County to appoint Open Records Officer

The County Commissioners are expected to designate an "Open Records Officer" at their weekly Wednesday meeting.

The officer will serve as a point of contact for the public and ensure compliance with Act 3 of 2008, or the revised Pennsylvania "Right-To-Know" Law.

The Assessors Association of Pennsylvania explains, "Requests for agency records made after December 31, 2008 will fall under Pennsylvania’s new Right-to-Know Law, Act 3 of 2008. The new act expands the definition of records to include most governmental transactions, and brings the General Assembly and the judiciary under the act. Records are presumed open, unless otherwise kept private under another state or federal law or regulation or court decree. The burden of proof is reversed from prior law, so it falls to an agency to prove a record is confidential, rather than a requester proving it is open."

The Commissioners are expected to appoint Doris Crater to the position. Crater is currently the County's Director of Records Management.