98 South 4th Street / Coplay, Pa 18037 / 610-262-6088
Open Record Officer
The Borough hereby designates Tiffany Benson as the Borough Open Records Officer.
The Open Records Officer may be reached at:
Borough of Coplay
98 South 4th Street
Coplay, Pa 18037
Phone: 610 262-6088
Fax: 610 262-4591
Email:tbenson@coplayborough.org
Requests
Your request should be made in writing addressed to the Open Records Officer on the STANDARD RIGHT TO KNOW REQUEST FORM. This form is available at the Borough Office or from the link above, where the form can be printed. Please mail, email or drop off your request form.
Policy Pursuant to Pennsyvania
Open Records/Right To Know Law
The purpose of this policy is to assure compliance with the Pennsylvania Right-to-Know Law, known as the Open Records Act, 65 P.S. 66.1 et. seq., as amended, to provide access to public records of the Borough of Coplay, Lehigh County, to preserve the integrity of the Borough records, and to minimize the financial impact to the residents of the Borough regarding the resources utilized in the receipt and processing of public record requests and the retrieval and copying of public records.
It is the Policy of the Borough to require the presence of the Open Records Officer when public records are examined and inspected and to charge reasonable fees for duplication of public records in accordance with the following guidelines:
Open Records Officer
An Open Records Officer for the Borough of Coplay, Lehigh County shall be the person appointed from time to time by the Borough Council of Coplay Borough. The Open Records Officer is responsible for processing requests for records, tracking the progress in responding to the requests, and issuing interim and final responses to the requests. Upon receiving a request for a public record, the Open Records Officer is required to note the date of receipt, compute the five (5) day response period and create a file for the request, the response and all communications with the requester.
Requests
Public records shall be available for inspection and copying at the Borough Municipal Building during normal business hours - Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 3:30 p.m., with the exception of holidays.
Requests shall be in writing and directed to the Open Records Officer at the Borough Municipal Building, 98 S. Fourth Street, Coplay, Pennsylvania 18037, fax 610 262-4591
Fees
Paper copies will be $0.25 per page side. If mailing is requested, the cost of postage will be charged. Fax copies will be available at the cost of $0.25 per page. Specialized documents, i.e. non standard size and color copies will be provided at actual cost. If a "True and Correct Certification" is requested, an additional charge of $1.00 will be added. "True and Correct Certification" fees do not include any applicable notary fees. The Borough will require prepayment if the total fees are estimated to exceed $100.
Response
The Open Records Officer shall review all written requests for access to public records. As soon as possible, but no later than five (5) business days after receiving a written request to access public records, the Open Records Officer shall respond to all such requests.
A request is considered denied if the requester does not receive a response, or a request for an extension to fulfill the request, within five (5) business days after receiving the written request.
The Borough may request an additional thirty (30) days to fulfill the request under the following conditions:
If additional days are needed, the Borough must notify the requester of the delay in writing within the first five (5) business days after receiving the written request for the records. The requester must approve the request for an extension.
The record shall be provided to the requester in the medium requested, if the record exists in that medium. Otherwise, the record shall be provided in the medium in which it exists. If a record is only kept in the electronic form, the Borough must make it available in paper upon request. The Borough is not required to create a record that does not exist or put a document into a format that does not exist. The Borough may remove portions of a document or refuse to supply a record that is not a public record. If a portion of the document is removed, a written denial must be given for the removed portions of the document.
Denial
The Borough may deny a request if the document is not a public document. The Borough must give denials in writing, even if only a portion of the document is denied or removed, talk.
Appeals Process
To appeal a denial of the Borough, a requester must file an appeal with the Office of Open Records of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania within fifteen (15) days of the mailing of the Borough's response to the request or within fifteen (15) days of the deemed denial date. The Appeal should include grounds necessary for asserting that the record requested is a public record and include the Borough's grounds for denying or delaying the request. The Office of Open Records may conduct a hearing. The Office of Open Records will issue a written decision, which shall act as a final order. Appeals of the written decision of the Office of Open Records may be taken to the Commonwealth Court within thirty (30) days of the mailing of the decision or deemed denial date.
Public Record
Any record not expressly exempt from public access under the Open Records Act, any other state or federal law or judicial order.
Record
Any information, regardless of physical form or characteristics that documents a government agency transaction or activity. The term includes a document, paper, letter, map, Book, Tape, photograph, film or sound recording, information stored or maintained electronically, and a data-processed or image-processed document.
Requester
A person who requests a record pursuant to the Open Records Act.
Response
Access to a record or the Borough's written notice granting, denying or partially granting and partially denying access to a record.
