May 2009
State: York County must give addresses in 911 logs
May 27, 2009 | Filed in: RTK request
stories | 911 logs
| New RTK
Law | Final
determinations | York Co.
The state Office of Open Records ruled recently
that publicly released time response logs from
York County's 911 Center must include where
police or fire units were headed when they were
dispatched. The office made the ruling Friday in
response to an appeal by the York Daily
Record/Sunday News. More than two months ago, the
Daily Record/Sunday News asked the county for the
logs with addresses. Read
More...
Luzerne County denies disclosure of health-care benefits costs
May 24, 2009 | Filed in: RTK request
stories
Luzerne County claims federal law prevents the
disclosure of who gets health-care benefits from
the county and how much a county employee’s
benefits actually cost. In denying a
right-to-know request from The Citizens’
Voice, the county right-to-know officer cited the
Health Insurance Portability and Accountability
Act. Read
More...
York school board to review trip expenses
The York City School Board voted 5-4 to pull the
receipts for expenditures during an April trip to
San Diego for further review. The board was made
aware of how the money was spent on the trip
because of a Daily Record/Sunday News article,
written after he receipts were obtained
through a Right-to-Know request.
Read
More...
York school board spends on San Diego trip
Four York City School Board members spent about
$2,000, mostly on food and cabs, at a seminar in
California last month -- and that sum does not
include air fare, hotels, conference fees and a
fifth board member's expenses, according to
receipts for the expenditures obtained through a
Right to Know request. Read
More...
Opinion: Department of Education decisions threaten public notice
May 21, 2009 |
The Pennsylvania Department of Education has
issued two troubling decisions that negatively
affect public notice in some communities.
Read
More...
PNA Legal Hotline: Home phone numbers not available through RTK Law
Q: The township supervisors do not hold
office hours during the work day and work other
full time jobs. I’d like to call them at home at
a reasonable time. Can I get their home phone
numbers via a Right to Know Law request?
Read
More...
Suit seeks open forum, says Gettysburg violated Sunshine Law
May 21, 2009 | Filed in: Sunshine
Act | Gettysburg
A Cumberland Township supervisor has filed suit
against the Gettysburg Borough Council for
alleged violations of the state's Sunshine Law
and has asked the Adams County Court of Common
Pleas to declare null and void any actions taken
when those alleged violations occurred.
Read
More...
Opinion: SB 419 would harm democracy, as well as newspapers
May 19, 2009 |
Newspapers and journalists have worked hard to
help policymakers understand the true cost of
putting public notices in junk mail: the loss of
public access to information about what
government is doing. Read
More...
Bill would exempt fire companies from Right to Know Law
Senate Majority Leader Dominic Pileggi (R-9) and
Senator Lisa Baker (R-20), chair of the Senate’s
Veterans Affairs & Emergency Preparedness
Committee, will introduce legislation to clarify
the status of volunteer fire companies and other
volunteer emergency responders under
Pennsylvania’s new Right-to-Know Law.
Read
More...
Schools peppered by Right to Know requests
EAST STROUDSBURG — One resident of East
Stroudsburg Area School District wanted to see
the internal investigation into how the district
sold a classroom trailer on eBay for $1. An
aspiring school board member for that district
requested all the correspondence between
administrators and board members from this year.
A sitting board member asked to receive complete
copies of legal bills.
These are some of the requests that reflect a flurry of activity sparked by the state's newly robust Right to Know Law. Since the beginning of the year, requests have been peppering the area's four school districts. Read More...
These are some of the requests that reflect a flurry of activity sparked by the state's newly robust Right to Know Law. Since the beginning of the year, requests have been peppering the area's four school districts. Read More...
Pa. House committee looks at legal notice rules
May 15, 2009 | Filed in: Government
transparency | Public notice
law
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — Pennsylvania's
paid-circulation newspapers argued Thursday
against altering the rules for government-funded
legal notices, while municipal organizations and
"shoppers" that compete with the papers told a
legislative committee the change would save tax
dollars. Read
More...
Lawmakers consider letting legal ads go online
May 14, 2009 | Filed in: HB 677
| HB 795
Legal Notices Act | Government
transparency | SB 419
Public Notice Act | Public notice
law
HARRISBURG -- County, borough and school district
groups clashed with newspaper industry
representatives today over three bills that would
make major changes in how legal advertising is
disseminated to the public. Read
More...
Public notices could find new homes in print, online.
May 14, 2009 | Filed in: Government
transparency | SB 419
Public Notice Act | HB 795
Legal Notices Act | HB 677
| Public notice
law
HARRISBURG (May 14) - Local governments have long
posted ads about home foreclosures, school board
meetings, contract bids and other public issues
in daily or weekly newspapers, but new laws under
consideration by the state Legislature could
change that, allowing municipalities to use other
media to publicize their activities. Read
More...
PNA Legal: Records should be turned over when payment submitted
Q: Can agencies withhold documents until my
check clears and its financial department gives
the go ahead? Read
More...
Opinion: Defending the publication of public notices
May 14, 2009 |
Senate Bill 419 would allow the government to
control its own public notices and eliminate the
independent, third-party verification that
newspaper publication provides. It would be all
too easy to manipulate the bidding process, favor
certain contractors, and shield critical
information.
Read More...
Harrisburg to put police blotter online
The City of Harrisburg's web site will soon
include the day's police blotter that will likely
include basic information already available to
the public, such as the time and place of the
incident, name of the arrested and the charges
filed. Read
More...
York Township commissioner publicizes RTK requesters
A York Township commissioner said Tuesday night
the public should know how much Right-to-Know
requests are costing the township and taxpayers.
As part of a presentation during Tuesday's
meeting, commissioner Paul Knepper used an
overhead projector to show the names of people
who had made requests and how much each request
had cost the township and the person.
Read More...
Read More...
Pa. state police reverses policy on victims' names
May 08, 2009 | Filed in: Police
reports
HARRISBURG (AP) — The Pennsylvania State Police
is backtracking on a blanket policy to withhold
victims' names from news releases just one day
after it was issued. Read
More...
Pa.'s new Right-To-Know law hits some snags
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...
Opinion: Shining some light on Pa. spending
May 03, 2009 |
Harrisburg seems poised to make state government
more accountable and transparent. Yes, that's
right. Harrisburg. Accountable. Transparent. All
in one sentence. This week, the state Senate is
expected to vote on the Taxpayer Transparency
Act, which would create a searchable Web site
that would let Pennsylvanians track state
expenses and contracts by June 1.
Read More...
Read More...
Public officials' e-mail open - but you can't always see it
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...