November 20, 2012

Ms. Skye Masson

Assistant City Attorney

City of Georgetown

P.O. Box 409

Georgetown, Texas 78627-0409

OR2012-18784

Dear Ms. Masson:

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# 471816.

The Georgetown Economic Development Corporation (the "corporation") received a request for two categories of information from a specified time period: (1) agreements or contracts between the corporation and any person, business, or entity; and (2) correspondence or memoranda between any representative or board member of the corporation and ten named individuals and four named businesses. You inform us the corporation has released most of the requested information. You claim some of the submitted information is excepted from disclosure under section 552.131 of the Government Code. We have considered the exception you claim and reviewed the submitted information.

Section 552.131(b) of the Government Code provides as follows:

(b) Unless and until an agreement is made with the business prospect, information about a financial or other incentive being offered to the business prospect by the governmental body or by another person is excepted from [required public disclosure].

Gov't Code § 552.131(b). Section 552.131(b) protects information about a financial or other incentive that is being offered to a business prospect by a governmental body or another person. See id. You assert some of the submitted information relates to negotiations between the corporation and TASUS Corporation and Dispersol Technologies (collectively, the "business prospects") regarding potential financial or other incentives. You inform us the corporation has not yet reached agreements with the business prospects. Based on your representations and our review of the submitted information, we agree portions of this information consists of information about financial or other incentives being offered to the business prospects by the corporation. Accordingly, the corporation must withhold the information we have marked under section 552.131(b) of the Government Code. However, you have not demonstrated how the remaining information consists of information about financial or other incentives being offered to the business prospects. Consequently, none of the remaining information may be withheld under section 552.131(b). As no further exceptions to disclosure are raised for the remaining information, the corporation must release it.

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,

Kenneth Leland Conyer

Assistant Attorney General

Open Records Division

KLC/bhf

Ref: ID# 471816

Enc. Submitted documents

c: Requestor

(w/o enclosures)

Ref: ID# 471816

ROSS HUNTER

908 S WALNUT ST

GEORGETOWN TX 78626

(w/o enclosures)

POST OFFICE BOX 12548, AUSTIN, TEXAS 78711-2548 TEL: (512) 463-2100 WEB: WWW.OAG.STATE.TX.US
An Equal Employment Opportunity Employer