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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE |
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State
Rep. Mike Carroll |
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Carroll: Open records bill passes House
HARRISBURG, Dec. 12 – State Rep. Mike Carroll, D-Luzerne/Monroe, said legislation that would significantly revise the state’s open-records law was passed by the House today.
The House-amended version of a Senate bill that passed earlier this month (S.B. 1) would, for the first time, place a presumption in state law that the records of all three branches of government at both the state and local level are public. It also would exempt fewer records than the original Senate version of the bill.
Records would be presumed public unless they fall within a limited number of exceptions or are protected by other federal or state laws.
“It’s the public’s right to know what happens when their elected officials are on the clock,” Carroll said. “This legislation would make the documents of the legislature available for review by Commonwealth citizens.”
The legislation would also establish a new Public Records Office in the State Ethics Commission to help Pennsylvania residents gain access to public records and appeal decisions by state and local agencies denying access to records.
“An independent office could better handle public records requests and disputes without being subject to pressure by government agencies,” Carroll said.
The House version of S.B. 1 now goes back to the Senate for concurrence.
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CONTACT: Victoria L. Stanish
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