier said he agrees with the decisions.
"It's refreshing to see them," he said.
The office issued three denials -- a request for an investigative report, a request to use a password-protected online government database, and a request for records that had been legally destroyed last year.
The state's open records law changed Jan. 1. Now residents can appeal denials of open records to the independent state office. Under the old law, a requester had to appeal to the same agency that had denied access.
The ability to appeal decisions makes it easier for residents to access public documents that impact their communities, said Kim de Bourbon, executive director of the Pennsylvania Freedom of Information Coalition.
Appeal rulings issued by the office of open records are binding, but either side has 30 days to file an appeal in Commonwealth Court.
The Quakertown Community School District will release third-party contractor records rather than appeal the open records office's ruling, said Alice Bishop, the district right-to-know officer. The records will be released as soon as they can be obtained from the contractor, she said.
Records of third parties that are doing "essential governmental functions" are now subject to the state's new open records law. In the Quakertown case, the employee names were improperly redacted from the records, the ruling said.
The office also ruled that the Port Authority of Pittsburgh should not have withheld employees' birth dates from records that included their names, positions and salaries. And it ruled that the Lancaster School District had to provide copies of contracts and master agreements discussed at subcommittee meetings.
If an agency fails to provide records, there is a provision in the new law that allows a judge to impose fines of up to $1,500 for willful violations of the law and an additional $500 a day until the record is released, Fox said.
The office of open records is posting its decisions online. They will typically go up after they have been sent to the parties involved in the case, Fox said.
Office of Open Records Final Determinations
York Daily Record/Sunday News
The new state Office of Open Records ruled on six appeals, offering access to government employee dates of birth, names of government contractor employees and school board committee reports.
The determinations, posted Tuesday on the office's Web site, represent a tiny fraction of what's ahead. As of Tuesday the office had 113 appeals filed, said Barry Fox, the deputy director of the open records office.
Among the yet-to-be-determined appeals is one from a York County couple. Linda and Kurt Kurzmiller, of Shrewsbury Township, who are seeking IRS records from their township. A decision on their appeal is due Wednesday.
The first few appeal rulings filed by the open records office "sends a strong message" that times have changed in Pennsylvania, said Craig J. Staudenmaier, a managing partner in the law firm that successfully sought disclosure of Penn State football coach Joe Paterno's salary and records of the Pennsylvania Higher Education Assistance Agency.
In the three appeals it granted, the open records office noted requested documents were clearly public under the law, and that the agencies did not meet the burden of proof to keep the records private.
Staudenmaier said he agrees with the decisions.
"It's refreshing to see them," he said.
The office issued three denials -- a request for an investigative report, a request to use a password-protected online government database, and a request for records that had been legally destroyed last year.
The state's open records law changed Jan. 1. Now residents can appeal denials of open records to the independent state office. Under the old law, a requester had to appeal to the same agency that had denied access.
The ability to appeal decisions makes it easier for residents to access public documents that impact their communities, said Kim de Bourbon, executive director of the Pennsylvania Freedom of Information Coalition.
Appeal rulings issued by the office of open records are binding, but either side has 30 days to file an appeal in Commonwealth Court.
The Quakertown Community School District will release third-party contractor records rather than appeal the open records office's ruling, said Alice Bishop, the district right-to-know officer. The records will be released as soon as they can be obtained from the contractor, she said.
Records of third parties that are doing "essential governmental functions" are now subject to the state's new open records law. In the Quakertown case, the employee names were improperly redacted from the records, the ruling said.
The office also ruled that the Port Authority of Pittsburgh should not have withheld employees' birth dates from records that included their names, positions and salaries. And it ruled that the Lancaster School District had to provide copies of contracts and master agreements discussed at subcommittee meetings.
If an agency fails to provide records, there is a provision in the new law that allows a judge to impose fines of up to $1,500 for willful violations of the law and an additional $500 a day until the record is released, Fox said.
The office of open records is posting its decisions online. They will typically go up after they have been sent to the parties involved in the case, Fox said.
Office of Open Records Final Determinations
