November 8, 2011

Mr. Ronald J. Bounds

Assistant City Attorney

City of Corpus Christi

P.O. Box 9277

Corpus Christi, Texas 78469-9277

OR2011-16393

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# 440281.

The Corpus Christi Police Department (the "department") received a request for information pertaining to a specified accident. You state the department is providing some of the requested information to the requestor, but 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." This section encompasses information protected by other statutes, including section 772.318 of the Health and Safety Code. Chapter 772 of the Health and Safety Code authorizes the development of local emergency communications districts. Sections 772.118, 772.218, and 772.318 of the Health and Safety Code are applicable to emergency 9-1-1 districts established in accordance with chapter 772. See Open Records Decision No. 649 (1996). These sections make the originating telephone number and address of a 9-1-1 caller that are furnished by a 9-1-1 service supplier confidential. Id. at 2. Section 772.318 applies to an emergency communication district for a county with a population of more than 20,000.

You state the City of Corpus Christi is part of an emergency communication district established under chapter 772.318. You also state the telephone numbers and addresses you have marked were furnished to the department by a 9-1-1 service supplier. Based on this representation and our review, we conclude the department must withhold the originating telephone numbers and addresses of 9-1-1 callers you have marked under section 552.101 of the Government Code in conjunction with section 772.318 of the Health and Safety Code.

Finally, you ask this office to issue a previous determination permitting the department to withhold telephone numbers and addresses of 9-1-1 callers under section 552.101 of the Government Code in conjunction with section 772.318 of the Health and Safety Code. See Gov't Code § 552.301(a) (allowing governmental body to withhold information subject to previous determination); Open Records Decision No. 673 (2001). After due consideration, we have decided to grant your request on this matter. Therefore, this letter ruling shall serve as a previous determination under section 552.301(a) that the department must withhold under section 552.101 of the Government Code in conjunction with section 772.318 of the Health and Safety Code the originating telephone number and address of a 9-1-1 caller furnished to the department by a service supplier established in accordance with chapter 772 of the Health and Safety Code. So long as the elements of law, fact, and circumstances do not change so as to no longer support the findings set forth above, the department need not ask for a decision from this office again with respect to this type of information. See ORD 673 at 7.

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/dls

Ref: ID# 440281

Enc. Submitted documents

c: Requestor

(w/o enclosures)

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