July 20, 2010

Chief Don Hatcher

Leander Police Department

705 Leander Drive

Leander, Texas 78641

OR2010-10767

Dear Chief Hatcher:

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# 387251.

The Leander Police Department (the "department") received a request for information pertaining to a specified address over a specified period of time. You state the department has released some of the requested information with the redaction of (1) social security numbers pursuant to section 552.147 of the Government Code, (2) Texas driver's license numbers under section 552.130 of the Government Code pursuant to Open Records Decision No. 684 (2009), and (3) credit card numbers under section 552.136 of the Government Code pursuant to Open Records Decision No. 684. ⁽¹⁾ You claim that some of the requested information is excepted from disclosure under section 552.101 of the Government Code. ⁽²⁾ We have considered the exception you claim and reviewed the submitted information.

Initially, we note that the department has redacted portions of the submitted information. Pursuant to section 552.301 of the Government Code, a governmental body that seeks to withhold requested information must submit to this office a copy of the information, labeled to indicate which exceptions apply to which parts of the copy, unless the governmental body has received a previous determination for the information at issue. Gov't Code §§ 552.301(a), .301(e)(1)(D). We note the department has redacted a Texas driver's license number. Redaction of this type of information is now permitted pursuant to the previous determination issued to all governmental bodies in Open Records Decision No. 684 (2009), which authorizes the withholding of ten categories of information, including Texas driver's license numbers under section 552.130 of the Government Code. However, we note Open Records Decision No. 684 does not authorize the department to withhold the expiration date of a Texas driver's license. You do not assert, nor does our review of our records indicate, that the department has been otherwise authorized to withhold the driver's license expiration date the department redacted without seeking a ruling from this office. See Gov't Code § 552.301(a); ORD 673. In this instance, we can discern the nature of the redacted information; thus, being deprived of that information does not inhibit our ability to make a ruling. However, in the future, the department must not redact requested information that it submits to this office in seeking an open records ruling, unless the information is the subject of a previous determination under section 552.301 of the Government Code. See Gov't Code §§ 552.301(e)(1)(D), .302. Failure to comply with section 552.301 may result in the information being presumed public under section 552.302 of the Government Code. See id.

Section 552.101 of the Government Code excepts from disclosure "information considered to be confidential by law, either constitutional, statutory, or by judicial decision." Gov't Code § 552.101. This section encompasses the doctrine of common-law privacy. Common-law privacy protects information that (1) contains highly intimate or embarrassing facts, the publication of which would be highly objectionable to a reasonable person, and (2) is not of legitimate concern to the public. Indus. Found. v. Tex. Indus. Accident Bd., 540 S.W.2d 668, 685 (Tex. 1976). The type of information considered intimate or embarrassing by the Texas Supreme Court in Industrial Foundation included information relating to sexual assault, pregnancy, mental or physical abuse in the workplace, illegitimate children, psychiatric treatment of mental disorders, attempted suicide, and injuries to sexual organs. Id. at 683.

Upon review, we find that the information we have marked is highly intimate or embarrassing and not of legitimate public concern. Therefore, the department must withhold the information we have marked pursuant to section 552.101 of the Government Code in conjunction with common-law privacy. However, we find the remaining submitted information is not highly intimate or embarrassing and not of legitimate public interest. Therefore, none of the remaining submitted information may be withheld under section 552.101 in conjunction with common-law privacy.

Section 552.130 of the Government Code excepts from disclosure information that relates to a motor vehicle operator's license or driver's license issued by a Texas agency. Gov't Code § 552.130(a)(1). The department must withhold the redacted driver's license expiration date, which we have marked, under section 552.130.

In summary, the department must withhold the information we have marked under section 552.101 of the Government Code in conjunction with common-law privacy. The department must withhold the redacted driver's license expiration date, which have marked, under section 552.130 of the Government Code. The remaining 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,

Jennifer Luttrall

Assistant Attorney General

Open Records Division

JL/dls

Ref: ID# 387251

Enc. Submitted documents

c: Requestor

(w/o enclosures)

Footnotes

1. Section 552.147(b) of the Government Code authorizes a governmental body to redact a living person's social security number from public release without the necessity of requesting a decision from this office under the Act. Open Records Decision No. 684 (2009) is a previous determination to all governmental bodies authorizing them to withhold ten categories of information, including driver's license numbers under section 552.130 of the Government Code and credit card numbers under section 552.136 of the Government Code, without the necessity of requesting an attorney general decision.

2. We note that although you raise section 552.108 of the Government Code, you make no arguments to support this exception. Therefore, we assume you have withdrawn your claim that this section applies to the submitted information.

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