September 20, 2011

Ms. Ashley D. Fourt

Assistant District Attorney

Tarrant County

401 West Belknap

Fort Worth, Texas 76196-0201

OR2011-13541

Dear Ms. Fourt:

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# 430900.

The Tarrant County District Attorney's Office received a request for information regarding a named county employee and minutes from the county's IT steering committee meetings during a specified time. You state the requested meeting minutes have been released to the requestor. We note you have redacted a driver's license number and personal e-mail address as permitted by Open Records Decision No. 684 (2009). ⁽¹⁾ In addition, you state, and provide documentation showing, you have notified the named employee at issue of the request and his right to submit arguments to this office as to why the information at issue should not be released. ⁽²⁾ See Gov't Code § 552.304 (interested party may submit comments stating why information should or should not be released). We have reviewed the submitted information.

We note you have redacted information subject to section 552.117 of the Government Code as permitted by section 552.024 of the Government Code. ⁽³⁾ Section 552.117(a)(1) excepts from disclosure the home addresses and telephone numbers, emergency contact information, social security numbers, and family member information of current or former officials or employees of a governmental body who request that this information be kept confidential under section 552.024. Act of May 24, 2011, 82nd Leg., R.S., S.B. 1638, § 2 (to be codified as an amendment to Gov't Code § 552.117(a)(1)). We note a post office box number is not a "home address" for purposes of section 552.117. See Open Records Decision No. 622 at 4 (1994) (legislative history makes clear purpose of section 552.117 is to protect public employees from being harassed at home) (citing House Committee on State Affairs, Bill Analysis, H.B. 1976, 69th Leg. (1985); Senate Committee on State Affairs, Bill Analysis, H.B. 1976, 69th Leg. (1985)). Therefore, with the exception of the post office box number we have marked for release, you must withhold the information you have marked, and the additional information we have marked, under section 552.117(a)(1). As no additional exceptions to disclosure have been raised, the remaining information must be released to the requestor.

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,

Misty Haberer Barham

Assistant Attorney General

Open Records Division

MHB/agn

Ref: ID # 430900

Enc. Submitted documents

c: Requestor

(w/o enclosures)

Mr. Steve Smith

Chief Information Officer

Tarrant County Information Technology

Plaza Building

200 Taylor Street, 4^th Floor

Fort Worth, Texas 76102

Footnotes

1. Open Records Decision No. 684 is a previous determination to all governmental bodies authorizing them to withhold ten categories of information, including Texas driver's license numbers under section 552.130 of the Government Code and e-mail addresses of members of the public under section 552.137 of the Government Code, without the necessity of requesting an attorney general decision.

2. As of the date of this ruling, we have not received comments from the employee at issue.

3. Section 552.024(c) authorizes a governmental body to redact, without the necessity of requesting a decision from this office, the home address, home telephone number, emergency contact information, social security number, and family member information of a current or former employee who properly elected to keep his information confidential. Gov't Code § 552.024(c); Act of May 24, 2011, 82nd Leg., R.S., S.B. 1638, §1 (to be codified as an amendment to Gov't Code § 552.024(a)).

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