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PRINTER'S NO. 2689
THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA
HOUSE BILL
No.
1931
Session of
2019
INTRODUCED BY TOPPER, BROOKS, CALTAGIRONE, DUNBAR, GOODMAN,
HEFFLEY, JAMES, M. K. KELLER, LONGIETTI, MILLARD, MOUL,
REESE, RYAN, SCHMITT AND STRUZZI, OCTOBER 15, 2019
REFERRED TO COMMITTEE ON STATE GOVERNMENT, OCTOBER 15, 2019
AN ACT
Amending the act of February 14, 2008 (P.L.6, No.3), entitled
"An act providing for access to public information, for a
designated open-records officer in each Commonwealth agency,
local agency, judicial agency and legislative agency, for
procedure, for appeal of agency determination, for judicial
review and for the Office of Open Records; imposing
penalties; providing for reporting by State-related
institutions; requiring the posting of certain State contract
information on the Internet; and making related repeals," in
agency response, providing for vexatious requesters; and, in
judicial review, further providing for court costs and
attorney fees.
The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
hereby enacts as follows:
Section 1. The act of February 14, 2008 (P.L.6, No.3), known
as the Right-to-Know Law, is amended by adding a section to
read:
Section 906. Vexatious requesters.
(a) General rule.--An agency may petition the Office of Open
Records for relief from a requester that the agency alleges is a
vexatious requester. The petition shall:
(1) be sworn under penalty of perjury;
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(2) be provided to the Office of Open Records and the
requester alleged to be a vexatious requester; and
(3) detail the conduct that the agency alleges
demonstrates vexatiousness, including:
(i) the number of requests filed;
(ii) the scope of the requests;
(iii) the nature, content, language or subject
matter of the requests;
(iv) the nature, content, language or subject matter
of other oral and written communications to the agency
from the requester;
(v) a pattern of conduct that amounts to an abuse of
the right to access records under this act or an
interference with the operation of the agency; and
(vi) other information the agency believes is
relevant.
(b) Initial finding.--
(1) Upon receipt of a petition, the executive director
shall review the petition and determine whether further
proceedings are warranted.
(2) If the executive director determines that further
proceedings:
(i) are not warranted, the executive director shall
deny the petition within 30 days of its filing. The
denial shall be in writing and include an explanation of
the reasons for the denial. The denial is not appealable;
or
(ii) are warranted, the executive director shall
establish a briefing schedule to provide a fair
opportunity for the requester to respond to the agency's
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petition.
(c) Mediation.--The executive director may require the
parties to participate in mediation conducted by the Office of
Open Records. The mediation shall last for a period of no more
than three months and may be extended with the agreement of both
parties. During the mediation, any other proceedings related to
the allegations of vexatiousness shall be stayed.
(d) Hearing determination.--After reviewing the requester's
response to the agency's petition, if any, the executive
director shall determine whether a hearing is warranted. The
executive director shall notify the parties of the
determination. A decision to hold or not hold a hearing is not
appealable. The executive director may admit into evidence
testimony, evidence and documents that the executive director
believes to be reasonably probative and relevant. The executive
director may limit the nature and extent of evidence found to be
cumulative.
(e) Final opinion.--The executive director shall issue a
final opinion either granting or denying the petition within six
months of its filing. Upon a grant of the petition, the
executive director may provide appropriate relief commensurate
with the vexatious conduct, including, but not limited to, an
order that the agency need not comply with future requests from
the vexatious requester for a specified period of time, but not
to exceed one year. The final opinion is not appealable.
(f) Definitions.--As used in this section, the following
words and phrases shall have the meanings given to them in this
subsection unless the context clearly indicates otherwise:
"Executive director." The executive director of the Office
of Open Records.
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Section 2. Section 1304(a) of the act is amended to read:
Section 1304. Court costs and attorney fees.
(a) Reversal of agency determination.--[If a court reverses
the final determination of the appeals officer or grants access
to a record after a request for access was deemed denied, the] A
court [may] shall award reasonable attorney fees and costs of
litigation or an appropriate portion thereof to a requester if
the court finds either of the following:
(1) the agency receiving the [original] request
willfully or with wanton disregard [deprived] denied the
requester [of] access to a public record subject to access or
otherwise acted in bad faith under the provisions of this
act; or
(2) the exemptions, exclusions or defenses asserted by
the agency in its [final determination] denial or during any
subsequent appeal were not based on a reasonable
interpretation of law.
* * *
Section 3. This act shall take effect in 60 days.
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