November 26, 2012

Ms. Michelle M. Kretz

Assistant City Attorney

City of Fort Worth

1000 Throckmorton Street

Fort Worth, Texas 76102

OR2012-18935

Dear Ms. Kretz:

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# 476175 (W021088).

The City of Fort Worth (the "city") received a request for information pertaining to six offenses involving the requestor. You inform us the city will redact certain motor vehicle record information under section 552.130(a)(2) of the Government Code pursuant to the previous determinations issued to the city in Open Records Letter Nos. 2006-14726 (2006) and 2007-00198 (2007). ⁽¹⁾ You claim portions of the submitted information are excepted from disclosure under section 552.152 of the Government Code. ⁽²⁾ We have considered the exception you claim and reviewed the submitted information.

Section 552.152 of the Government Code provides:

Information in the custody of a governmental body that relates to an employee or officer of the governmental body is excepted from the requirements of Section 552.021 if, under the specific circumstances pertaining to the employee or officer, disclosure of the information would subject the employee or officer to a substantial threat of physical harm.

Gov't Code § 552.152. You inform us the information you have marked under section 552.152 relates to undercover police officers. You state release of this information would subject these officers to a substantial threat of physical harm. Based on your representations and our review, we conclude you have demonstrated release of the information at issue would subject the officers to a substantial threat of physical harm. Therefore, the department must withhold the information you marked under section 552.152 of the Government Code.

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,

Ana Carolina Vieira

Assistant Attorney General

Open Records Division

ACV/ag

Ref: ID# 476175

Enc. Submitted documents

c: Requestor

(w/o enclosures)

Footnotes

1. Open Records Letter No. 2006-14726 authorizes the city to withhold, among other information, a Texas license plate number and a Texas license year of a motor vehicle under section 552.130(a)(2) of the Government Code, without the necessity of requesting an attorney general decision. Open Records Letter No. 2007-00198 authorizes the city to withhold, among other information, vehicle identification numbers relating to a title or registration issued by an agency of this state in which a living individual owns an interest under section 552.130(a)(2), without the necessity of requesting an attorney general decision.

2. Although you raise section 552.151 of the Government Code, we note the 82nd Texas Legislature renumbered section 552.151 to section 552.152 of the Government Code. See Act of May 9, 2011, 82nd Leg., R.S., S.B. 1303, § 27.001(20).

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