Open Records Policy

Effective: January 1, 2009
Last updated: November 8, 2024

The City of Philadelphia has adopted a policy to comply with the Commonwealth’s Act 3 of 2008, 65 P.S. §§ 67.101 et seq., commonly known as the Right-to-Know Law. With certain exceptions, members of the public have the right to inspect and/or copy public records upon written request.

1. Definitions

Right-to-Know Law. Act 3 of 2008, 65 P.S. §§ 67.101 et seq.

Business day. Monday through Friday 8:30 AM through 5:00 PM, except those days when the City of Philadelphia, the main office of the Law Department, or the office, department, board, or commission to which a request is submitted is closed. For the purpose of this Open Records Policy, City Agencies are closed when any of the following applies:

The City, the Law Department, or the particular City Department, Board, Office, or Commission operates on an “essential services only” basis;
The City, the main office of the Law Department, or the particular City Department, Board, Office, or Commission is closed for four or more hours during regular business hours; or
The City, the main office of the Law Department, or the particular City Department, Board, Office, or Commission closes for any portion of regular business hours on an emergency basis.

Public Record. Any document that satisfies the general definition of “public record” set forth in the Right-to-Know Law and does not fall within any of the exceptions set forth therein, as the definition and exceptions are amended from time to time and as the definition and exceptions are interpreted by state, federal, and/or local courts.

Open Records Officer. An official or employee of the City of Philadelphia officially assigned responsibility for receiving, tracking, and responding to requests for information under the Right-to-Know Law. The City of Philadelphia may designate a Deputy or Secondary Open Records Officer to act in the absence of an Open Records Officer.

Requester. A person who requests a record under the Right-to-Know Law.

Office of Open Records. The State Office, under the Department of Economic and Community Development, as explained in §1310 of the Right-to-Know Law. The Office of Open Records shall be responsible for many duties, including (but not limited to): issuing advisory opinions; training agencies and public employees; assigning appeals officers to review decisions; and conducting a biannual review of fees allowed under the Right-to-Know Law.

2. Open Records Officer

Please see below for the Open Records Officer specific to each City Department, Board, Office, or Commission. If no Open Records Officer is listed, please direct the request to the Open Records Officer for the City Law Department (Office of the City Solicitor). Please indicate the City Department, Board, Office, or Commission the request seeks records from. Please note that some independently elected officials—including the District Attorney’s Office—may have their own separate and distinct policies. You should consult their respective websites for information specific to their offices, including information concerning their respective Open Records Officers.

The City Law Department is not authorized to accept Right-to-Know Requests on behalf of the Philadelphia District Attorney. The Office of the District Attorney maintains a separate Open Records Policy; requests for that office should be directed to the Open Records Officer for the Office of the District Attorney.

Directing Requests:

The City Law Department represents the City on all Right-to-Know matters. Requests from lawyers or law firms must be directed to the Open Records Officer for the City Law Department and should indicate the Office, Department, Board and/or Commission the request is seeking records from.
Audio/Video Records from the Philadelphia Police Department – Requests for audio, visual, or bodycam records from the Philadelphia Police Department must be made in-person or via certified mail following the instructions in 42 Pa.C.S.A. § 67A(3) (aka Act 22). Such requests are not processed under the RTKL. See 42 Pa.C.S.A. § 67A(2)(a); 65 P.S. §§ 67.305, 67.3101.1. You may use this form to make a request under Act 22. Requests under this Act should be addressed to: Lieutenant Barry Jacobs, Philadelphia Police Department, Open Records/Right to Know Section, Philadelphia Public Services Building,
400 N. Broad St., 4W-72, Philadelphia, PA 19130.
Public Safety Reports: Copies of public safety records are available outside the RTK process directly from the Department of Records. Please file these according to the instructions online depending on the type of public safety record you seek. General information and specific report request forms are available at: https://www.phila.gov/services/crime-law-justice/get-a-copy-of-a-public-safety-report/
- Specific reports available through this process include:
  - Police incident or offense reports
  - Fire reports
  - Emergency medical services (EMS) reports
  - Police record checks

Traffic accident reports: You can get traffic accident reports (also known as crash reports) online by using the online portal at https://crashreports.phila.gov/
If you are not seeking a Public Safety Report, please direct your request to the appropriate City Open Records Officers:

City Department, Board, Office, or Commission	Open Records Officer
Law Department, Office of the City Solicitor Phase I Environmental Assessments Any office, board, commission, or department not listed below. If you are not sure where to direct a request, please send it here.	Margot Smith, Chief Deputy City Solicitor 1515 Arch St., 17^th Fl, Philadelphia, PA 19102 (215) 683-5227 RightToKnowLaw@phila.gov
City Council Online resources: Transcript Room – search for transcripts for Committee Hearings and Council Sessions Legislation Information Center – public access to City Council bills and resolutions FY2025 Budget Center	Michael Cooke, Sr., Legislative Counsel & Chief Ethics Officer c/o Law Department Right to Know Unit, 1515 Arch St., 17^th Fl, Philadelphia, PA 19102 (215) 683-5008 RightToKnowLaw@phila.gov
Office of the Controller Online resources: Audits, Reviews, Investigations	Frank Iannuzzi 1401 JFK Blvd, 12^th Fl, Philadelphia, PA 19102 (215) 686-8826 phone RightToKnowLaw@phila.gov
Office of the City Commissioners Online resources: Online election resources & data such as election results, FAQs, political maps, Election Board training materials, as well as various reports and data Multiple election-related datasets with filter/search/visualization tools at OpenDataPhilly	Margot Smith, Chief Deputy City Solicitor 1515 Arch St., 17^th Fl, Philadelphia, PA 19102 (215) 683-5227 RightToKnowLaw@phila.gov
Sheriff’s Office	LaVanda K. Harris, Esq., Open Records Officer Philadelphia Sheriff’s Office, Undersheriff Unit 100 S. Broad St., 5^th Floor, Philadelphia, PA 19110 LaVanda.K.Harris@phila.gov
Office of the Chief Administrative Officer	Heather Fay, Executive Assistant Municipal Services Building, 1401 JFK Blvd, Suite 630, Philadelphia, PA 19107 Heather.Fay@phila.gov
Sanitation	Maria Vamvakidou, Sanitation Program Administrator Municipal Services Building, 1401 JFK Blvd, MSB7, Philadelphia, PA 19107 Maria.Vamvakidou@phila.gov
Philadelphia International Airport	Tameka Felder 8500 Essington Ave, Executive Offices, Third Floor Terminals D-E, Philadelphia, PA 19153 PA 19107 righttoknowlaw@phila.gov
Department of Behavioral Health & Intellectual Disability Services	Ava Ashley, Health Program Manager 1101 Market St, 7^th Fl, Philadelphia, PA 19107 (215) 685-5424 righttoknowlaw@phila.gov
Board of Ethics	Thomas Klemm, Esq., Staff Attorney 1515 Arch St, 18^th Fl, Philadelphia, PA 19102 (215) 686-9463 Thomas.Klemm@phila.gov
Board of Pensions & Retirement	Shamika Taliaferro, Deputy Director Two Penn Center Plaza, 16^th Fl, Philadelphia, PA 19103 (215) 496-7426 Shamika.Taliaferro@phila.gov
Board of Revision of Taxes	Carla E. Pagan, CPE, Executive Director 601 Walnut St, Ste 325 East, Philadelphia, PA 19106 (215) 686-4343 Carla.Pagan@phila.gov
Civil Service Commission	Virna Clay, Administrative Specialist 2 1401 JFK Blvd, Ste 1640, Philadelphia, PA 19102 (215) 686-2320 Virna.Clay@phila.gov
Department of Commerce	Margot Smith, Chief Deputy City Solicitor 1515 Arch St, 17^th Fl, Philadelphia, PA 19102 RightToKnowLaw@phila.gov
Commission on Human Relations	Karen Forman, Esq., Principal Assistant 601 Walnut St, Ste 300 South, Philadelphia, PA 19106 (215) 686-4891 Karen.Forman@phila.gov
Office of the Director of Finance Budget Office Risk Management Online resources: Find Budgets, Strategic Plans, Monthly Expenditure Reports, Financial Reports, and more	Elizabeth Hanley, Deputy Finance Director for Administration, Development, and Training Office of the Director of Finance 1401 JFK Blvd, 13^th Fl, Philadelphia, PA 19102 (215) 686-6203 Elizabeth.Hanley@phila.gov
Department of Public Health Office of the Health Commissioner Medical Examiner’s Office Online resources: Find Food Safety Inspection Reports Requesting Medical Examiner Records for legal next of kin or other authorized individual	Tracy Jones, Executive Assistant 1101 Market St, Ste 1320, Philadelphia, PA 19107 (215) 686-5234 Tracy.Jones@phila.gov
Department of Public Property	Margot Smith, Chief Deputy City Solicitor 1515 Arch St, 17^th Fl, Philadelphia, PA 19102 RightToKnowLaw@phila.gov
Department of Revenue	Rahul Sharma, Open Records Officer 1515 Arch St., 17^th Fl, Philadelphia, PA 19102 (215) 686-6928 Rahul.Sharma@phila.gov
Department of Streets Online resources: Visit StreetSmartPHL for near real-time information related to permits, paving, snow plowing, and daily trash and recycling collections.	Herbert Lee, Administrative Specialist 2 1401 JFK Blvd, 9th Fl, Philadelphia, PA 19102 herbert.lee@phila.gov
Department of Fleet Services	Dr. K Wilson, Administrative Services Director 100 S. Broad St, 3rd Fl, Philadelphia, PA 19110 (215) 686-1844 k.wilson@phila.gov
Free Library of Philadelphia	Christina Patton, Assistant to the Chief of Staff 1901 Vine St, Philadelphia, PA 19103 (215) 686-5306 PattonC@freelibrary.org
Division of Housing & Community Development City Planning Commission Philadelphia Historical Commission Developer Services Committee	Margot Smith, Chief Deputy City Solicitor 1515 Arch St., 17^th Fl, Philadelphia, PA 19102 (215) 683-5227 RightToKnowLaw@phila.gov
Department of Labor – Labor Standards Unit	Perritti DiVirgilio, Director of Labor Standards 1401 JFK Blvd, Rm 170, Philadelphia, PA 19102 (215) 686-2132 perritti.divirgilio@phila.gov
Office of Worker Protection	Margot Smith, Chief Deputy City Solicitor 1515 Arch St., 17^th Fl, Philadelphia, PA 19102 (215) 683-5227 RightToKnowLaw@phila.gov
Licenses & Inspections Online resources: Detailed property history is publicly searchable online and updated daily (licenses, permits, violations [including fire violations], appeals) A property owner or the owner’s agent may request copies of building plans at the Permit and License Center as described under “Construction permits and plans“ Multiple datasets with filter/search/visualization tools at OpenDataPhilly	Tia Platts 1401 JFK Blvd, Rm 1130, Philadelphia, PA 19102 (215) 686-1441 Tia.Platts@phila.gov
Managing Director’s Office Office of Transportation and Infrastructure Office of Special Events Office of Emergency Management Online resources: Orders and directives of the Managing Director’s Office Find Phily311 data on all requests submitted since December 2014 with filter/search/visualization tools at OpenDataPhilly	Kyle Allen 1401 JFK Blvd., Ste 1630, Philadelphia, PA 19102 (215) 683-4766 Kyle.Allen@phila.gov
Office of Innovation & Technology	Steven E. Robertson, Esq., Chief of Staff (215) 686-8268 steven.robertson@phila.gov
Office of Clean & Green Initiatives	Mary Stitt, Chief of Staff Municipal Services Building,1401 JFK Blvd., 7^th Fl, Philadelphia, PA 19102 (215) 683-2011 Mary.StittKnow@phila.gov
Philadelphia Department of Prisons	Gregory J. Vrato, Esq., Director of Policy Compliance & Legal Affairs 7901 State Rd, Philadelphia, PA 19136 (215) 685-7840 Greg.Vrato@prisons.phila.gov
Office of the Inspector General	Alexander F. DeSantis 601 Walnut St, Ste 300 East, Philadelphia, PA 19106 (215) 685-1770 Alexander.DeSantis@phila.gov
Office of Property Assessment Online resources: Find multiple datasets with filter/search/visualization tools for properties and assessment history as well as tax delinquent properties at OpenDataPhilly	Drew Aldinger, Esq., Deputy Administrator 601 Walnut St, Ste 300 West, Philadelphia, PA 19106 (215) 686-4353 RighttoKnowOPA@phila.gov
Office of the Board of Administrative Adjudication	Michael Giunta 1401 JFK Blvd, Ste 630, Philadelphia, PA 19102 (215) 686-5247 RighttoKnowLaw@phila.gov
Office of Homeless Services Office of Supportive Housing	Jerome R. Hill Director of Compliance Special Assistant to the Director 1401 JFK Blvd. 10^th Floor, Philadelphia, PA 19102 OHSRightToKnow@phila.gov
Parks & Recreation Commission	Ken Sheppard, MBA 1515 Arch St, 10^th Fl, Philadelphia, PA 19102 (215) 683-3639 PPR_RightToKnow@phila.gov
Philadelphia Department of Prisons	Gregory J. Vrato, Esq., Director of Policy Compliance & Legal Affairs 7901 State Rd, Philadelphia, PA 19136 (215) 685-7840 Greg.Vrato@prisons.phila.gov
Philadelphia Fire Department Online resources: Instructions for obtaining Fire Reports outside the RTKL process. Detailed property history of violations (including fire violations) is publicly searchable online and updated daily.	Deputy Chief Dennis Merrigan 3061 Island Ave, Philadelphia, PA 19153 (215) 686-1362 Dennis.Merrigan@phila.gov
Philadelphia Water Department	Sheilah M. Louis, Esq. 1101 Market Street, 5th Floor, Philadelphia, PA 19107 (215) 683-6139Sheilah.Louis@Phila.Gov
Philadelphia Police Department Online resources: Instructions for Police Incident reports, Fire Reports, Police record Checks, Letters of Good Conduct Traffic Accident Reports (aka “crash reports”) Crime Map and Stats available online Multiple datasets with filter/search/visualization tools at OpenDataPhilly	Lieutenant Barry Jacobs Philadelphia Police Department Open Records/Right to Know Section Philadelphia Public Services Building (PPSB) 400 N. Broad St., 4W-72, Philadelphia, PA 19130 (215) 686-3277 police.righttoknow@phila.gov
Procurement Department Online resources: Search PHLContracts for bids and solicitations	T. David Williams Jr., Esq. Deputy Procurement Commissioner; Director, Professional Services Contracting Procurement Department 1401 JFK Blvd., Suite 100 MSB, Philadelphia, PA 19102 (215) 686-3499 RightToKnowProcurement@phila.gov
Department of Records Online resources: Instructions for obtaining deeds, mortgages, easements, notary commissions, and other recorded records. Multiple datasets with filter/search/visualization tools at OpenDataPhilly including data of all real estate transfers since December 6, 1999.	Lynda Yerkov City Hall Rm 156, Philadelphia, PA 19107 (215) 686-2268 Lynda.Yerkov@phila.gov
Sinking Fund Commission	Christopher DiFusco, Esq., Chief Investment Officer 1500 John F. Kennedy Blvd., 17^th Fl, Philadelphia, PA 19102 (215) 496-7463 Christopher.Difusco@phila.gov
Treasurer’s Office	Amanda Robinson, Executive Assistant 1401 JFK Blvd, Ste. 640, Philadelphia, PA 19102 (215) 686-2300 Amanda Robinson@phila.gov
Water Revenue Bureau	Arlene Reilly, Data Services Support Clerk 1Municipal Services Building, 2nd Floor (215) 686-6900 Arlene.Reilly@phila.gov
Office of the Mayor Online resources: Search archived press releases Mayoral Executive Orders since 1952	Kathleen Lonie City Hall, Rm 204, Philadelphia, PA 19107 (215) 686-0338 kathleen.lonie@phila.gov

3. Procedure

The Right-to-Know Law requires that the City of Philadelphia act upon each non-anonymous written request when such request is made in person, by mail, by fax, or by email. The Right-to-Know Law does not require that the City of Philadelphia act upon an oral request, and the City of Philadelphia shall refuse to accept oral requests. Furthermore, the Right-to-Know Law does not require that the City of Philadelphia act upon an anonymous request, and the City of Philadelphia will refuse to honor an anonymous request. Finally, due to IT security risks, the City of Philadelphia will not accept requests where the details of records sought are submitted exclusively via hyperlink, the nor will responsive records be uploaded to an external hyperlink (outside of phila.gov) prior to advance and express arrangements with the Law Department.

Pursuant to the Right-to-Know Law, the State Office of Open Records has created and published on its website a standard statewide form, which must be accepted by the City of Philadelphia for filing a request. (https://www.openrecords.pa.gov/RTKL/Forms.cfm).

Effective February 1, 2012, the City of Philadelphia requires the standard statewide form be used for the submission of Right-to-Know requests, and will not consider a request to be a written request pursuant to the Right-to-Know Law unless the request is submitted on or with the standard statewide form. As of February 1, 2012, the City of Philadelphia considers any request not submitted on or with the standard statewide form to be an informal request not subject to the Right-to-Know Law.[1] If a requester submits a request on or with the standard statewide form after submitting an informal request for the same (or similar) records, the City of Philadelphia will consider the informal request to have been withdrawn. The City of Philadelphia reserves the right, at its sole discretion, to require a written request pursuant to the Right-to-Know Law before releasing records. A copy of the standard statewide form appears at the end of this policy.

The Right-to-Know Law sets forth various specifications for the contents of a written request. To qualify as a written request under the Right-to-Know Law and the City of Philadelphia Open Records Policy the request must be:

Directed to the appropriate Open Records Officer,
Submitted on or with the standard statewide form, and
Contain at least the following information:

1. Name of requester;
2. Contact information of requester (either email address or physical address of requester); and
3. Records sought, identified, or described with sufficient specificity to allow the City of Philadelphia to ascertain what records are being requested.

Under the Right-to-Know Law, the City of Philadelphia has a duty to make a good faith effort to determine if the record(s) requested is a public record and to respond as promptly as possible under the circumstances existing at the time of the request; this time shall not exceed five business days from the date the request is received by the relevant Open Records Officer. The Law provides that either a final or interim response be provided to the requester within five business days from the date of receipt by the Department, Board, Office, or Commission. If there is no response within this five-day time period, the Open Records Request is deemed denied.

The Right-to-Know Law and the City of Philadelphia’s policy contemplates that requesters will receive a response within five business days. The Right-to-Know Law, however, does provide the City of Philadelphia with specific reasons that may be invoked to receive a single extension of time that shall not exceed 30 calendar days. If the 30^th calendar day falls on a day when the City of Philadelphia is closed, the deadline will be the following business day.

If an extension is asserted and no response is provided to the requester within the 30-day time period, the Open Records Request is deemed denied. Additionally, if the City of Philadelphia notifies the requester it needs more than the maximum 30-day extension, the request is deemed denied unless the requester has agreed in writing to an extension to the date specified in the notice. If the requester agrees to the extension, the request shall be deemed denied on the day following the date specified in the notice if a response is not provided by that date.

The City of Philadelphia’s final response to a request will:

Grant the request;
Deny the request;
Grant the request in part and deny the request in part; or
Grant the request and redact part of the information provided pursuant to the Right-to-Know Law and/or other applicable federal, state, and local law.

4. Appeals of Denied Requests

If a request for access to a record is denied (in whole or in part) or deemed denied, the requester may file an appeal within 15 business days of the mailing date of the City of Philadelphia’s denial as follows:

Records Other Than Criminal Investigative Records

Appeals of denials related to requests for records other than criminal investigative records must be directed to the Pennsylvania Office of Open Records:

Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
Office of Open Records
333 Market St., 16^th Fl
Harrisburg, PA 17101

Criminal Investigative Records

Appeals of denials related to requests for criminal investigative records must be directed to the Philadelphia District Attorney’s Office within 15 business days of the mailing date of the City of Philadelphia’s denial. Appeals to the Philadelphia District Attorney’s Office should be directed to the following address: District Attorney’s Office, Civil Litigation Unit, Open Records Appeals Officer, Three South Penn Square, Philadelphia, PA 19107-3499.

For All Administrative Appeals

Unless the requester agrees otherwise, the Appeals Officer shall make a final determination which shall be mailed to the requester and the City of Philadelphia within 30 days of receipt of the appeal. Should the Appeals Officer fail to issue a ruling within 30 days, the appeal is deemed denied.

Before a final determination is issued, a hearing may be held. The determination by the Appeals Officer shall be a final order. The Appeals Officer shall provide a written explanation of the reasons for the decision to the requester and the City of Philadelphia.

Within 30 days of the mailing date of the final determination of the Appeals Officer, a requester or the City of Philadelphia may file a petition for review or other document(s) as required by rule of court with the Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas.

6. Fees and Charges

Fees for duplication of records have been established and posted by the State Office of Open Records. The City of Philadelphia will charge fees consistent with the State Office of Open Records regulations.

The City of Philadelphia reserves the right to impose additional fees if it incurs costs for complying with a request, pursuant to the Right-to-Know Law; such additional fees, when charged, must be reasonable. This includes, but is not limited to, fees for enhanced electronic access and certified copies of documents.

7. Written Policies and Regulations

The City of Philadelphia and each Open Records Officer shall retain the discretion and authority to adopt any other written policies that are consistent with the Right-to-Know Law, and these policies, as amended from time to time, that they deem to be necessary or prudent, consistent with the Right-to-Know Law.

View the Pennsylvania Office of Open Records Standard Right-to-Know Law Request Form (PDF).

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