Norwegian Township, Pennsylvania
From Sunshine Review
Norwegian Township is a township in Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania. The population was 2,172 at the 2000 census.
On March 20, 2009, Norwegian Township, Pennsylvania became the first local government agency to appeal a ruling of the Pennsylvania Office of Open Records (POOR). POOR ruled on March 3 that the township is required to provide "employer taxes and contributions" information about what the township pays for its three supervisors. This ruling was in response to a complaint from Charles Zurat, a resident of the township.[1]
In mid-January 2009, Zurat requested salary information from the township. He was given records indicating the supervisors’ gross pay, but not the employer taxes and contributions. Zurat appealed the decision to POOR on February 2, and POOR ruled that the township had violated the state's law by:
- Failing to provide public records
- Failing to submit a proper written denial
- Failing to support the reasons for its denial with legal citations
- Failing to satisfy its burden of proving that the requested information is not public.
Stanley Petchulis is the township's "open records officer"--a position each government agency in Pennsylvania is required to fill under the state's public access laws. Petchulis said the basis for the township's appeal of the POOR ruling is, "I just think it should remain confidential. I don’t think that he has the right to know all the inner workings of the township."[1]
