January 25, 2012

Ms. Clarissa M. Rodriguez

Denton, Navarro, Rocha & Bernal

2517 North Main Avenue

San Antonio, Texas 78212-4685

OR2012-01266

Dear Ms. Rodriguez:

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# 444056.

The City of Live Oak (the "city"), which you represent, received a request for site plans for a specified property. You claim that the submitted information is excepted from disclosure under federal copyright law. ⁽¹⁾ We have considered your arguments and reviewed the submitted information.

Although you argue the submitted information is excepted from disclosure pursuant to federal copyright law, we note copyright law does not make information confidential. See Open Records Decision No. 660 at 5 (1999). A custodian of public records must comply with the copyright law and is not required to furnish copies of records that are copyrighted. Open Records Decision No. 180 at 3 (1977). A governmental body must allow inspection of copyrighted materials unless an exception applies to the information. Id.; see Open Records Decision No. 109 (1975). If a member of the public wishes to make copies of copyrighted materials, the person must do so unassisted by the governmental body. In making copies, the member of the public assumes the duty of compliance with the copyright law and the risk of a copyright infringement suit. Accordingly, as no exceptions to disclosure have been raised, the submitted information must be released, but any information protected by copyright may only be released in accordance with copyright law.

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,

Kathryn R. Mattingly

Assistant Attorney General

Open Records Division

KRM/som

Ref: ID# 444056

Enc. Submitted documents

c: Requestor

(w/o enclosures)

Footnotes

1. Although you raise section 552.022 of the Government Code, we note that section 552.022 is not an exception to disclosure. Rather, section 552.022 enumerates categories of information that are not excepted from disclosure unless they are made confidential under the Act or other law. See Gov't Code § 552.022.

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