March 8, 2012

Mr. Christopher Sterner

Assistant General Counsel

Office of the Governor

P.O. Box 12428

Austin, Texas 78711

OR2012-03544

Dear Mr. Sterner:

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# 447882 (OOG# 661-11).

The Office of the Governor (the "governor's office") received a request for certain information pertaining to Medtronic, Inc. ("Medtronic"). ⁽¹⁾ You state you are releasing most of the responsive information to the requestor. Although you take no position with respect to the public availability of the remaining requested information, you state release of this information may implicate the proprietary interests of Medtronic. Accordingly, you have notified Medtronic of the request and of its right to submit arguments to this office as to why the submitted information should not be released. See Gov't Code § 552.305(d); Open Records Decision No. 542 (1990) (statutory predecessor to section 552.305 permitted governmental body to rely on interested third party to raise and explain applicability of exception to disclosure under certain circumstances). We have reviewed the submitted information.

We note an interested third party is allowed ten business days after the date of its receipt of the governmental body's notice under section 552.305(d) of the Government Code to submit its reasons, if any, as to why requested information relating to it should be withheld from disclosure. See Gov't Code § 552.305(d)(2)(B). As of the date of this letter, we have not received arguments from Medtronic. Thus, we have no basis for concluding that any portion of the submitted information constitutes Medtronic's proprietary information. See id. § 552.110; Open Records Decision Nos. 661 at 5-6 (1999) (to prevent disclosure of commercial or financial information, party must show by specific factual evidence, not conclusory or generalized allegations, that release of requested information would cause that party substantial competitive harm), 552 at 5 (1990) (party must establish prima facie case that information is trade secret), 542 at 3. Thus, the governor's office may not withhold any of the submitted information on the basis of Medtronic's proprietary interests. As no exceptions to disclosure have been raised, 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,

Nneka Kanu

Assistant Attorney General

Open Records Division

NK/em

Ref: ID# 447882

Enc. Submitted documents

cc: Requestor

(w/o enclosures)

Footnotes

1. You inform us the governor's office sought and received a clarification of the information requested. See Gov't Code § 552.222(b) (stating that if information requested is unclear to governmental body or if a large amount of information has been requested, governmental body may ask requestor to clarify or narrow request, but may not inquire into purpose for which information will be used); City of Dallas v. Abbott, 304 S.W.3d 380 (Tex. 2010) (holding that when governmental entity, acting in good faith, requests clarification of unclear or overbroad request for public information, ten-business-day period to request attorney general opinion is measured from date the request is clarified or narrowed).

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