Lutz v. City of Philadelphia
Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania
No. 1996 C.D. 2009
October 22, 2010
The Commonwealth Court held that the final arbitration awards and orders in union grievance matters are subject to disclosure under the Right to Know Law, so long as information is redacted if it is covered by the Law’s exemptions.
Background
Wendy Ruderman, a reporter for Philadelphia Newspapers, submitted a Right to Know Law request to the City of Philadelphia seeking arbitration decisions and awards for police officers since 2005.
The local police union learned that the city planned to provide redacted copies of the requested records and filed a complaint in Philadelphia County court seeking to block the City from handing over the records.
After a hearing, the court ruled that the city could only provide Ruderman with a summary of each arbitration that included the date of the arbitration award, the name of the arbitrator, and whether the grievance was affirmed or denied.
The city appealed to the Commonwealth Court.
Commonwealth Court Decision
The Commonwealth Court explained that although the RTKL provides that “evidence at an arbitration proceeding, a transcript of the proceeding, [and] the opinion” of the arbitrator are exempt from disclosure, the law expressly states that a “final award or order of the arbitrator” is available to the public.
The union argued that the awards and opinions included sensitive personal information and information that if released could pose “a substantial and demonstrable risk of physical harm to or the personal security of an individual.”
But, the court rejected that argument, noting that the law states that this kind of information should be redacted before records are released. And, the court held that the union had not carried its burden of showing that the records posed any risk, as its witness’s testimony was “mere conjecture” that “speculated that access to arbitration awards will . . . pose a risk to the officer’s safety and privacy.”
As a result, the court held that the union could not block the city’s release of the arbitration awards and orders.