Q: I requested copies of a school district’s audio/video recording of a public meeting held earlier this week. The district denied my request saying the recording is exempt as “personal notes and draft minutes.” Is this right?

A: No, the recordings are not draft minutes or purely personal records, they are public records and must be provided to requesters consistent with the Right-to-Know Law, or ideally, without the need for the formal RTKL process. No law requires an agency to record public meetings, but if they do, the recording is expressly public. 

Public meeting recordings are not subject to the “draft minutes” exception in section 708(b)(21), nor are they exempt pursuant to section 708(b)(12) as notes prepared solely for personal use. 

The Office of Open Records determined in Advisory Opinion 2009-003 that if an agency makes a recording, it is not exempt. The OOR’s advisory opinion makes clear that there is no law that requires an agency to record meetings, but if they do, the recordings are not exempt and must be made public upon receipt of a Right-to-Know Law request. 

In addition to access under the Right-to-Know Law, many agencies choose to post meeting recordings on their website, if they have one. Providing access proactively, and without the need for a formal RTKL request, saves requesters time and saves public resources by removing the delays and administrative work that can accompany the formal RTKL process. Formal, written RTKL requests are not required to release public information, and agencies can – and should – provide informal, proactive public access to records that are clearly public like meeting minutes and public meeting recordings. 

As always, this is not intended to be, and should not be construed as, legal advice.  Please contact your news organization’s private attorney or the PNA Legal Hotline at (717) 703-3080 with questions.