Montgomery County, PA

RIGHT TO KNOW ACT/OPEN RECORDS APPELLATE PROCEDURE

The Office of the District Attorney has adopted the following procedures concerning Right to Know Law appeals from police departments and law enforcement agencies within Montgomery County:

I.   If a written request for access to a record is denied or deemed denied by a local police department or law enforcement agency, the requester may file an appeal with the Appeals Officer within 15 business days of the mailing date of the agency’s response or within 15 business days of a deemed denial;

II.  The appeal must be in writing, and shall include the following information:

A.  The Complainant’s (requester’s) full name, address, telephone and fax number; and

B.  A concise statement of relevant facts including, but not limited to:

1.  The name, title, address, telephone and fax numbers, if known, of the Agency and any Agency official alleged to have denied the requester a right conferred by the RTKL;

2.  A description of the records requested;

3.  The date of the Right-to-Know request;

4.  The date of any response or the date the response was deemed denied;

5.  A statement of the grounds upon which the requester asserts that the record is a public record;

6.  A statement addressing any grounds stated by the Agency for delaying or denying the request, including any unusual circumstances or emergency situations that may have contributed to the delay;

7.  A copy of any pertinent correspondence or other documents; and

8. A statement that all material provided by the Agency   has been submitted with the appeal.

III. Two copies of the appeal material must be submitted to our Office. You must also submit a copy of your appeal to the Agency that denied your request.

IV. Upon properly filing an appeal, the Appeals Officer may:

a) Set a schedule for the requester and the open- records officer to submit documents in support of their positions;

b) Review all information filed relating to the request. The Appeals Officer may or may not hold a hearing.  A decision to hold or not to hold a hearing is not appealable. The Appeals Officer may admit into evidence testimony, evidence and documents that the appeals officer believes to be reasonably probative and relevant to an issue in dispute. The appeals officer may limit the nature and extent of evidence found to be cumulative; and

c) Issue a final determination on behalf of the Office of the District Attorney, including a written explanation of the reason for the decision, which shall be mailed to the requester and the agency within 30 days of receipt of the appeal.

V.  If the Appeals Officer fails to issue a final determination  within 30 days, the appeal is deemed denied; and

VI. The determination by the Appeals Officer shall be a final order.