65 P.S. §§ 67.901 and 67.902
What a Pennsylvania RTKL deemed denial means
When a Pennsylvania agency misses the RTKL response deadline, the Right-to-Know Law treats the silence as a denial. That result is a deemed denial. This page explains when a request becomes one, and why the date starts a 15-business-day appeal clock. It is a general description, not legal advice about your request.
The trigger
When a request becomes deemed denied
Under 65 P.S. § 67.901, the agency must send a response within five business days after its open-records officer receives the written request. If the agency does not send that response in time, the request is deemed denied. An extension letter that arrives only after those five business days does not erase that deemed denial.
Under 65 P.S. § 67.902, the open-records officer may, inside those five business days, send a written notice that the request is being reviewed. The notice has to state a reason and a date a response is expected. That date is not supposed to fall more than 30 days after the original five business days unless you agreed in writing. If the notice sets a longer date and you did not agree in writing, the request is deemed denied. If the date in a valid notice passes with no final response, the request is also deemed denied. When you agreed in writing to that date, section 67.902 places the deemed denial on the day after it. The extension notice itself is not a final grant or denial.
Appeal clock
Why the date matters
The deemed denial date is what starts the appeal clock. Under 65 P.S. § 67.1101, the requester generally has 15 business days from the deemed denial to appeal. A written denial uses the mailing date of the agency's response instead. Weekends and Commonwealth holidays do not count in those 15 business days. If the appeal is late, the Office of Open Records can dismiss it. Count from proof you actually have: the receipt date, any extension notice, and the fact that no final response arrived. The counting rules are on the RTKL deadlines page.
Next steps
What you can do next
Follow up with the agency in writing, and keep a copy. A late response is still worth saving. At the same time, prepare an Office of Open Records appeal so the 15 business days are not spent looking for the file. Preserve proof of filing and proof of receipt: the request, the send confirmation, the date the agency received it, any extension notice, and a short statement that no final response came if that is what happened. How to file that appeal is on the OOR appeal page.
Open Docket
How Open Docket records a deemed denial date
If you track the request in Open Docket, the app records a deemed denial date from the clock you are on. While the first response is still due, that date is the five-business-day deadline. If an extension is the live clock, the date is the extension deadline. Open Docket notes that an appeal window may be open and that an appeal can potentially be filed. Sending the appeal is still your choice. The date is an estimate from dates you entered. Verify it against the statute and your proof before you rely on it.
Related
Disclaimer
Open Docket is a tracker and letter generator, not legal advice; SPARK LLC is not a law firm.