October 12, 2011

Mr. Ronald J. Bounds

Assistant City Attorney

City of Corpus Christi

P.O. Box 9277

Corpus Christi, Texas 78469-9277

OR2011-14824

Dear Mr. Bounds:

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# 432820.

The City of Corpus Christi (the "city") received a request for information relating to a request for proposals ("RFP") regarding the city's natural gas supply, including information from bidders, their responses to questions from the city's consultant, any reports available from the consultant, and internal reports or memoranda relating to the RFP. Although you take no position on its public availability, you believe the requested information may implicate the interests of Enterprise Products Operating, LLC ("Enterprise") and Onyx Gas Marketing Company, L.C. ("Onyx"). You inform us Enterprise and Onyx were notified of this request for information and of their right to submit arguments to this office as to why the requested information should not be released. ⁽¹⁾ We have reviewed the information you submitted.

An interested third party is allowed ten business days from the date of its receipt of the governmental body's notice under section 552.305 of the Government Code to submit its reasons, if any, as to why information relating to the party should not be released. See Gov't Code § 552.305(d)(2)(B). As of the date of this decision, this office has received no correspondence from Enterprise or Onyx. Thus, because Enterprise and Onyx have not demonstrated any of the submitted information is proprietary for purposes of the Act, the city may not withhold any of the information at issue on the basis of any interest Enterprise or Onyx may have in the information. See id. § 552.110(a)-(b); Open Records Decision Nos. 552 at 5 (1990), 661 at 5-6 (1999). Therefore, as the city does not claim an exception to disclosure, the submitted 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,

James W. Morris, III

Assistant Attorney General

Open Records Division

JWM/em

Ref: ID# 432820

Enc: Submitted documents

c: Requestor

(w/o enclosures)