Notice

RTKL Fee Case Decided by Commonwealth Court

The Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania has affirmed Luzerne County's authority to charge a reasonable market-based fee for the production of complex public data under the Pennsylvania Right-to-Know Law (RTKL) in Susan Noto and Zillow, Inc. v. Luzerne County.

The case arose after Zillow requested an electronic copy of the County's 2023 Computer-Assisted Mass Appraisal (CAMA) dataset. Luzerne County assessed a fee of $10,100, which Zillow challenged, arguing that RTKL fees should be limited to the cost of duplicating the records.

The Court rejected Zillow's arguments, holding that Section 1307(b)(4) of the RTKL permits agencies to charge fees based on the reasonable market value of complex and extensive datasets. The Court also found Luzerne County's methodology of comparing fees charged by other Pennsylvania counties for similar data was reasonable and upheld the fee. In addition, the Court rejected Zillow's claims of bad faith and denied its request to supplement the record with evidence from an unrelated dispute.

The decision clarifies that Pennsylvania agencies may charge the reasonable market value for complex datasets under the RTKL and are not limited to nominal duplication costs when responding to requests for extensive public records.