 Office of the ATTORNEY GENERAL GREG ABBOTT | |
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October 21, 2003 Mr. James L. Hall
OR2003-7532 Dear Mr. Hall: You ask whether certain information is subject to required public disclosure under chapter 552 of the Government Code. Your request was assigned ID# 189750. The Texas Department of Criminal Justice (the "department") received a request for records regarding a specified offender. You indicate that you have provided the requestor with some responsive information. You claim, however, that the remaining requested information is excepted from disclosure pursuant to section 552.101 of the Government Code. We have considered the exception you claim and have reviewed the submitted information. You claim that the submitted information is excepted from disclosure pursuant to section 552.101 in conjunction with section 508.313 of the Government Code.(1) In pertinent part, section 508.313 provides: (a) All information obtained and maintained, including a victim protest letter or other correspondence, a victim impact statement, a list of inmates eligible for release on parole, and an arrest record of an inmate, is confidential and privileged if the information relates to: (1) an inmate of the institutional division subject to release on parole, release to mandatory supervision, or executive clemency; (2) a releasee; or (3) a person directly identified in any proposed plan of release for an inmate. (b) Statistical and general information relating to the parole and mandatory supervision system, including the names of releasees and data recorded relating to parole and mandatory supervision services, is not confidential or privileged and must be made available for public inspection at any reasonable time. (c) The department, on request or in the normal course of official business, shall provide information that is confidential and privileged under Subsection (a) to: (1) the governor; (2) a member of the [Board of Pardons and Paroles]; (3) the Criminal Justice Policy Council in performing duties of the council under Section 413.017 [of the Government Code]; or (4) an eligible entity requesting information for a law enforcement, prosecutorial, correctional, clemency, or treatment purpose. (d) In this section, "eligible entity" means: (1) a government agency, including the office of a prosecuting attorney; (2) an organization with which the department contracts or an organization to which the department provides a grant; or (3) an organization to which inmates are referred for services by the department. (e) This section does not apply to information relating to a sex offender that is authorized for release under Chapter 62, Code of Criminal Procedure. (f) This section does not apply to information that is subject to required public disclosure under Section 552.029 [of the Government Code]. Act of May 21, 1997, 75th Leg., R.S., ch. 165, § 12.01, 1997 Tex. Gen. Laws 436, amended by Act of April 1, 2003, 78th Leg. R.S., ch. 6, § 3, 2003 Vernon's Sess. Law Serv. 6, 7-8. A releasee is a person released on parole or to mandatory supervision. See Gov't Code § 508.001(9). You state that the submitted information is held by the Parole Division of the department as part of the offender's parole file. You also state that upon release from prison, the offender came under the administrative supervision of the department's Parole Division and is, therefore, a "releasee" as contemplated by section 508.313(a)(2). Based on your representations and our review of the submitted information, we find that the information is made confidential by section 508.313. The requestor does not appear to be an entity authorized to obtain this information under section 508.313(c). In addition, we have no indication that any portion of the submitted information is made public under section 552.029 of the Government Code,(2) see Gov't Code § 508.313(f), or under chapter 62 of the Code of Criminal Procedure,(3) see Gov't Code § 508.313(e). Accordingly, we conclude that the submitted information is excepted from disclosure in its entirety pursuant to section 552.101 of the Government Code in conjunction with section 508.313 of the Government Code. This letter ruling is limited to the particular records at issue in this request and limited to the facts as presented to us; therefore, this ruling must not be relied upon as a previous determination regarding any other records or any other circumstances. This ruling triggers important deadlines regarding the rights and responsibilities of the governmental body and of the requestor. For example, governmental bodies are prohibited from asking the attorney general to reconsider this ruling. Gov't Code § 552.301(f). If the governmental body wants to challenge this ruling, the governmental body must appeal by filing suit in Travis County within 30 calendar days. Id. § 552.324(b). In order to get the full benefit of such an appeal, the governmental body must file suit within 10 calendar days. Id. § 552.353(b)(3), (c). If the governmental body does not appeal this ruling and the governmental body does not comply with it, then both the requestor and the attorney general have the right to file suit against the governmental body to enforce this ruling. Id. § 552.321(a). If this ruling requires the governmental body to release all or part of the requested information, the governmental body is responsible for taking the next step. Based on the statute, the attorney general expects that, within 10 calendar days of this ruling, the governmental body will do one of the following three things: 1) release the public records; 2) notify the requestor of the exact day, time, and place that copies of the records will be provided or that the records can be inspected; or 3) notify the requestor of the governmental body's intent to challenge this letter ruling in court. If the governmental body fails to do one of these three things within 10 calendar days of this ruling, then the requestor should report that failure to the attorney general's Open Government Hotline, toll free, at (877) 673-6839. The requestor may also file a complaint with the district or county attorney. Id. § 552.3215(e). If this ruling requires or permits the governmental body to withhold all or some of the requested information, the requestor can appeal that decision by suing the governmental body. Id. § 552.321(a); Texas Dep't of Pub. Safety v. Gilbreath, 842 S.W.2d 408, 411 (Tex. App.--Austin 1992, no writ). Please remember that under the Act the release of information triggers certain procedures for costs and charges to the requestor. If records are released in compliance with this ruling, be sure that all charges for the information are at or below the legal amounts. Questions or complaints about over-charging must be directed to Hadassah Schloss at the Texas Building and Procurement Commission at (512) 475-2497. If the governmental body, the requestor, or any other person has questions or comments about this ruling, they may contact our office. We note that a third party may challenge this ruling by filing suit seeking to withhold information from a requestor. Gov't Code § 552.325. Although there is no statutory deadline for contacting us, the attorney general prefers to receive any comments within 10 calendar days of the date of this ruling. Sincerely, Ronald J. Bounds
c: Mr. Thomas E. Jennings, J.D.
Footnotes 1. Section 552.101 of the Government Code excepts from disclosure information considered to be confidential by law, either constitutional, statutory, or by judicial decision. See Gov't Code § 552.101. Section 552.101 encompasses information that is protected from disclosure by other statutes. 2. Section 552.029 provides that, notwithstanding sections 508.313 or 552.134, certain information about an inmate who is confined in a facility operated by or under a contract with the department is subject to required disclosure under the Public Information Act (the "Act"). See Gov't Code § 552.029. 3. Chapter 62 of the Code of Criminal Procedure relates to the registration of sex offenders and provides at article 62.08 that registration information is to be maintained by the Department of Public Safety in a central database which, with certain exceptions, is public information. See Crim. Proc. Code ch. 62. POST OFFICE BOX 12548, AUSTIN, TEXAS 78711-2548 TEL: (512) 463-2100 WEB: WWW.OAG.STATE.TX.US |