RE2: Walsh v. Carnegie Library, Docket AP 2009-1150
From: "Glenn A.
Walsh" < gawalsh@andrewcarnegie.cc
>
To: "AudreyBuglione"
< abuglione@state.pa.us >
Cc: "David Tessitor" < dave@davetessitor.com >, "David
Tessitor" < davetessitor@pghfree.net
>, "Carolyn D.Duronio" < CDuronio@ReedSmith.com >,
"Glenn A. Walsh" < gawalsh@andrewcarnegie.cc >
To: Audrey
Buglione
From: Glenn A. Walsh
Copy: Carolyn D. Duronio, Reed Smith LLP
David Tessitor
Subject: Additional Comments
The "Position Paper on Behalf of the Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh,"
issued by Reed Smith LLC, provides legal rationale why the Open Records Law,
per se, does not apply to Carnegie Library. This position paper does not, at
all, address Title 22 of the Pennsylvania Code, Section 141.21, Subsection (2),
Part (i), Subpart (C) which states:
"In approving and disapproving plans for the use of State funds by local
libraries, decisions of the State Librarian will be determined by the following
criteria:..
"(i) Structure and government
of library service. The structure and government of library service shall
conform with the following:...
“(C) The library shall be an integral part of general local government.”
The intent of this section is to have public libraries, funded by
the state, be considered under state law to be an agency of local government,
even if the public library is actually operated by a private association. This
regulation was approved, even though it was well known that many, many (perhaps
even most) public libraries in
Title 22, Section 141.21 was written to deal with state funding of public
libraries. Hence, it is my contention that when a Pennsylvania public library accepts funding
from the state, under Title 22, Section 141.21 they automatically admit and
accept the fact that, under state law, they will be considered an agency of
local government, and hence, are then required to comply with all state
statutes applicable to municipalities including the Open Records Law and the
Sunshine Act.
At Andrew Carnegie's specific request, the City of
Carnegie Library, apparently, argues that Title 22, Section 141.21 should be
ignored. Why would other regulations be observed but this one regulation be ignored?
Title 22, Section 141.21 was written for a reason. It was the intent that,
under state law, state-funded public libraries, even those not operated by a
municipality, be considered an agency of local government, and thus have the
obligation to comply with all state statutes all other agencies of local
government must comply with, including the Open Records Law and the Sunshine
Act.
In the "Position Paper on Behalf of the Carnegie Library of
Pittsburgh," it is also stated: "The Library similarly fails to
qualify as a “local agency”. At that time of the Library’s creation in
1890, there was no statute pursuant to which the Library could have been
created."
That is not true. Several years prior to the 1890 February 25 creation of the
Carnegie Free Libraries of the City of
At that time, the City Solicitor ruled that Cities of the Second Class (of
which
In the next few years, the City asked the General Assembly to enact a law that
permitted Cities of the Second Class to use tax funds for funding public
libraries. This was accomplished, allowing the City to ask Andrew Carnegie to
renew his offer.
Ironically, Andrew Carnegie refused to renew the $250,000 offer to build a
library for the city. In those few years, he saw that the city had grown so
much, that, instead, he offered one million dollars to build a library system
for the city, including several branch libraries. With this offer, he did
require the city to provide an annual subsidy of no less than $40,000. This is
the offer that was gratefully accepted by the City of
So, by 1890 February 25, the Pennsylvania General Assembly had enacted a
statute pursuant to which the Library could have been created.
gaw
Glenn A. Walsh, Project Director,
Friends of the Zeiss < http://friendsofthezeiss.org
>
Electronic Mail - < gawalsh@planetarium.cc >
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