April 20, 2011

Mr. B. Chase Griffith

Brown & Hofmeister, L.L.P.

For City of Farmersville

740 East Campbell Road, Suite 800

Richardson, Texas 75081

OR2011-05496

Dear Mr. Griffith:

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# 419605.

The City of Farmersville (the "city"), which you represent, received a request for a copy of city ordinance number 86-20-A. You claim that the requested information is excepted from disclosure under section 552.103 of the Government Code. We have considered the exception you claim and reviewed the submitted information.

The submitted information consists of a city ordinance. As laws and ordinances are binding on members of the public, they are matters of public record and may not be withheld from disclosure under the Act. See Open Records Decision Nos. 551 at 2-3 (1990) (laws or ordinances are open records), 221 at 1 (1979) (official records of governmental body's public proceedings are among most open of records). Therefore, the submitted city ordinance 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,

Cindy Nettles

Assistant Attorney General

Open Records Division

CN/em

Ref: ID# 419605

Enc. Submitted documents

c: Requestor

(w/o enclosures)

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