COUNTY OPEN RECORDS
CRAWFORD COUNTY OPEN RECORDS FEES
Fee Structure
Section 1307 of the Right-To-Know law requires the Office of Open Records to establish a fee structure. To promote uniformity, the Office of Open Records encourages the adoption of the following fee structure. Duplication fees can be waived.
The Office of Open Records establishes the following fee structure in accordance with the law. Crawford County has adopted the following fee structure:
| Record Type |
Fee |
| Copies: (A "photocopy" is either a single-sided copy or one side of a double-sided black-and-white copy of a standard 8.5" x 11" page) |
Up to $ 0.25 per page |
| Certification of a Record |
Up to $5 per record to certify a public record. Certification fees do not include notarization fees. |
| Specialized documents: (For example, but not limited to, blue prints, color copies, non-standard sized documents) |
Actual Cost |
| Facsimile/Microfiche/Other Media |
Actual Cost |
| Redaction Fee |
None |
| Conversion to Paper |
Variable. If a record is maintained exclusively in electronic form or in other non-paper media, duplication fees are limited to the lesser of the fee for duplication on paper or the fee for duplication in the original media unless the requester specifically requests for the record to be duplicated in the more expensive medium. (Sec. 1307(e)). |
| Postage Fees |
Actual Cost of Mailing |
Be Advised:
-Statutory Fees: If a separate statute authorizes an agency to charge a set amount for a certain type of record, the agency may charge no more than that statutory amount. For example, a Recorder of Deeds may charge a copy fee of 50¢ per uncertified page and $1.50 per certified page under 42 P.S. § 21051.
-Inspection of Redacted Records: If a requester wishes to inspect rather than receive a copy of a record and the record contains both public and non-public information, the agency will redact the non-public information. An agency may not charge the requester for the redaction. However, Crawford County may charge for the copies it must make of the redacted material in order for the requester to view the public record. The fee structure outlined above will apply. If, after inspecting the records, the requester chooses to obtain the copies, no additional fee may be charged.
-Enhanced Electronic Access: If an agency offers enhanced electronic access to records in addition to making the records accessible for inspection and duplication by a requester, the agency may establish user fees specifically for the provision of the enhanced electronic access, but only to the extent that the enhanced electronic access is in addition to making the records accessible for inspection and duplication by a requester as required. The user fees for enhanced electronic access may be a flat rate, a subscription fee for a period of time, a per-transaction fee, a fee based on the cumulative time of system access or any other reasonable method and any combination thereof. The user fees for enhanced electronic access must be reasonable, must be pre-approved by the Office of Open Records and must not be established with the intent or effect of excluding persons from access to records or duplicates thereof or of creating profit.
-Fee Limitations: Except as otherwise provided by statute, the law states that no other fees may be imposed unless Crawford County necessarily incurs costs for complying with the request, and such fees must be reasonable. No fee may be imposed for a review of a record to determine whether the record is a public record, legislative record or financial record subject to access. No fee may be charged for searching for or retrieval of documents. Crawford County will not charge staff time or salary for complying with a RTK request.
-Prepayment: Prior to granting a request for access, Crawford County may require a requester to prepay an estimate of the authorized fees if the fees required to fulfill the request are expected to exceed $100.
-Once the request is fulfilled and prepared for release, Crawford County will request payment for the cost of the records prior to releasing the records.
