October 18, 2010

Ms. Catherine Zellers

City of Weatherford

P.O. Box 255

Weatherford, Texas 76086

OR2010-15765

Dear Ms. Zellers:

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# 397760.

The City of Weatherford (the "city") received a request for information pertaining to a specified incident. You claim that the submitted information is excepted from disclosure under section 552.101 of the Government Code. ⁽¹⁾ We have considered the exception you claim and reviewed the submitted information.

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. Section 552.101 encompasses information protected by other statutes, such as section 261.201 of the Family Code. Section 261.201 provides in relevant part:

(a) [T]he following information is confidential, is not subject to public release under [the Act] and may be disclosed only for purposes consistent with this code and applicable federal or state law or under rules adopted by an investigating agency:

(1) a report of alleged or suspected abuse or neglect made under this chapter and the identity of the person making the report; and

(2) except as otherwise provided in this section, the files, reports, records, communications, audiotapes, videotapes, and working papers used or developed in an investigation under this chapter or in providing services as a result of an investigation.

. . .

(k) Notwithstanding Subsection (a), an investigating agency, other than the [Texas Department of Family and Protective Services] or the Texas Youth Commission, on request, shall provide to the parent, managing conservator, or other legal representative of a child who is the subject of reported abuse or neglect, or to the child if the child is at least 18 years of age, information concerning the reported abuse or neglect that would otherwise be confidential under this section. The investigating agency shall withhold information under this subsection if the parent, managing conservator, or other legal representative of the child requesting the information is alleged to have committed the abuse or neglect.

Fam. Code § 261.201(a), (k). You assert the submitted report was used or developed in an investigation of alleged child abuse under chapter 261 of the Family Code. See id. § 261.001(1) (defining "abuse" for the purposes of chapter 261 of the Family Code); see also id. § 101.003(a) (defining "child" for purposes of section 261.201 as person under 18 years of age who is not and has not been married or who has not had the disabilities of minority removed for general purposes). Upon review, we find this report is within the scope of section 261.201 of the Family Code. We note that information may not be withheld on the basis of section 261.201(a) from a parent of a child who was the victim of alleged abuse, unless the parent is alleged to have committed the alleged abuse. See id. § 261.201(k). In this instance, although the requestor is the parent of the child victim who is the subject of the submitted report, the requestor is alleged to have committed the abuse. Thus, the city must withhold the submitted report under section 552.101 of the Government Code in conjunction with section 261.201 of the Family Code.

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,

Christina Alvarado

Assistant Attorney General

Open Records Division

CA/tp

Ref: ID# 397760

Enc. Submitted documents

c: Requestor

(w/o enclosures)

Footnotes

1. Although you also raise section 552.108 of the Government Code as an exception to disclosure of the submitted information, you have provided no arguments regarding the applicability of this section. Thus, we assume you no longer assert this section. See Gov't Code §§ 552.301(b), (e), .302.

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