Official State Record โ Pennsylvania OOR
AP 2026-1329
Requester
v.
OCTORARA AREA SCHOOL DISTRICT
Respondent
โ FINAL DETERMINATION ISSUED AND MAILED: June 26, 2026
โ Senior Appeals Officer: Blake Eilers, Esq.
โ District’s submission on appeal: None.
โธ Quest Completed โ Steps Navigated
- โ Filed Right-to-Know Requests (March 3, 2026)
- โ Survived 30-day agency extension without complaining publicly
- โ Received denial. Filed appeal (April 3, 2026)
- โ Submitted position statements (April 17 & 20, 2026)
- โ Agreed to extension of Final Determination due date
- โ Responded to OOR’s request for clarification (June 9, 2026)
- โ Waited patiently while the agency submitted nothing on appeal
- โ Received Final Determination โ Appeal granted in part
โธ Rewards Earned
Good Faith Search Ordered
The District is now required to actually look for the records. Novel concept. Thirty days on the clock.
Privilege Claims Require Evidence
“Conclusory statements” and “generic determinations” are insufficient. The OOR said so in writing. Citing actual case law.
Probable Cause Affidavit Search Ordered
The District must search for and produce any sworn affidavit provided to PSP in connection with the trespass. Or swear under oath that it doesn’t exist.
Falgiatore Objection Now OOR Record
Director Falgiatore’s documented objections to taxpayer-funded legal expenses are now referenced in a Pennsylvania state administrative ruling.
Insurer Communications Ordered
AIG. Carlton Fields. Saxton Stump. Communications characterizing the litigation as a District matter โ produce them or prove they’re privileged. With evidence this time.
Sworn Affidavit of Non-Existence
If records don’t exist, the District must say so under oath. A sworn denial is almost as useful as the records themselves. Almost.
โ New Quests Unlocked
โ Wait patiently. (Again.)โ Review produced records.
โ Compare the record to the narrative.
โ Note what the sworn affidavit says โ or doesn’t.
โ Read the footnotes.
โ Update the ebook.
โ Avoid unnecessary litigation.
โ Consider whether the District’s attorney will bill this to taxpayers as a District matter.
โธ Experience Gained
Current Level
๐ฉ CITIZEN ARCHIVIST
“The record does not always tell the whole story.
But it usually tells more than the summary.”
Next Level: Primary Source Evangelist
Unlock condition: Sworn affidavit of non-existence received and documented.
Progress may be delayed by weekends, holidays, extensions, appeals,
missing attachments, unsworn privilege assertions, or acts of bureaucracy.
This achievement was earned through the Pennsylvania Right-to-Know Law, 65 P.S. ยงยง 67.101 et seq.
Available to all citizens. No legal background required. Patience strongly recommended.
Administrative Literacy Series ยท CulturalContrarianPMA.org