April 25, 2012

Ms. Charlotte A. Towe

Assistant General Counsel

Office of the General Counsel

Texas Department of Criminal Justice

P.O. Box 4004

Huntsville, Texas 77342-4004

OR2012-05939

Dear Ms. Towe:

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# 452524.

The Texas Department of Criminal Justice (the "department") received a request for information pertaining to interviews for two specified job positions. You state the department has or will release some of the requested information. You claim that the submitted information is excepted from disclosure under section 552.122 of the Government Code. We have considered the exception you claim and reviewed the submitted information.

Section 552.122 of the Government Code excepts from disclosure "[a] test item developed by a . . . governmental body[.]" Gov't Code § 552.122(b). In Open Records Decision No. 626 (1994), this office determined that the term "test item" in section 552.122 includes "any standard means by which an individual's or group's knowledge or ability in a particular area is evaluated," but does not encompass evaluations of an employee's overall job performance or suitability. ORD 626 at 6. The question of whether specific information falls within the scope of section 552.122(b) must be determined on a case-by-case basis. Id. Traditionally, this office has applied section 552.122 where release of "test items" might compromise the effectiveness of future examinations. Id. at 4-5; see also Open Records Decision No. 118 (1976). Section 552.122 also protects the answers to test questions when the answers might reveal the questions themselves. See Attorney General Opinion JM-640 at 3 (1987); ORD 626 at 8.

You state the questions and ideal answers at issue "are intended to display the technical expertise of the applicant." You contend release of the information at issue would "compromise the effectiveness of future examinations" because the department reuses similar interview questions. Upon review, we conclude the interview questions and ideal answers we have marked qualify as test items under section 552.122(b) of the Government Code and may be withheld on this basis. However, we find the remaining information consists of questions that evaluate each applicant's general workplace skills, personal opinions, individual abilities, and overall suitability for employment, and do not test any specific knowledge of an applicant. Accordingly, we determine that this information does not constitute test items under section 552.122(b) and the department may not withhold the remaining information on this basis. As you raise no other arguments against disclosure of the remaining information, it 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,

Lindsay E. Hale

Assistant Attorney General

Open Records Division

LEH/bhf

Ref: ID# 452524

Enc. Submitted documents

c: Requestor

(w/o enclosures)

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