This does not include the Superintendent. Timmy's raise should be announced next month or so. His contract runs from July 1-June 30.(2) Approval of Annual Salaries for 12-Month Secretaries: RESOLVED, That the Board approves the 2013-2014 list of contracted salaries for 12-month secretaries as listed effective July 1, 2013, reflecting an average increase as negotiated of 2.89% over the duration of the contract.(3) Approval of Annual Salaries for Custodial/Maintenance Employees: RESOLVED, That the Board approves the 2013-2014 list of contracted salaries for custodial/maintenance employees effective July 1, 2013, reflecting an average increase as negotiated of 3.0% over the duration of the contract.(4) Approval of Annual Salaries for Administrative Assistants/Supervisors: RESOLVED, That the Board approves the 2013-2014 list of salary adjustments for administrativeassistants/supervisors effective July 1, 2013, reflecting an average increase of 2.8%.(5) Approval of Annual Salaries for Specialists: RESOLVED, That the Board approves the 2013-2014 list of salary adjustments for specialists effective July 1, 2013, reflecting an average increase of 2.8%.(6) Approval of Salaries for Head Custodians: RESOLVED, That the Board approves the 2013-2014 list of salary adjustments for head custodians effective July 1, 2013, reflecting an average increase of 2.8%.(7) Approval of Administrative Salaries: RESOLVED, That the Board approves the 2013-2014 list of annual salaries for administrators effective July 1, 2013, reflecting an increase in accordance with the Act 93 agreement of 1.7% plus merit for an average increase of 3.0%.
Friday, June 14, 2013
Administrators getting average increase of 3%
The June 17, 2013 Agenda has been posted on the MTLSD website. In a previous Lebo Citizens post, Annual salary adjustments? percentages were not shared with the public. Monday's agenda shows:
Wednesday, June 12, 2013
A new fee for everyone
The Commission took another step closer to implementing a Pay As You Throw (PAYT) program. The waste fee, not to be confused with our recyclables, would be charged to all residents in Mt. Lebanon and promotes a unit-based pricing approach to solid waste management. For example, if you throw away a bag a week, you would be charged less than your neighbor who tosses ten bags a week.
I spoke against this new fee at last night's commission meeting. After watching this presentation during the discussion session, I thought that it would:
I spoke against this new fee at last night's commission meeting. After watching this presentation during the discussion session, I thought that it would:
- Boost hoarding
- Provide us with an incentive to dump our garbage in with our recyclables
- Charge us with another fee
- Start illegal dumping of garbage in public places
- Make it more difficult for those who rely on wheeling their garbage to the curb
Tuesday, June 11, 2013
Anonymous letter number two
Another anonymous letter has surfaced and made its way here on Lebo Citizens. As before, I scanned it as a pdf and is available in the hyperlink above, and as a .jpg below.
Monday, June 10, 2013
Filing a Right To Know, Part 2 (The rest of the story)
On June 5, 2013, I filed a Right To Know with the School District asking for the 2013-14 Mt. Lebanon School District Budget Resolution, approved by the Mt. Lebanon School Board on May 20, 2013, and the detailed 2013-2014 Final Budget.
The District normally has five business days to respond, which they did, unless a legal review is required, which would be 30 additional days. Here is the response I received today by Mrs. Szalinski, Open Records Officer, and Dr. Steinhauer's administrative assistant.
I acknowledged receipt of the response that had also been sent to Dr. Steinhauer, Solicitor Tom Peterson, and Jan Klein with the following:
The District normally has five business days to respond, which they did, unless a legal review is required, which would be 30 additional days. Here is the response I received today by Mrs. Szalinski, Open Records Officer, and Dr. Steinhauer's administrative assistant.
I acknowledged receipt of the response that had also been sent to Dr. Steinhauer, Solicitor Tom Peterson, and Jan Klein with the following:
Mrs. Szalinski,How can we go from 205 pages to 24 pages? I know the District has been frugal, according to Jan Klein, but saving on electrons doesn't really amount to much.
Thank you for your timely response, but I am confused. The detailed final budget to the PDE on the link that you provided in your response is only 24 pages and can be found here. http://www.mtlsd.org/district/budget/budgetmeetingdocuments.asp
Yet, last year's budget is 205 pages. http://www.mtlsd.org/district/stuff/budget_2012-2013.pdf It can be found here: http://www.mtlsd.org/district/finance.asp
Where might I get the detailed 2013-2014 final budget?
Elaine Gillen
Imagine Pittsburgh
I am spreading the word of a new Pittsburgh initiative: ImaginePittsburgh.com.
It's a one-stop, interactive resource for natives, newcomers, and boomerangers looking to advance their career and build a life they’ll love in our region.
It's a one-stop, interactive resource for natives, newcomers, and boomerangers looking to advance their career and build a life they’ll love in our region.
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Sunday, June 9, 2013
41st Annual Greek Food Festival UPDATED
Holy Cross Greek Orthodox Church 41st Village
Food Festival
Come join us for the Festival!
Serving lunch and dinner with homemade Greek specialties and desserts. Listen and dance to live Greek music. Shop at our bookstore and our other unique “shops” featuring beautiful Orthodox art, Mediterranean jewelry and lots more you can only find on…
June 12, 13, 14 & 15, 2013
Lunch 11:30 AM – 2:30 PM
Dinner 4:30 PM-9:00 PM
Wednesday, Thursday & Friday
Saturday: 11:30 AM – 9:00 PM (Food line is open all day Saturday)
Saturday: 11:30 AM – 9:00 PM (Food line is open all day Saturday)
Take Out: Wednesday, Thursday & Friday ONLY 11:30 AM-7:00 PM
Online Ordering ONLY Wednesday-Friday…all orders available for pick up in Take Out area
Online Ordering ONLY Wednesday-Friday…all orders available for pick up in Take Out area
Phone: 412.854.6001
Fax: 412.833.0982
Fax: 412.833.0982
Update June 13, 2013 Fax Order Form is available here.
Friday, June 7, 2013
RRRibbit
You knew this was coming...
Once upon a time, there was a super Super named Timmy. On Graduation Day, Timmy spoke of a challenging day that he had at the beginning of the year. He shared his tale with 450 of Mt. Lebanon's finest students.
The graduates were sitting on the edge of their chairs in anticipation of the super Super's words of wisdom.
Timmy began his Commencement speech. He started with a story about an incident that occurred at the construction site.
Super Timmy told these students about a group of frogs which showed up on the job site. These were not ordinary frogs, but magical, talking frogs.
The children in the stadium were spell bound. "In our land of unicorns and rainbows, Mt. Lebanon also has magical, talking frogs," they whispered to their parents and grandparents.
But the grads stared in disbelief. "Oh no! Our super Super is giving the wrong speech," they proclaimed. They were horrified that Timmy was giving his kindergartner speech.
The next day, Timmy was the talk of the town.
But here is the rest of the story. Timmy's magical, talking frog jumped out and was immediately hit by a construction truck.
Once upon a time, there was a super Super named Timmy. On Graduation Day, Timmy spoke of a challenging day that he had at the beginning of the year. He shared his tale with 450 of Mt. Lebanon's finest students.
Timmy began his Commencement speech. He started with a story about an incident that occurred at the construction site.
Super Timmy told these students about a group of frogs which showed up on the job site. These were not ordinary frogs, but magical, talking frogs.
The children in the stadium were spell bound. "In our land of unicorns and rainbows, Mt. Lebanon also has magical, talking frogs," they whispered to their parents and grandparents.
But the grads stared in disbelief. "Oh no! Our super Super is giving the wrong speech," they proclaimed. They were horrified that Timmy was giving his kindergartner speech.
The next day, Timmy was the talk of the town.
But here is the rest of the story. Timmy's magical, talking frog jumped out and was immediately hit by a construction truck.
This story does have a happy ending. Timmy gets a huge raise and lives happily ever after.
The End
Annual salary adjustments?
The June 10, 2013 School Board Agenda lists the following six salary items:
2. Approval of List of Annual Salaries for 12-Month Secretaries – The Superintendent recommends the negotiated annual contract salaries for 12-month secretaries as listed effective July 1, 2013.
3. Approval of List of Annual Salaries for Custodial/Maintenance Employees – The Superintendent recommends the negotiated annual contract salaries for
custodial/maintenance employees as listed effected July 1, 2013.
4. Approval of Annual Salaries for Administrative Assistants/Supervisors – The Superintendent recommends that the Board approves the annual salary adjustments for administrative assistants/supervisors effective July 1, 2013.
5. Approval of Annual Salaries for Specialists – The Superintendent recommends that the Board approves the annual salary adjustments for specialists effective July 1, 2013.
6. Approval of Annual Salaries of Head Custodians – The Superintendent recommends that the Board approve the annual salary adjustments for head custodians effective July 1, 2013.
7. Approval of Administrative Salaries – The Superintendent recommends that the Board approve the annual salary adjustments for administrators effective July 1, 2013.
I see the agenda is lacking a minor detail this year. No percentages are listed. Maybe it is not important. Just knowing that Timmy recommends that the Board approve them is good enough for them.
June Change Orders
The June 10, 2013 agenda has been posted. The list of 29 change orders totals $211,287 for June.
Change Orders for High School Renovation Project – The following change orders are presented for Board consideration. All the change orders listed below have been reviewed by the architect, PJ Dick and the District administration.
a. PL-13-102 to Vrabel for $4,449 to install gas turrets for Science classrooms,
b. PL-14-103 to Vrabel for $3,850 to install Heat Trace on vertical sanitary stacks in G Building,
c. PL-15-104 to Vrabel for $4,267 to provide plumbing to rooms described in
RFIs 7 and 29,
d. PL-16-105 to Vrabel for $2,511 for added rain water conductor piping based on a louver conflict,
e. PL-17-106 to Vrabel for $2,970 to add master shower control valve in Athletic Building restroom,
f. PL-18-107 to Vrabel for $6,525 to tie the existing rain water conductors in D
Building to storm sewer,
g. EL-29-108 to Farfield for $1,699 to add power to F Building hydronic unit
heaters,
h. EL-30-109 to Farfield for $5,203 to add 120V power and low voltage control to window shades in D Building,
i. EL-31-110 to Farfield for $25,252 to add low voltage wire to all scoreboard
equipment and to add power to three time clocks and four pace clocks in
Athletic Building,
j. EL-32-111 to Farfield for $5,986 to add disconnect switch for VAV box
transformers as required by electrical inspector,
k. EL-33-112 to Farfield for $11,084 for electrical grounding grid and service
changes required by Duquesne Light,
l. EL-34-113 to Farfield for $861 to relocate dumbwaiter enclosed circuit breaker from third to fourth floor,
m. EL-35-114 to Farfield for $3,570 to extend power feed for boiler induction fan from 2nd floor of G Building to roof,
n. GC-50-115 to Nello for $10,099 to pave full depth of south parking lot which was only intended to be milled,
o. GC-51-116 to Nello CREDIT of ($1,047) to eliminate masonry as requested in Bulletin 9,
p. GC-52-117 to Nello for $3,500 to construct parapet on G Building roof at
column line EEE,
q. GC-53-118 to Nello for $5,862 to add beam for roof support betweens
Buildings F and G,
r. GC-54-119 to Nello for $2,244 to re-fabricate beam that was dimensioned
improperly during submittal review,
s. GC-55-120 to Nello for $4,197 for B Building 6th floor infill changes,
t. GC-56-121 to Nello for $1,594 to provide masonry patching at existing wall in elevator shaft in F Building,
u. GC-57-122 to Nello for $1,336 to add a drainage basin ,
v. GC-58-123 to Nello for $85,495 to add storm piping at west end of Athletic
Building on a time and material not to exceed basis,
w. GC-59-124 to Nello for $662 to add two football lockers based on room
measurement,
x. GC-60-125 to Nello for $3,171 to furnish double tiered 24”lockers in lieu of
specified 18” units,
y. GC-61-126 to Nello for $4,621 to provide modifications required to steel in
electrical room stairwell shaft,
z. ME-05-127 to McKamish for $3,740 to add fire dampers in existing ductwork in Little Theatre as required by code,
aa.ME-06-128 to McKamish for $3,156 to relocate piping to allow the spray on sound attenuation in mechanical equipment room,
bb. ME-07-129 to McKamish for $1,254 to remove chilled water piping in the 6th floor of B Building, and
cc.GC-62-130 to Nello for $3,129 for time and materials worked in F
Building invoiced through May, 2013.
Thursday, June 6, 2013
Latest dockets concerning the Grievance
Finally, I found the right County website which houses all the dockets. Here is the docket that MTLSD filed asking for clarification.
This just appeared this week as a response from the MLEA.
I am not an attorney, so all you attorneys out there, please translate.
This just appeared this week as a response from the MLEA.
I am not an attorney, so all you attorneys out there, please translate.
All sales are final
And so it begins. We warned you...
From: "Ronald P. Davis, EdD" <noreply@mtlsd.net>
Date: Thu, 6 Jun 2013 08:52:49 -0400
Subject: Pay to Participate Program
June 6, 2013
Dear Parent/Guardian,
The Mt. Lebanon School District is implementing a “pay to participate” program for grades 6-12 beginning in the 2013-2014 school year. There will be a “pay to participate” fee for those involved in middle school and high school athletics, marching band and its auxiliary programs, and high school intramurals. The fee structure is:
• High School Athletics – An annual $40 flat fee allowing a student to participate in each and/or every sports season;
• High School Marching Band & Auxiliary Programs - An annual $40 flat fee allowing a student to participate in the marching band/auxiliary program(s);
• Middle School Athletics - An annual $20 flat fee allowing a student to participate in each and/or every sports season; and
• High School Intramurals - A $5/person/event fee to participate in the high school intramural program.
Fee payment can be made through an online system, “FamilyID”, with the link soon to be available on the Athletic Department and/or respective middle/high schools’ websites. Please be advised that students will not be eligible for participation until this requirement is met. If a family is experiencing economic hardship and is unable to pay the fee, this can be indicated in the online system for the administration to review. Also, the fee will be capped at $80/family; this cap, however, will not include participating in the high school intramural program.
As a general principle, fees will not be refunded for students who quit a team, program, or activity; minimally attend practices, events, or games; become ineligible for any reason; or issues related to playing time. Should a student be cut from the program prior to participation, have a severe illness, injury, or unexpected family situation arise during participation that makes further participation unlikely, discussion can occur with the respective building administrator asking for consideration of a refund.
Additionally, the online system, “FamilyID”, will permit each student to complete participation forms which will be available online beginning with the 2013-2014 school year, using an electronic signature feature. Physicals, which require a doctor’s signature, will continue to be submitted in paper form.
In the coming weeks, additional details and direction will be provided by our building principals, athletic director, and/or program leaders. Thank you, in advance, for your attention to this matter.
Sincerely,
Ronald P. Davis, Ed.D.
Assistant Superintendent of Secondary Education
Dear Parent/Guardian,
The Mt. Lebanon School District is implementing a “pay to participate” program for grades 6-12 beginning in the 2013-2014 school year. There will be a “pay to participate” fee for those involved in middle school and high school athletics, marching band and its auxiliary programs, and high school intramurals. The fee structure is:
• High School Athletics – An annual $40 flat fee allowing a student to participate in each and/or every sports season;
• High School Marching Band & Auxiliary Programs - An annual $40 flat fee allowing a student to participate in the marching band/auxiliary program(s);
• Middle School Athletics - An annual $20 flat fee allowing a student to participate in each and/or every sports season; and
• High School Intramurals - A $5/person/event fee to participate in the high school intramural program.
Fee payment can be made through an online system, “FamilyID”, with the link soon to be available on the Athletic Department and/or respective middle/high schools’ websites. Please be advised that students will not be eligible for participation until this requirement is met. If a family is experiencing economic hardship and is unable to pay the fee, this can be indicated in the online system for the administration to review. Also, the fee will be capped at $80/family; this cap, however, will not include participating in the high school intramural program.
As a general principle, fees will not be refunded for students who quit a team, program, or activity; minimally attend practices, events, or games; become ineligible for any reason; or issues related to playing time. Should a student be cut from the program prior to participation, have a severe illness, injury, or unexpected family situation arise during participation that makes further participation unlikely, discussion can occur with the respective building administrator asking for consideration of a refund.
Additionally, the online system, “FamilyID”, will permit each student to complete participation forms which will be available online beginning with the 2013-2014 school year, using an electronic signature feature. Physicals, which require a doctor’s signature, will continue to be submitted in paper form.
In the coming weeks, additional details and direction will be provided by our building principals, athletic director, and/or program leaders. Thank you, in advance, for your attention to this matter.
Sincerely,
Ronald P. Davis, Ed.D.
Assistant Superintendent of Secondary Education
Wednesday, June 5, 2013
My first tutorial: How to file a Right To Know UPDATED 2X
I love to read sewing blogs. They inspire me to get creative. I especially enjoy the blogs which offer tutorials. That got me thinking about what I could do on this blog. Thinking back to a comment posted here on 5/26/13:
Looking at the School District website, notice how the 2013-14 Budget is not posted as of June 5, 2013. To file a RTK with the School District, click on School Board on the left sidebar of the School District website. Then click on Right To Know located in the task bar. http://www.mtlsd.org/district/righttoknow.asp Click on Public Records Request Form. Request forms are also available here and on my website http://www.lebocitizens.com/Lebo_Citizens/Right_to_Know.html
Send the completed form to:
Jeanine Szalinski
Mt. Lebanon School District
7 Horsman Drive
Pittsburgh PA 15228
412.344.2077
Fax 412.344.2047
I email my requests to Mrs. Szalinski at jszalinski@mtlsd.net. Here is a sample request that I made when Chip Dalesandro came to my door to say that the YSA had paid all Joint Maintenance Agreement fees in full.
The process is the same for the Municipality. Their form is listed here and on my website. I email my RTK requests to our manager, Steve Feller at sfeller@mtlebanon.org.
I always request the medium and format to be email and PDF. I avoid printing costs this way. Occasionally, both local governments have charged me for printing fees for large files. It can get pricey at 25 cents per page.
Boy, was that a boring tutorial. I think I will stick to sewing blogs for inspiration. I hope I took some of the mysticism out of the Right To Know process. Don't be intimidated to file a RTK. It is our right to know!
Update 3:11 PM For all the Remely fans out there, this is what Dan Remely has to say about Right To Knows. Note: The School District made a pdf of this orginal article, New Right to Know law costly, Mt. Lebanon schools say
That is when I decided to start lebocitizens.com. I vowed to put all the RTK requests that the District denied online. As soon as I made that clear in Citizens Comments, his threat, I mean suggestion, went away.
Update 4:58 PM Why go after Dan Remely, when I can also show what Mary Birks, Timmy, Tom Peterson, and Josephine Posti have to say about Right To Know requests? And yes, Mary Birks did say Mrs. Lewinsky.
From: David Huston
The Budget Resolution is a very long detailed document that nobody wants to read because it is so long. However, there are significant details disclosed in that motion. It is possible that the revenue neutral millage figure might be contained therein. File a RTK request for the Budget Resolution passed by the board if you dare. on Lebo math at its finestWhy not do a tutorial on how to file a Right To Know? I never took the time to file a RTK on the budget, so I will try to go through the steps here.
Looking at the School District website, notice how the 2013-14 Budget is not posted as of June 5, 2013. To file a RTK with the School District, click on School Board on the left sidebar of the School District website. Then click on Right To Know located in the task bar. http://www.mtlsd.org/district/righttoknow.asp Click on Public Records Request Form. Request forms are also available here and on my website http://www.lebocitizens.com/Lebo_Citizens/Right_to_Know.html
Send the completed form to:
Jeanine Szalinski
Mt. Lebanon School District
7 Horsman Drive
Pittsburgh PA 15228
412.344.2077
Fax 412.344.2047
I email my requests to Mrs. Szalinski at jszalinski@mtlsd.net. Here is a sample request that I made when Chip Dalesandro came to my door to say that the YSA had paid all Joint Maintenance Agreement fees in full.
The process is the same for the Municipality. Their form is listed here and on my website. I email my RTK requests to our manager, Steve Feller at sfeller@mtlebanon.org.
I always request the medium and format to be email and PDF. I avoid printing costs this way. Occasionally, both local governments have charged me for printing fees for large files. It can get pricey at 25 cents per page.
Boy, was that a boring tutorial. I think I will stick to sewing blogs for inspiration. I hope I took some of the mysticism out of the Right To Know process. Don't be intimidated to file a RTK. It is our right to know!
Update 3:11 PM For all the Remely fans out there, this is what Dan Remely has to say about Right To Knows. Note: The School District made a pdf of this orginal article, New Right to Know law costly, Mt. Lebanon schools say
At this week's meeting, school board member Daniel Remely suggested the district make the names of the requestors and the costs of performing the requests available for public review.
That is when I decided to start lebocitizens.com. I vowed to put all the RTK requests that the District denied online. As soon as I made that clear in Citizens Comments, his threat, I mean suggestion, went away.
Update 4:58 PM Why go after Dan Remely, when I can also show what Mary Birks, Timmy, Tom Peterson, and Josephine Posti have to say about Right To Know requests? And yes, Mary Birks did say Mrs. Lewinsky.
From: David Huston
To: jschnee@state.pa.us
CC: schoolboardemaillist@mtlsd.net; tpeterson@tuckerlaw.com; tsteinhauer@mtlsd.net
Subject: Docket AP 2010-0761
Date: Mon, 30 Aug 2010 20:29:13 +0000
Mr. Schnee,
Please acknowledge receipt of this e-mail message.
I am aMt. Lebanon
no formal law training. TheMt. Lebanon School District
referred to as the District, is using all legal resources at its
disposal to keep me from inspecting public documents.
On 11-AUG-2010, I requested an e-mail pdf scan of a blank form document.
On 18-AUG-2010, I was informed by means of a scanned pdf document,
my request was granted, yet I was not provided the open record I requested.
On 19-AUG-2010 at 8:05AM EDT, I appeared at the Open Records office to
personally inspect the Open Records. The staff did not show up for work on
time and the same documents the Open Records officer informed me the day
before were available, were not available for me to inspect when I paid
the District a personal visit.
A resident need not to notify an agency in advance of public inspection during
normal business hours the day after being notified the Open Records
are available for inspection. This fact should be intuitively obvious
to the casual observer, but the District solicitor failed to recognize it.
On 34-AUG-2010, I e-mailed the solicitor advance notice that I would be
attending the Open Meeting, see attached notice.pdf document.
On 25-AUG-2010 during an open meeting, I asked the District if I could
inspect the Open Records made available for me on 18-AUG-2010.
The solicitor told me they were not available. Please note Open Meetings are
held one floor above the District offices and the documents could have
been given to me after the meeting if the District were not vigorously
protecting its position of prohibiting access to Open Records.
In an e-mail dated 26-AUG-2010, Mr. Peterson wrote I demanded, "again
without prior notice" to review the records.
If you review the meeting recording I sent last week, you will find
I asked politely without demanding.
Also, I did indeed provide one day prior advance notice of my attendance at
the 25-AUG-2010 Open Meeting, and I included Mr. Peterson as a recipient of my notice.
The District has not mailed me any documents pertaining to this request,
even though I wrote my address on the RTK form 11-AUG-2010 and publicly
stated my street address on 25-AUG-2010.
The District has not provided me the documents I requested in electronic
format even after I appealed to the Office of Open Records and asked
for the documents in a public forum.
The District's own policy KDB, attached, states the "public records of the
District shall be made available for inspection and copying in
accordance with applicable Federal and State law and the procedures
set forth herein."
The District contends my appeal is frivolous resulting in unneccessary expense.
The fact is, if the district complied with my request initially,
I would not have appealed and there would be no unneccessary expense.
I have also attached five (5) audio clips from Open Meetings, with
links to the entire meetings, the transcribed text and comment below:
http://www.lebocitizens.com/Lebo_Citizens/Podcast/Entries/2010/6/21_School_Board_Business_Meeting.html
2010-06-21A:
Director Mary Birks:
Individuals who request reams of information, and yet, don't even take the time to come in and view those things, umm, which takes a lot of time from Mrs. Lewinsky uh a lot of time from some of our other folks. Takes them away from
their jobs here in the district, so they are helping kids to get an education rather
than copy paper that might not ever be looked at.
Comment:
The District is concerned about residents who do not inspect records after requesting them, yet denies access of records to residents who do indeed appear to inspect them. Director Birks contends non-certified office staff are educating children.
http://www.lebocitizens.com/Lebo_Citizens/Podcast/Entries/2010/6/21_School_Board_Business_Meeting.html
2010-06-21B:
Director Dan Remely:
But I do have an objection to frivolous requests, to request to copy hundreds and
hundreds of pages and not have the courtesy or the respect to pick them up or to pay for them. That's part of the law. I have no concern about anything that that is out there in public, it's there everyday, it's on TV every week. I have a major concern for people who think it's just fun to run the costs up for the school district.
In my opinion, if we are going to post the right to know requests, especially now
that we have the, uh, we've already spent the money to put in the technical side
to keep our costs down. I would like to see the actual cost, legal, copying and
otherwise of each request, posted with that request, and uh, and then, I'd also
like to be noted that if things are copied on their behalf,
were they picked up or not?
Comment:
Director Remely contends resident requests for Open Records are frivolous and wishes to publicly intimidate residents from making Open Records requests.
He noted the District should inform the public whether or not a resident picks
up requested open records, but does not care if hired staff perform their
work function providing open records to residents who have previously requested them.
http://www.lebocitizens.com/Lebo_Citizens/Podcast/Entries/2010/7/12_School_Board_Discussion_Meeting%2C_Part_1.html
http://www.lebocitizens.com/Lebo_Citizens/Podcast/Entries/2010/7/12_School_Board_Discussion_Meeting%2C_Part_2.html
2010-07-12A:
Superintendent Steinhauer:
Things that we have implemented, prior to making all the copies without the parties picking them up, is, informing them of the cost, and asking them of their intent, of whether to pick those up, so we are trying to be a little bit more careful about making copies prior to people coming in to pick
them up but we'd certainly whatever the board is decision and what they'd like to
post uh you know we'd like to comply with well if you feel like you've eliminated that issue Superintendent Steinhauer: well you never know
Director Josephine Posti: yeah
Superintendent Steinhauer: sometimes people say yes they will come get it, and then they ultimately don't come and get, we've made the copies and they ultimately don't come and get them.
Director Mary Birks:
Ok, well there there's the other, the other situation where the information is
gathered and the individual is going to come in and go over them, and then doesn't.
And it's the time that Mrs. Szalinski spends gathering the information and I think
that's what Mrs. Posti is saying you know, if we are going to put this kind of money, it's taxpayer money, that we are spending on these requests. And if we, if we're doing that, we need to make sure that people know if they're just doing it to make people busy, or if they're actually doing something to find out information that's helpful.
Director Dan Remely:
Umm, I had suggested last week that we put the price on, and so forth; and I'm still firmly behind that, and in fact, if if uh we can advise one of the cost of copies, I would request the check up front, before we make the first copy.
I am not in a position to spend taxpayer's dollars on somebody's frivolous request.
If they want ten thousand pages copied, you pay for ten thousand pages.
If you don't pick them up, I don't care.
Director Josephine Posti:
Can we do that, though, under the way the law reads?
Solicitor Tom Peterson:
One hundre, hundred dollars.
Director Josephine Posti:
We can ask for pre-payment?
Solicitor Tom Peterson:
If it's a hundred dollars or more, you can ask for pre-payment.
Director Josephine Posti:
Ok, ok.
Director Dan Remely:
Umm, and I also think that we ought to, after posting the right to knows, which
are fine, you know everybody's allowed to do that, umm, the cost of it, and in some cases or all cases, an ongoing cost. So if someone's got a right to know bi-weekly, and every other week it's another thousand dollars, start adding it up.
Let the public know what they're requesting. It may be legitimate, that's fine;
but let 'em know what they're requesting, and let them know what the total costs are over the year. Um, it's just, uh, some of the requests we get are absurd, and
expensive for us to comply with, and then ignored, and I think that's just obnoxious to, to have to go through that. It's terrible, so, and a huge waste of money.
Comment:
This discussion underscores the fact that the District is not concerned about
the right of residents to request and receive Open Records.
http://www.lebocitizens.com/Lebo_Citizens/Podcast/Entries/2010/7/12_School_Board_Discussion_Meeting%2C_Part_1.html
http://www.lebocitizens.com/Lebo_Citizens/Podcast/Entries/2010/7/12_School_Board_Discussion_Meeting%2C_Part_2.html
2010-07-12B:
Superintendent Steinhauer:
Sometimes we get requests to uh, scan documents and then e-mail them to people, umm, and under the statute, umm, they are able to get information that way.
But then, there that is a cost of umm the administrative assistant or anybody else who is involved in gathering those documents. Remember that the right to know does not require us to develop documents, it just requires us to provide the information that is currently on a document, or uh, something that we have already have made that
doesn't require us to make those documents make a spreadsheet or anything like that.
We can provide the information from where somebody else can make that spreadsheet.
Comment:
Dr. Steinhauer stated the District provides residents Open Records in scanned pdf format via e-mail. He also said the District does not perform additional manual data entry tasks to satisfy a request.
My request was for electronic scanned documents and would have required the same, or even less work than paper documents.
As a course of business, the District routinely scans paper documents
and e-mails the pdf facsimile of same. In fact, this very action was performed
when Ms. Szalinski replied to inform me the Open Records I requested would be available. This same scanning activity would have satisfied my original request if the District performed the scan of the Open Records I requested.
The District chose to create an undue hardship on me by delaying and denying
Open Records that the same agency admitted I am entitled to have.
http://www.lebocitizens.com/Lebo_Citizens/Podcast/Entries/2010/7/12_School_Board_Discussion_Meeting%2C_Part_1.html
http://www.lebocitizens.com/Lebo_Citizens/Podcast/Entries/2010/7/12_School_Board_Discussion_Meeting%2C_Part_2.html
2010-07-12C:
Superintendent Steinhauer:
Anybody requesting this a right to know, well, they really don't even need to do that, because we pretty much post every document that we own and have on our website.
Comment:
The District is wasting my time because the Open Records I requested should be on the website.
CC: schoolboardemaillist@mtlsd.net; tpeterson@tuckerlaw.com; tsteinhauer@mtlsd.net
Subject: Docket AP 2010-0761
Date: Mon, 30 Aug 2010 20:29:13 +0000
Mr. Schnee,
Please acknowledge receipt of this e-mail message.
I am a
no formal law training. The
referred to as the District, is using all legal resources at its
disposal to keep me from inspecting public documents.
On 11-AUG-2010, I requested an e-mail pdf scan of a blank form document.
On 18-AUG-2010, I was informed by means of a scanned pdf document,
my request was granted, yet I was not provided the open record I requested.
On 19-AUG-2010 at 8:05AM EDT, I appeared at the Open Records office to
personally inspect the Open Records. The staff did not show up for work on
time and the same documents the Open Records officer informed me the day
before were available, were not available for me to inspect when I paid
the District a personal visit.
A resident need not to notify an agency in advance of public inspection during
normal business hours the day after being notified the Open Records
are available for inspection. This fact should be intuitively obvious
to the casual observer, but the District solicitor failed to recognize it.
On 34-AUG-2010, I e-mailed the solicitor advance notice that I would be
attending the Open Meeting, see attached notice.pdf document.
On 25-AUG-2010 during an open meeting, I asked the District if I could
inspect the Open Records made available for me on 18-AUG-2010.
The solicitor told me they were not available. Please note Open Meetings are
held one floor above the District offices and the documents could have
been given to me after the meeting if the District were not vigorously
protecting its position of prohibiting access to Open Records.
In an e-mail dated 26-AUG-2010, Mr. Peterson wrote I demanded, "again
without prior notice" to review the records.
If you review the meeting recording I sent last week, you will find
I asked politely without demanding.
Also, I did indeed provide one day prior advance notice of my attendance at
the 25-AUG-2010 Open Meeting, and I included Mr. Peterson as a recipient of my notice.
The District has not mailed me any documents pertaining to this request,
even though I wrote my address on the RTK form 11-AUG-2010 and publicly
stated my street address on 25-AUG-2010.
The District has not provided me the documents I requested in electronic
format even after I appealed to the Office of Open Records and asked
for the documents in a public forum.
The District's own policy KDB, attached, states the "public records of the
District shall be made available for inspection and copying in
accordance with applicable Federal and State law and the procedures
set forth herein."
The District contends my appeal is frivolous resulting in unneccessary expense.
The fact is, if the district complied with my request initially,
I would not have appealed and there would be no unneccessary expense.
I have also attached five (5) audio clips from Open Meetings, with
links to the entire meetings, the transcribed text and comment below:
http://www.lebocitizens.com/Lebo_Citizens/Podcast/Entries/2010/6/21_School_Board_Business_Meeting.html
2010-06-21A:
Director Mary Birks:
Individuals who request reams of information, and yet, don't even take the time to come in and view those things, umm, which takes a lot of time from Mrs. Lewinsky uh a lot of time from some of our other folks. Takes them away from
their jobs here in the district, so they are helping kids to get an education rather
than copy paper that might not ever be looked at.
Comment:
The District is concerned about residents who do not inspect records after requesting them, yet denies access of records to residents who do indeed appear to inspect them. Director Birks contends non-certified office staff are educating children.
http://www.lebocitizens.com/Lebo_Citizens/Podcast/Entries/2010/6/21_School_Board_Business_Meeting.html
2010-06-21B:
Director Dan Remely:
But I do have an objection to frivolous requests, to request to copy hundreds and
hundreds of pages and not have the courtesy or the respect to pick them up or to pay for them. That's part of the law. I have no concern about anything that that is out there in public, it's there everyday, it's on TV every week. I have a major concern for people who think it's just fun to run the costs up for the school district.
In my opinion, if we are going to post the right to know requests, especially now
that we have the, uh, we've already spent the money to put in the technical side
to keep our costs down. I would like to see the actual cost, legal, copying and
otherwise of each request, posted with that request, and uh, and then, I'd also
like to be noted that if things are copied on their behalf,
were they picked up or not?
Comment:
Director Remely contends resident requests for Open Records are frivolous and wishes to publicly intimidate residents from making Open Records requests.
He noted the District should inform the public whether or not a resident picks
up requested open records, but does not care if hired staff perform their
work function providing open records to residents who have previously requested them.
http://www.lebocitizens.com/Lebo_Citizens/Podcast/Entries/2010/7/12_School_Board_Discussion_Meeting%2C_Part_1.html
http://www.lebocitizens.com/Lebo_Citizens/Podcast/Entries/2010/7/12_School_Board_Discussion_Meeting%2C_Part_2.html
2010-07-12A:
Superintendent Steinhauer:
Things that we have implemented, prior to making all the copies without the parties picking them up, is, informing them of the cost, and asking them of their intent, of whether to pick those up, so we are trying to be a little bit more careful about making copies prior to people coming in to pick
them up but we'd certainly whatever the board is decision and what they'd like to
post uh you know we'd like to comply with well if you feel like you've eliminated that issue Superintendent Steinhauer: well you never know
Director Josephine Posti: yeah
Superintendent Steinhauer: sometimes people say yes they will come get it, and then they ultimately don't come and get, we've made the copies and they ultimately don't come and get them.
Director Mary Birks:
Ok, well there there's the other, the other situation where the information is
gathered and the individual is going to come in and go over them, and then doesn't.
And it's the time that Mrs. Szalinski spends gathering the information and I think
that's what Mrs. Posti is saying you know, if we are going to put this kind of money, it's taxpayer money, that we are spending on these requests. And if we, if we're doing that, we need to make sure that people know if they're just doing it to make people busy, or if they're actually doing something to find out information that's helpful.
Director Dan Remely:
Umm, I had suggested last week that we put the price on, and so forth; and I'm still firmly behind that, and in fact, if if uh we can advise one of the cost of copies, I would request the check up front, before we make the first copy.
I am not in a position to spend taxpayer's dollars on somebody's frivolous request.
If they want ten thousand pages copied, you pay for ten thousand pages.
If you don't pick them up, I don't care.
Director Josephine Posti:
Can we do that, though, under the way the law reads?
Solicitor Tom Peterson:
One hundre, hundred dollars.
Director Josephine Posti:
We can ask for pre-payment?
Solicitor Tom Peterson:
If it's a hundred dollars or more, you can ask for pre-payment.
Director Josephine Posti:
Ok, ok.
Director Dan Remely:
Umm, and I also think that we ought to, after posting the right to knows, which
are fine, you know everybody's allowed to do that, umm, the cost of it, and in some cases or all cases, an ongoing cost. So if someone's got a right to know bi-weekly, and every other week it's another thousand dollars, start adding it up.
Let the public know what they're requesting. It may be legitimate, that's fine;
but let 'em know what they're requesting, and let them know what the total costs are over the year. Um, it's just, uh, some of the requests we get are absurd, and
expensive for us to comply with, and then ignored, and I think that's just obnoxious to, to have to go through that. It's terrible, so, and a huge waste of money.
Comment:
This discussion underscores the fact that the District is not concerned about
the right of residents to request and receive Open Records.
http://www.lebocitizens.com/Lebo_Citizens/Podcast/Entries/2010/7/12_School_Board_Discussion_Meeting%2C_Part_1.html
http://www.lebocitizens.com/Lebo_Citizens/Podcast/Entries/2010/7/12_School_Board_Discussion_Meeting%2C_Part_2.html
2010-07-12B:
Superintendent Steinhauer:
Sometimes we get requests to uh, scan documents and then e-mail them to people, umm, and under the statute, umm, they are able to get information that way.
But then, there that is a cost of umm the administrative assistant or anybody else who is involved in gathering those documents. Remember that the right to know does not require us to develop documents, it just requires us to provide the information that is currently on a document, or uh, something that we have already have made that
doesn't require us to make those documents make a spreadsheet or anything like that.
We can provide the information from where somebody else can make that spreadsheet.
Comment:
Dr. Steinhauer stated the District provides residents Open Records in scanned pdf format via e-mail. He also said the District does not perform additional manual data entry tasks to satisfy a request.
My request was for electronic scanned documents and would have required the same, or even less work than paper documents.
As a course of business, the District routinely scans paper documents
and e-mails the pdf facsimile of same. In fact, this very action was performed
when Ms. Szalinski replied to inform me the Open Records I requested would be available. This same scanning activity would have satisfied my original request if the District performed the scan of the Open Records I requested.
The District chose to create an undue hardship on me by delaying and denying
Open Records that the same agency admitted I am entitled to have.
http://www.lebocitizens.com/Lebo_Citizens/Podcast/Entries/2010/7/12_School_Board_Discussion_Meeting%2C_Part_1.html
http://www.lebocitizens.com/Lebo_Citizens/Podcast/Entries/2010/7/12_School_Board_Discussion_Meeting%2C_Part_2.html
2010-07-12C:
Superintendent Steinhauer:
Anybody requesting this a right to know, well, they really don't even need to do that, because we pretty much post every document that we own and have on our website.
Comment:
The District is wasting my time because the Open Records I requested should be on the website.
Monday, June 3, 2013
Prison hallway or New High School hallway?
The School District has a monthly Construction Update. The next Construction Update is June 10, 2013. I decided that I know as much about construction as our super Super, so I decided to have my own Construction Update. Will it be a monthly feature? I dunno.
This month, it is all about hallways. Below are two photos. One is the new high school hallway and the other one is a prison. Can you guess which is which?
This month, it is all about hallways. Below are two photos. One is the new high school hallway and the other one is a prison. Can you guess which is which?
Why do I bring this up? On July 28, 2009, Dirk A. Taylor, P.E., reviewed the MT. LEBANON HIGH SCHOOL ADDITIONS AND RENOVATIONS Schematic Plans Dated June 1, 2009. Read his comments on the inefficiencies of one-sided corridors.
Maybe I will call this series of posts, "We told you so!" or "Dirk knows his stuff!"
Sunday, June 2, 2013
Here is a fun exercise
The Mt. Lebanon Tax Office should be commended. Our June 1 tax bills ARRIVED in our mailboxes on June 1. They are so efficient!
For those of you who have recovered from the shock and are looking for something fun to do on this Sunday afternoon, I have a fun exercise for you all. The Allegheny County website, Allegheny County Real Estate Office provides a free search for mortgages. Click on "Free Search" in the gray text box. The default office setting is "Deeds." Using the drop down arrow, find "Mortgages." Every time one takes out a mortgage, refinances, takes out home equity loans, or pays off the mortgage, it is all recorded here.
Here is where the fun begins. Start looking up the names of those who vote on our tax increases. Compare the amounts of what is owed vs. the sale price of the home here. In many cases, it is obvious why we are where we are with our school district budget.
For those of you who have recovered from the shock and are looking for something fun to do on this Sunday afternoon, I have a fun exercise for you all. The Allegheny County website, Allegheny County Real Estate Office provides a free search for mortgages. Click on "Free Search" in the gray text box. The default office setting is "Deeds." Using the drop down arrow, find "Mortgages." Every time one takes out a mortgage, refinances, takes out home equity loans, or pays off the mortgage, it is all recorded here.
Here is where the fun begins. Start looking up the names of those who vote on our tax increases. Compare the amounts of what is owed vs. the sale price of the home here. In many cases, it is obvious why we are where we are with our school district budget.
Saturday, June 1, 2013
Hack for Change
Happy National Day of Civic Hacking!
National Day of Civic Hacking is a national event that takes place today and tomorrow, in cities across the nation. The event will bring together citizens, software developers, and entrepreneurs from all over the nation to collaboratively create, build, and invent new solutions using publicly-released data, code and technology to solve challenges relevant to our neighborhoods, our cities, our states and our country. National Day of Civic Hacking will provide citizens an opportunity to do what is most quintessentially American: roll up our sleeves, get involved and work together to improve our society.
National Day of Civic Hacking is a national event that takes place today and tomorrow, in cities across the nation. The event will bring together citizens, software developers, and entrepreneurs from all over the nation to collaboratively create, build, and invent new solutions using publicly-released data, code and technology to solve challenges relevant to our neighborhoods, our cities, our states and our country. National Day of Civic Hacking will provide citizens an opportunity to do what is most quintessentially American: roll up our sleeves, get involved and work together to improve our society.
Some FAQs:Bringing it home, the purpose of this blog is to promote transparency, participation and collaboration between governments and citizens. On a personal level, I see it happening between the municipality (with some exceptions) and citizens, but the school district has dug its heels in deeper to discourage transparency, participation and collaboration. The school board directors, on the whole, are secretive, ignore residents' emails, dismiss detailed budget presentations given by residents, reject professional input (CAC), roll their eyes at opposing viewpoints, and on and on.
Q. What is National Day of Civic Hacking?
A. National Day of Civic Hacking is an event during which citizens from around the country will work together with local, state and federal governments as well as private sector organizations with the common goal of improving their community.
Q. When and where will it take place?
A. National Day of Civic Hacking will take place in cities across America on the weekend of June 1-2, 2013.
Q. Who is leading the National Day of Civic Hacking?
A. National Day of Civic Hacking is a national initiative to promote transparency, participation and collaboration between governments and citizens. It’s a collaboration between citizens, organizations, companies and government. Events will take place in cities around the nation.
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