August 23, 2011

Mr. Gregory Alicie

Open Records Specialist

Baytown Police Department

3200 North Main Street

Baytown, Texas 77521

OR2011-12171

Dear Mr. Alicie:

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# 428868 (ORR# 3492).

The Baytown Police Department (the "department") received a request for specified types of information pertaining to a specified address from May 1, 2010 through May 1, 2011. You state the department has released some of the requested information to the requestor. You also state the department is withholding a Texas driver's license number under section 552.130 of the Government Code pursuant to Open Records Decision No. 684 (2009) and social security numbers pursuant to section 552.147 of the Government Code. ⁽¹⁾ You claim some of the submitted information is excepted from disclosure under section 552.101 of the Government Code. 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. This section encompasses information protected by other statutes. Section 261.201(a) of the Family Code provides as follows:

[T]he following information is confidential, is not subject to public release under Chapter 552, Government Code, 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.

Fam. Code § 261.201(a). You assert incident report number 2010-49265 was used or developed in an investigation under chapter 261. See id. §§ 101.003(a) (defining "child" for purposes of section 261.201), 261.001(1) (defining "abuse" for purposes of section 261.201). Upon review, we find this information is within the scope of section 261.201 of the Family Code. You do not indicate the department has adopted a rule that governs the release of this type of information; therefore, we assume no such rule exists. Given that assumption, incident report number 2010-49265 is confidential pursuant to section 261.201 of the Family Code. See Open Records Decision No. 440 at 2 (1986) (predecessor statute). Accordingly, the department must withhold incident report number 2010-49265, which you have marked, from disclosure under section 552.101 of the Government Code as information made confidential by law. ⁽²⁾

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,

James L. Coggeshall

Assistant Attorney General

Open Records Division

JLC/eb

Ref: ID# 428868

Enc. Submitted documents

c: Requestor

(w/o enclosures)

Footnotes

1. ORD 684 (previous determination authorizing any governmental body to withhold ten categories of information, including Texas license plate numbers under section 552.130 of Government Code, without necessity of requesting attorney general opinion); Gov't Code § 552.147(b) (governmental body may redact social security number without necessity of requesting decision from this office under the Act).

2. As our ruling is dispositive, we do not address your other argument to withhold this information.

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