October 11, 2012

Ms. Lillian Guillen Graham

Assistant City Attorney

City of Mesquite

P.O. Box 850137

Mesquite, Texas 75185-0137

OR2012-16298

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# 470958.

The Mesquite Police Department (the "department") received a request for a specified police report. 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 exceptions you claim 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. Section 552.101 encompasses the common-law right of privacy, which protects information if it (1) contains highly intimate or embarrassing facts, the publication of which would be highly objectionable to a reasonable person, and (2) is not of legitimate concern to the public. Indus. Found. v. Tex. Indus. Accident Bd., 540 S.W.2d 668, 685 (Tex. 1976). To demonstrate the applicability of common-law privacy, both prongs of this test must be established. Id. at 681-82. The type of information considered intimate or embarrassing by the Texas Supreme Court in Industrial Foundation included information relating to sexual assault, pregnancy, mental or physical abuse in the workplace, illegitimate children, psychiatric treatment of mental disorders, attempted suicide, and injuries to sexual organs. Id. at 683. Generally, only highly intimate information that implicates the privacy of an individual is withheld. However, in certain instances, where it is demonstrated that the requestor knows the identity of the individual involved, as well as the nature of certain incidents, the entire report must be withheld to protect the individual's privacy. In this instance, although you seek to withhold the submitted report in its entirety, you have not demonstrated, nor does it otherwise appear, this is a situation in which the report must be withheld in its entirety on the basis of common-law privacy. Furthermore, we find you have failed to demonstrate how any portion of the submitted report is highly intimate or embarrassing and not of legitimate concern to the public; therefore, the department may not withhold any of the submitted information under section 552.101 on this basis.

Section 552.130 of the Government Code provides, in relevant part:

(a) Information is excepted from the requirements of Section 552.021 if the information relates to:

(1) a motor vehicle operator's or driver's license or permit issued by an agency of this state or another state or country;

. . .

(3) a personal identification document issued by an agency of this state or another state or country or a local agency authorized to issue an identification document.

Gov't Code § 552.130(a)(1), (3). Upon review, we find the department must withhold the driver's license number you have marked under section 552.130 of the Government Code. However, you have also marked a number under section 552.130 identified in the documents as "SID" and "State ID Number." This number does not consist of information relating to a personal identification document issued by a Texas agency, or an agency of another state or country or a local agency authorized to issue an identification document for purposes of section 552.130, and it may not be withheld under section 552.130 of the Government Code.

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

In summary, the department must withhold the driver's license number you have marked under section 552.130 of the Government Code. The department may withhold the social security number you have marked under section 552.147 of the Government Code. The department must release the remaining 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,

Sean Nottingham

Assistant Attorney General

Open Records Division

SN/bhf

Ref: ID# 470958

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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