March 10, 2010

Mr. Mark Sokolow

City Attorney

City of Georgetown

P.O. Box 409

Georgetown, Texas 78627-0409

OR2010-03440

Dear Mr. Sokolow:

You ask whether certain information is subject to required public disclosure under the Public Information Act (the "Act"), chapter 552 of the Government Code. Your request was assigned ID#376006.

The City of Georgetown (the "city") received a request for the names, positions, office phone numbers, office e-mail addresses, and mailing addresses for personnel at a specified government office. You claim that a portion of the submitted information is excepted from disclosure under section 552.137 of the Government Code. We have considered the exception you claim and reviewed the submitted information.

Section 552.137 of the Government Code excepts from disclosure "an e-mail address of a member of the public that is provided for the purpose of communicating electronically with a governmental body" unless the member of the public consents to its release or the e-mail address is of a type specifically excluded by subsection (c). Gov't Code § 552.137(a)-(c). Section 552.137 does not apply to a government employee's work e-mail address because such an address is not that of the employee as a "member of the public," but is instead the address of the individual as a government employee. Id. § 552.137(c). The e-mail address you have marked is an e-mail address of a government employee and is therefore, not excluded by section 552.137. As you raise no further exceptions to disclosure, the submitted information must be released.

This letter ruling is limited to the particular information 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 information or any other circumstances.

This ruling triggers important deadlines regarding the rights and responsibilities of the governmental body and of the requestor. For more information concerning those rights and responsibilities, please visit our website at http://www.oag.state.tx.us/open/index_orl.php, or call the Office of the Attorney General's Open Government Hotline, toll free, at (877) 673-6839. Questions concerning the allowable charges for providing public information under the Act must be directed to the Cost Rules Administrator of the Office of the Attorney General, toll free at (888) 672-6787.

Sincerely,

Vanessa Burgess

Assistant Attorney General

Open Records Division

VB/jb

Ref: ID#376006

Enc. Submitted documents

c: Requestor

(w/o enclosures)

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