The County must comply with a Right-to-Know request for employee attendance records, the state Office of Open Records has ruled. The Pennsylvania Office of Open Records ruled this week that Bucks County must make public attendance records of county employees who swipe their identification cards to enter the courthouse.
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HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — A wealth of information about the actions and decisions of Pennsylvania public officials has been pried loose in the year since a broad expansion of the state's Right-to-Know Law took effect. There are signs, including a recent spot check of government agencies, that the state is shedding its long-standing reputation as a public-access backwater. Read More…

Reporters across the state put Pennsylvania's nearly year-old open records law to the test recently in a fun but eye-opening project spearheaded by The Associated Press. Read More…

Despite a belated state budget that included numerous funding cuts, the state Office of Open Records has been given a significant funding increase. State Rep. Timothy S. Mahoney, D-South Union Township, who spearheaded passage of the new open records law that took effect on Jan. 1, said the important office received a $240,000 increase in funding under the current budget, boosting the office's allocation to $1.25 million. Read More…

SHARON —The legal fight put up by the Sharon Sanitary Authority to keep a Herald reporter from reviewing delinquent sewer accounts is “alarming and unreasonable,” Herald attorney William G. McConnell said in a document recently filed in Mercer County Common Pleas Court. Read More…

Terry Mutchler, executive director of the state Office of Open Records, has a quick response when asked how things are going. " 'Busy' is the short answer," Ms. Mutchler said last week. "We're just overwhelmed."

Ms. Mutchler and her nine-member staff routinely work 12-hour days or longer to keep pace with a flood of paperwork.

To date, they have processed 1,006 appeals, conducted 300 training sessions around the state on the new Right-to-Know Law and fielded more than 5,000 e-mail and telephone inquiries. Read More…

Until this year, Pennsylvania's open-records law had an abysmal reputation.

But on Jan. 1, a revised Right-to-Know Law took effect. Eleven days later, the state's newly created, independent Office of Open Records began refereeing its first dispute between the public and a government agency.

Now, Mr. Davis said, as the one-year anniversary approaches, Pennsylvania's open-records law "easily" ranks in the top third across the nation -- what he called a "signal improvement."
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A Monroe County judge overturned two rulings made by the state's new Office of Open Records, which will keep information about the paychecks of public employees and pre-meeting materials out of view. Read More…

The state Office of Open Records has ruled a Dunmore councilwoman must turn over e-mail correspondence between herself and other council members regarding the former borough manager. Read More…

Last month, when the Commonwealth Court issued its first published opinion addressing Pennsylvania's new Right-to-Know Law, it shone a bright light on a long-standing issue: the inherent tension between the public's right to access government records and a person's interest in the privacy of information that the government possesses about him. The Commonwealth Court's recent opinion, Pennsylvania State Education Association v. Commonwealth, further muddles the privacy question and, unless corrected, stands to cause an array of additional problems. Read More…

Since the beginning of the year, a new Pennsylvania law on public records has been sending tremors through state and local governments. Unprecedented numbers of citizens, civic groups, reporters and businesses have filed thousands of requests for government documents and data. Now come the aftershocks: Dozens of public-record lawsuits are piling up in courthouses around the state, waiting for judges to spit out rulings on what the law really means. Read More…

In a September 9, 2009 memorandum and order, Judge Terrence R. Nealon of the Lackawanna County Court of Common Pleas ruled that unsuccessful bids in the possession of a government contractor are public records. The decision is the first one in which a court has considered the obligations of government contractors under the new Right to Know Law. Read More…

The Pennsylvania Office of Open Records has withdrawn from a court case appealing its own ruling that Luzerne County must disclose who gets health-care benefits from the county. Read More…

For the second time in two months, two York Township commissioners have been ordered to hand over e-mails concerning township business that were sent from or received by their home computers. Read More…

We are just past halfway through the first year of Pennsylvania’s new Open Records Law and the public’s access to information is again under siege. Read More…

The Office of Open Records will issue no final determinations ordering the release of public employee home addresses, pending resolution of a petition made by the Pennsylvania State Education Association by the Commonwealth Court . Read More…

HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — A state appellate court judge has ordered a temporary halt to releasing school district employees' home addresses listed on records requests made under Pennsylvania's new Right-to-Know Law. Read More…

The union representing most public school employees in Pennsylvania yesterday won a temporary injunction in Commonwealth Court to shield the home addresses of all public-school employees under the new open-records law. Read More…

The state's new Office of Open Records is on pace to see about 1,000 open records denial appeals this year. More appeals are expected to be filed next year, as people become more familiar with the law, said Barry Fox, deputy director of the open records office. But it's looking like the office is going to have its $1.3 million budget request cut by about $335,000, something that Fox says will hurt the ability of the new agency to fulfill its mission. Read More…

Volunteer fire and ambulance organizations are making a strong push for relief from Pennsylvania's Right to Know Law, a movement that is getting support in the state Legislature and drawing criticism from open records advocates. Read More…

All is not well at Pennsylvania's new Office of Open Records. Speaking as its first executive director, I find that a difficult but necessary truth to express. I am asking citizens and other open-government advocates for help. We are at a crossroads and citizens should have an accurate and honest picture of what's happening with this aspect of their government.
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One irony about Pennsylvania's Office of Open Records: It's weirdly difficult to find. The new state agency charged with resolving disputes over government transparency is at the end of a long and dim hallway in a building across the street from the Capitol. The only indication the office exists is a small sign at the hallway's entrance. Inside the Office of Open Records, however, another irony: Sunlight streams through large windows that take up most of one wall. It is hard to imagine a more vivid metaphor for the challenges facing the office and Terry Mutchler, its first executive director. Read More…

The director of the state's Office of Open Records is working to avoid what she contends would be a chilling cut to her new office's budget. Read More…

The Chester Community Charter School has filed a court appeal to a recent Pennsylvania Office of Open Records ruling that gave The Inquirer access to a wide range of financial records from the management company that operates the school. Read More…

No one said implementing Pennsylvania's new Right-To-Know Law was going to be easy. There have been some problems in the four months since the law took effect. Read More…

A state open records request has York Township looking into options for how e-mails are received and sent by its commissioners, because some e-mails may be in a private company's files and are not open to public review. Read More…

The state has ruled that Lancaster County must supply autopsy records in two cases to the Lancaster New Era. In addition, the Pennsylvania Office of Open Records has admonished the county for not complying with the state's Right to Know law when it rejected the newspaper's request.
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Pennsylvania's updated open records law was supposed to start an era of transparency Jan. 1, but it has raised troubling issues along the way. Read More…

This was supposed to be a year of sunlight in Harrisburg, with the new open-records law taking effect and a state open-records czar and her staff working to make sure citizens have access to their government. But a funny thing has happened in the Keystone state, leaving us wondering whether there’s been any difference in the same old, same old way of operating at the state Capitol. Read More…

Pennsylvania's new open-records law has been anything but open since it took effect in January. And the blame starts at the top. Read More…

Unfortunately, secrecy is standard operating procedure in Pennsylvania government. It's a bad habit that you can't quit just by signing a bill. You have to go cold turkey and actually quit being secretive. Read More…

The executive director of the Pennsylvania Office of Open Records complains that the Rendell administration is throwing up roadblocks to greater transparency. But Terry Mutchler might want to review her own office's record. Read More…

At best, Gov. Rendell's insistence upon written open records communications amounts to an unnecessary increase in bureaucratic inefficiency. At worst, it indicates heel-digging resistance to a progressive new law signed by Rendell himself. Read More…

The state's new Office of Open Records has been open four months and already it has received 278 requests for help in resolving disputes over what constitutes a government record. So far, the office has issued decisions in 75 of those disputes involving such entities as fire companies, school districts, parking authorities and two dozen state agencies. Three of those decisions were appealed to county courts. One recent decision could become one of the first court tests of the revised Right to Know Law and could be of interest to anyone who doesn't want to travel far to review government records. Read More…

HARRISBURG — The Rendell administration appears to be going out of its way to block public access to government documents. At least that is the impression left on the state's new open-records czar. Read More…

The intent of Pennsylvania's Right to Know Law is clear: Public information should be available to the public in a timely fashion. But already we have a legal challenge on what exactly "available" means. Read More…

In a disappointing decision, on March 23, 2009, the Office of Open Records found that a draft policy that was distributed to a school board for deliberation at a public meeting – and approved at that meeting – was not a public record. Read More…

HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — The Pennsylvania Newspaper Association has sharply criticized the state Open Records Office for a ruling that the group says would allow school boards and other agencies to conduct more public business behind closed doors. Read More…

The Office of Open Records (OOR) has dealt a blow to open government, apparently finding that a budget discussion among a quorum of a school board was not "deliberation" for Right to Know Law purposes because it was, in the words of the OOR, an "informal" discussion. If this decision stands, it could have terrible repercussions for the public's right to know. Read More…

The Office of Open Records says agencies may not charge per-page duplication fees when emailing records that already exist in electronic format. Read More…

A seismic shift in open government rocked the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania at midnight on Jan. 1, 2009, and I am happy to report that the Keystone State has not yet crumbled, or even cracked, because of it. Read More…

The York Daily Record/Sunday News asked Kim de Bourbon, executive director of the Pennsylvania Freedom of Information Coalition, some questions about the state's new open records law, which is 2½ months old. Read More…

Yesterday, we wrote about some of the early decisions of the Office of Open Records (OOR). We are continuing that discussion today, raising some of our questions and concerns about the first group of decisions. Read More…

After reviewing the first “Final Determinations” issued by the Office of Open Records (OOR), we see some lessons in them for requesters and agencies. Not surprisingly, the decisions also raise some questions and concerns. Here are our thoughts on the first round of decisions. Read More…

Every community has one: the gadfly, the complainer, the curmudgeon. They are there to keep local government honest, with help from the state's new Right to Know Law that took effect in January. But some municipalities are starting to complain that the law is miring them in paper work and creating logistical and financial headaches. Read More…

Early evidence shows Pennsylvania's new Right to Know Law is doing what it's designed to, giving the public more access to records that show how governments are behaving and spending tax money. Read More…

The Office of Open Records denied a borough resident's request for records of inspections of two privately owned properties. The office also rejected an appeal from Quakertown School District Read More…

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. Read More…

HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — Names of employees of government contractors and birth dates of government employees are public information, the state Office of Open Records has ruled in some of the first appeals under Pennsylvania's new Right-to-Know Law. Read More…

The ruling is in. You're entitled to listen to tapes of your elected officials' public meetings. But ask quickly, because those tapes don't have to be kept for long. Read More…

The Office of Open Records has issued an Advisory Opinion stating that tape recordings made by a board secretary for the purpose of writing minutes are to be considered public record. Read More…

The state Office of Open Records sent a letter to Shrewsbury Township regarding an open record appeal filed by a resident. Read More…

When Linda and Kurt Kurzmiller arrived Jan. 15 at the state's new open records office in Harrisburg, it was still under construction. Workers were filing in and out of the North Street building. There wasn't a sign outside to direct them where to go. But they made it to the office. Read More…

When Michael J. Cavanagh submitted his public records request to the Uniontown City Council, he did so with the understanding that the office would respond to the inquiry within five business days. It didn't. Read More…

Last month the Pennsylvania Supreme Court held that autopsy reports are public records. Although the court’s holding stands as a resounding victory for public access, its long-term implications are less clear, as the court expressly avoided deciding whether autopsy reports will remain accessible under the Commonwealth’s new Right to Know Law, which went into effect just three weeks before the Supreme Court handed down its decision. Read More…

HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — Pennsylvania's fledgling Office of Open Records, defender of the public's interest in a transparent government, turns one month old this weekend. Read More…

Should you walk into York's City Hall and glimpse a new sign that refers to the revamped Pennsylvania Right-to-Know Law, pay attention to the wording that mentions the availability of police records. Read More…

Q: What is the Pennsylvania Office of Open  Records? Read More…

HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — Weeks before the state Office of Open  Records  opens for business, it's clear that office director Terry Mutchler is not going to simply carry the water for Gov. Ed Rendell — the man who appointed her and is technically her boss. Read More…

Gov. Ed Rendell, who enacted the state's expanded open-records law with his signature, might be one of the first to violate it if state agencies follow a directive his office has issued. Read More…