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Senate Co-Sponsorship Memoranda
Senate of Pennsylvania
Session of 2023 - 2024
Regular Session
MEMORANDUM
| Posted: | March 15, 2023 03:59 PM |
|---|---|
| From: | Senator Tracy Pennycuick |
| To: | All Senate members |
| Subject: | Right-To-Know Law Disability Accommodations Exception |
| In the near future, I intend to introduce companion legislation to a measure Rep. Hanbidge is offering, which will exempt certain disability accommodations from the Commonwealth’s Right-To-Know Law. Exempting certain sensitive records from public access is an important feature of the Right-To-Know Law. As it is currently written though, the law does not address sensitive records produced or used to accommodate a disability. For example, the mayor of a community in my district is deaf and uses a device when in executive session to generate a visual transcript of the conversation. There is a concern that this transcript may be subject to a right-to-know request as it is a written document of communication. That is why I am proposing legislation amending the Right-To-Know Law to create a specific exception covering disability accommodations. My bill exempts reference notes and working papers prepared by or for a public official or public employee that are used to accommodate an individual’s disability. Please join me in co-sponsoring this important and reasonable measure to exempt records used for disability accommodations from public access. |
Introduced as SB634