August 13, 2012

Ms. Lillian Guillen Graham

Assistant City Attorney

City of Mesquite

PO Box 850137

Mesquite, Texas 75185-0137

OR2012-12671

Dear Ms. Graham:

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# 466202.

The Mesquite Police Department (the "department") received a request for information pertaining to a specified incident. You state some information will be released. You state the department will redact information as permitted by Open Records Letter No. 2012-07334 (2012). ⁽¹⁾ You claim some of the submitted information is excepted from disclosure under sections 552.101, 552.130, and 552.147 of the Government Code. We have considered the claimed exceptions 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." Gov't Code § 552.101. This section encompasses information protected by other statutes, such as chapter 411 of the Government Code, which pertains to criminal history record information ("CHRI") generated by the National Crime Information Center or by the Texas Crime Information Center. See id. § 411.083(a). Title 28, part 20 of the Code of Federal Regulations governs the release of CHRI states obtain from the federal government or other states. Open Records Decision No. 565 (1990). The federal regulations allow each state to follow its individual laws with respect to the CHRI it generates. See id. Section 411.083 of the Government Code deems confidential CHRI the Texas Department of Public Safety ("DPS") maintains, except DPS may disseminate this information as provided in chapter 411, subchapter F of the Government Code. See Gov't Code § 411.083. Sections 411.083(b)(1) and 411.089(a) authorize a criminal justice agency to obtain CHRI; however, a criminal justice agency may not release CHRI except to another criminal justice agency for a criminal justice purpose. Id. § 411.089(b)(1). Other entities specified in chapter 411 of the Government Code are entitled to obtain CHRI from DPS or another criminal justice agency; however, those entities may not release CHRI except as provided by chapter 411. See generally id. §§ 411.090-.127. Similarly, any CHRI obtained from DPS or any other criminal justice agency must be withheld under section 552.101 in conjunction with chapter 411, subchapter F of the Government Code. Upon review, we find the information you have marked constitutes CHRI. Thus, the department must withhold the marked information under section 552.101 of the Government Code in conjunction with federal law and chapter 411 of the Government Code.

Section 552.130 of the Government Code excepts from disclosure information that relates to a motor vehicle operator's or driver's license, title, or registration issued by an agency of this state or another state or country. Id. § 552.130(a)(1)-(2). Therefore, the department must withhold the information you have marked under section 552.130.

Section 552.147 of the Government Code provides that "[t]he social security number of a living person is excepted from" required public disclosure under the Act. Id. § 552.147(a). Therefore, the department may withhold the social security numbers you have marked under section 552.147(a). ⁽²⁾

In summary, the department must withhold the information you marked under section 552.101 of the Government Code in conjunction with federal law and chapter 411 of the Government Code and under section 552.130 of the Government Code, and may withhold the information you marked under section 552.147 of the Government Code. The remaining information must be released.

You ask this office to issue a previous determination that would permit the department to withhold CHRI under section 552.101 of the Government Code in conjunction with federal law and chapter 411 of the Government Code, without the necessity of requesting a decision from this office. We decline to issue such a previous determination at this time. Accordingly, 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,

Misty Haberer Barham

Assistant Attorney General

Open Records Division

MHB/som

Ref: ID# 466202

Enc. Submitted documents

c: Requestor

(w/o enclosures)

Footnotes

1. Open Records Letter No. 2012-07334 is a previous determination issued to the department authorizing the department to withhold FBI numbers under section 552.101 of the Government Code in conjunction with section 411.083 of the Government Code and federal law without requesting a ruling from this office.

2. We note section 552.147(b) of the Government Code authorizes a governmental body to redact a living person's social security number from public release without the necessity of requesting a decision from this office under the Act. Gov't Code § 552.147(b).

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