1155 Red Fox Road | East Stroudsburg, PA 18301
(570) 223-5082 Phone
(570) 223-5086 Fax

 

FREE Mulch to Smithfield Residents

Freshen up your landscape look this season for FREE! The Oak Grove Multi-Municipal Compost Processing Facility offers residents of Smithfield Township free mulch if loaded themselves. Otherwise, materials can be loaded for a fee by contacting Rachel at 570-223-8920 x 142 for an appointment. In addition, residents may drop off their yard debris, for free, to compost.
Oak Grove Multi-Municipal Compost Processing Board
Open Monday – Saturday from 7 am – 2 pm
3305 Oak Grove Dr., East Stroudsburg, PA 18302
MORE INFO

 
 

Smithfield Township Clean-Up is Just Ahead!

Township Clean-Up will be held from May 12 to May 16 between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. It is for residents only and proof of residency is required. Acceptable proof of residency includes driver’s licenses, tax bills, rent receipts, or other documentation proving where you reside in Smithfield. Commercial disposal is forbidden. All residents are encouraged to take advantage of this annual opportunity to dispose of unwanted household goods. Payment can be taken via cash or credit card (online only).

 

Online Payment Available*
*Online payments will include an additional service fee.
Electronic devices covered under the Covered Device Recycling Act
computers, TVs, monitors, printers, laptops, etc.) are accepted free of charge. Vehicles containing only covered electronic devices will not be charged a load fee.

 

Get Your Ballot Application Like a Magazine Subscription

by Robert Lovenheim

The primary election is Tuesday, May 18, but if you use the new annual subscription program from the Board of Elections you’ll never have to worry about missing the date or failing to remember to vote. All you need to do is fill out the application for an “Annual Mail-in Ballot request.” Once you do that, the Board of Elections will automatically mail you an application for a new ballot each year.

You still need to request your ballot at least a week before the election, but this sure makes life easier than trying to remember election day. This is particularly true for primary elections. Before I ran for supervisor, I was a long-time volunteer for the Board of Elections at polling places. There, I witnessed the meager turnouts we got for any election that didn’t include presidential candidates. Sometimes only one person an hour would walk in the door. We would all pounce on them, each of us trying to be as helpful as possible, just to have something to break the boredom.

I made a lot of new friends as a poll worker, because in the long pauses between voters, you tend to tell your life story to the other workers. We discovered shared interests, places we had lived, people we knew in common. And there was the recounting of past elections: “what happened to Vinnie, isn’t he working anymore?”  “Oh, they moved to Florida,” or “Oh, his back has been bothering him.”  Medical histories were always interesting sources of gossip, and we always guessed how many total ballots would be cast that day.
When the polls close the workers don’t go home. First they must tabulate all the results, prepare them for delivery to the Board of Elections, and post results on the door. It’s a good hour before all this is done and everyone can take home leftovers from the pizza we ordered or the cookies someone baked.

For this last election in November, I had images of the regular Board of Election employees working day and night, round the clock, to complete the results of Pennsylvania’s first massive mail-in effort. I even sent the director, Sara May-Silfee, a mail order cake to share with her staff. After years of snacking on cakes and cookies made by polling place volunteers, I know what it means to feel appreciated.

Follow the link above and get an annual subscription to the mail-in ballot application. Just think, another subscription, but this one doesn’t ask for your credit card!

 
 

Right to Know Law: A Brief Overview

The Right to Know Law (RTKL) was designed to make government documents more accessible to the public. By filling out a request form, you can request documents from any government agency.

The RTKL governs the release of documents, but it does not answer questions. This can sometimes create a problem: you may know the information you’re looking for, but not know what documents you
need to get that information. This is a great time to pick up the phone and call the Agency Open Records Officer (AORO), the person who is responsible for responding to RTK requests.

Items to keep in mind:

  1. AOROs can ask why you want documents, but you are not required to answer.
  2. The RTKL only governs existing documents, and does not force the AORO to create a document if it doesn’t already exist.
  3. If you want paper copies of documents, there are fees involved.

Once you submit a request, the AORO has five business days to respond. The countdown starts the day after the request is received. For example, if a request is submitted on Friday, May 14, 2021, the AORO must respond by Friday, May 21, 2021. For large RTK requests, the AORO can invoke a 30-day extension.

Agency Open Records Officers can respond to a request in four ways: granted, part granted/part denied, denied, or misdirected. Regarding part or full denials, the RTKL has provisions that prevent the release of certain information. Some common examples of withheld information are birthdays, social security numbers, and personal phone numbers. It is the burden of the agency to prove why records are not public, so if you receive a denial or part denial, the AORO’s response must include why records were withheld or information was redacted. A misdirected response means you’ve submitted your request to the wrong agency.

If you receive a response and want to file an appeal (i.e., you don’t agree with the response, you believe information has been incorrectly redacted, etc.), the appeal must be submitted to the Office of Open Records within 15 business days of the mailing date of the agency’s response.

For additional information, the Office of Open Records – www.openrecords.pa.gov – is a great resource, or you can browse our township page at https://smithfieldtownship.com/resources/right-to-know-records/

 

 

 

National Wildfire Awareness Month:
Campfire Safety Tips

 

The Right Day

Check the risk of fire in your area for the day you are looking to go out. The conditions should be neither windy nor dry. Double check signs and regulations at the location you want to set up!

 

The Right Spot

Pay attention to the breeze, if you are setting up a tent and/or clothesline you’re going to want to have your campfire down-wind.  If the site has pits or rings, use them! If not, dig out a shallow pit and encircle it with stones to provide a safe barrier.

 

The Right Build

The fire does not have to be roaring, a small fire will produce plenty of heat for both cooking and warmth. Use a match or lighter to start your fire. Never use flammable liquids such as lighter fluid, gas or kerosene. Keep water on hand beside the fire!

 

The Right Resolve

Put your fire out properly! Burn it down to ash and start moving coals apart to cool. Douse it with water while moving the rocks to take care of any surviving embers. Never bury the coals; there are cases of the coal smoldering for days and roots catching fire. If it’s too hot to touch, it’s too hot to leave!