January 9, 2012

Mr. R. Brooks Moore

Managing Counsel, Governance

The Texas A&m University System

301 Tarrow Street, 6^th Floor

College Station, Texas 77840-7896

OR2012-00376

Dear Mr. Moore:

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# 446666 (TAMU Request No. 11-751).

Texas A&M University (the "university") received a request for information pertaining to a specified incident. You state the university has redacted certain driver's license numbers and license plate numbers pursuant to section 552.130 of the Government Code and Open Records Decision No. 684 (2009), respectively. ⁽¹⁾ You claim portions of the submitted information are excepted from disclosure under section 552.130 of the Government Code. We have considered the exception you claim and reviewed the submitted information.

Section 552.130 of the Government Code provides that information relating to a motor vehicle title or registration issued by an agency of this state or another state or country is excepted from public release. Gov't Code § 552.130(a)(2). You have marked vehicle identification numbers that are subject to section 552.130 of the Government Code. We note, however, the requestor in this instance is the insurance provider for one of the individuals listed in the submitted information and this requestor is acting as the individual's authorized representative. The requestor, therefore, has a right of access to his insured's vehicle identification number and this information may not be withheld from him under section 552.130. See id. § 552.023(a); Open Records Decision No. 481 at 4 (1987) (privacy theories not implicated when an individual or authorized representative asks governmental body to provide information concerning that individual). The university, however, must withhold the vehicle identification number pertaining to another individual under section 552.130. The university must release the remaining submitted information.

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,

Tamara H. Holland

Assistant Attorney General

Open Records Division

THH/ag

Ref: ID# 446666

Enc. Submitted documents

c: Requestor

(w/o enclosures)

Footnotes

1. Section 552.130(c) of the Government Code allows a governmental body to redact the motor vehicle record information described in subsection 552.130(a)(1) without the necessity of seeking a decision from the attorney general. See Gov't Code § 552.130(c). Further, Open Records Decision No. 684 is a previous determination to all governmental bodies authorizing them to withhold ten categories of information, including Texas license plate numbers under section 552.130 of the Government Code, without the necessity of requesting an attorney general decision.

POST OFFICE BOX 12548, AUSTIN, TEXAS 78711-2548 TEL: (512) 463-2100 WEB: WWW.OAG.STATE.TX.US
An Equal Employment Opportunity Employer