Denied: Electronic school plans from architect
Denied: A request to obtain an
electronic copy of proposed school plans from an
architect contracted by the Unionville-Chadds
Ford School District.
From
the Pennsylvania Freedom of Information
Coalition
Denied: A request to obtain an electronic copy of proposed school plans from an architect contracted by the Unionville-Chadds Ford School District.
The district had denied the request for an electronic copy of its "PlanCon D&E" submissions, saying it does not have them in electronic format and had no requirement to obtain them from its architect. The district noted that the requester had been granted access to view the plans last year, before the new open records law took effect.
The requester argued that a provision of the Right to Know Law which provides access to the records in the possession of a third-party contractor applied.
The district argued that it had no obligation to retrieve the records from the contractor, as an architect does not perform a "governmental function," which is part of the third-party contractor provision. The Office of Open Records agreed, saying that the professional services of architects do not not fall under the category of "governmental function."
The district had also argued that the records were exempt from access because disclosure of the plans would pose a risk to security and safety. The governor's office submitted a letter to the Office of Open Records on behalf of the district, agreeing on this point. However, the Office of Open Records chose not to address this argument, saying there was no need to consider whether this exemption applied, since the record requested did not meet the requirements of the third-party provision, and therefore was not a "public record."
Knauss vs. Unionville-Chadds Ford School District (2) -- AP 2009-0074
Denied: A request to obtain an electronic copy of proposed school plans from an architect contracted by the Unionville-Chadds Ford School District.
The district had denied the request for an electronic copy of its "PlanCon D&E" submissions, saying it does not have them in electronic format and had no requirement to obtain them from its architect. The district noted that the requester had been granted access to view the plans last year, before the new open records law took effect.
The requester argued that a provision of the Right to Know Law which provides access to the records in the possession of a third-party contractor applied.
The district argued that it had no obligation to retrieve the records from the contractor, as an architect does not perform a "governmental function," which is part of the third-party contractor provision. The Office of Open Records agreed, saying that the professional services of architects do not not fall under the category of "governmental function."
The district had also argued that the records were exempt from access because disclosure of the plans would pose a risk to security and safety. The governor's office submitted a letter to the Office of Open Records on behalf of the district, agreeing on this point. However, the Office of Open Records chose not to address this argument, saying there was no need to consider whether this exemption applied, since the record requested did not meet the requirements of the third-party provision, and therefore was not a "public record."
Knauss vs. Unionville-Chadds Ford School District (2) -- AP 2009-0074