A Right-to-Know request by the Times News seeking information about Schuylkill County’s cost for legal services of an investigation into accusations against a commissioner, and to fight a related federal lawsuit, has been denied.

The state Office of Open Records on Tuesday determined the costs were incurred by the county’s insurer, Pennsylvania Counties Risk Pool, and the county is not involved in the contracts between PCORP and the lawyers it hires.

The request, filed June 28, asked for the legal bills or invoices for costs incurred during the county Human Resources’ May-June 2020 investigation of allegations against Commissioner George F. Halcovage Jr. and the subsequent lawsuit.

The county denied the request on July 5, 2022, arguing that responsive records do not exist in its possession, custody, or control, and that, even if responsive records did exist, they would be related to a noncriminal investigation.

The Times News on July 26 appealed the denial with the Office of Open Records.

On Aug. 16, Assistant County Solicitor/Risk Manager Glenn T. Roth Jr. responded, arguing the county doesn’t have the requested information because it “did not retain attorneys or pay for attorneys to participate in (the case) or the (investigation).”

The only attorneys other than those in the county solicitor’s office were those retained by the county’s insurer, PCORP, Roth wrote.

“Any fee agreement with PCORP attorneys is between PCORP and its retained counsel,” he wrote.

Roth wrote that any invoices for legal services related to the request were between PCORP and its counsel.

The county is not a party to those fee agreements, nor does it pay invoices for attorneys retained by PCORP to represent the county.

“Accordingly, the county has met its burden of proving that the requested records do not exist in its possession, custody, or control,” Roth wrote.

The determination also addressed that, under the Right-to-Know Law, public records in the possession of third parties, such as PCORP, are accessible if certain conditions are satisfied.

“Under the RTKL, to reach records outside an agency’s possession the following two elements must be met: the third party performs a governmental function on behalf of the agency; and the information sought directly relates to the performance of that function.”

However, citing a similar Monroe County case, the Office of Open Records concluded that the “requested legal bills and invoices are not directly related to a governmental function and are thus, not accessible” under the Right-to-Know Law.

Office of Open Records Appeals Officer Blake Eilers determined the county was correct.

“For the foregoing reasons, the requester’s appeal is denied, and the county is not required to take any further action. This Final Determination is binding on all parties,” Eilers wrote in his determination.

The Times News has 30 days to appeal the determination to Schuylkill County Court of Common Pleas.

The investigation and federal lawsuit

Four women who work in the courthouse accused Halcovage of sexually harassing them beginning when he was first elected in 2012.

The 2020 Human Resources Department investigation determined that he violated the county’s sexual harassment, conduct and disciplinary action, and the physical and verbal abuse policies.

Had he been an employee, the violations would have caused him to be fired.

The lawsuit, filed by the women in March 2021 in U.S. District Court, Scranton, contends Halcovage sexually harassed, and assaulted some of them, and also alleges some county officials failed to stop the harassment and subsequent retribution against the women, and helped try to cover it up.

The retribution was the focus of an amended suit filed in October 2021. In that suit, two of the women allege commissioners attempted to fire them.

Those women were also accused of misusing sensitive county software to search personal information on a number of people, including Halcovage.

The women are identified in the suit as Jane Doe 1, Jane Doe 2, Jane Doe 3, and Jane Doe 4.

The suit is wending its way through the federal court system

In addition to Halcovage, County Administrator Gary R. Bender, Human Resources Director Heidi L. Zula, Roth, and the county.

Interim Human Resources Director Doreen Kutzler also was named.