ATTORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS GREG ABBOTT



### Ms. Anne Heiligenstein, Commissioner Texas Department ofFamily and Protective Services 701 West 51st Street Austin, Texas 78751

Dear Commissioner Heiligenstein: August 12, 2011 Opinion No. GA-0879 Re: Whether alaw enforcement agencyis required to furnish information about alleged child abuse or neglectby apersonresponsiblefor the child'scare, custody, or welfare to the Department of Family and Protective Services (RQ-0957-GA)

You ask whether a law enforcement agency is required to furnish information about alleged child abuse or neglect by a person responsible for the child's care, custody, or welfare to the Department ofFamily and Protective Services (the "Department,,).l You indicate that in January 2011 a special investigator of the Department requested information from a municipal police department (the "City"). Request Letter at 1. Subsequently, the Cityreferred the request to its open records division, which sought an open records letterruling from the Office ofAttorney General, contending that the requested information was exceptedfrom disclosure under section 552.101, Government Code, as (I) 

### information deemed confidential by section 261.201 ofthe Family Code; and (2) information implicating common-law privacy.2 You argue that a law enforcement agency is statutorily required to furnish the information to the Department. Request Letter at 1. Section 261.105 ofthe Family Code provides, in relevant part: (a) All reports received by a local or state law enforcement agency that allege abuse or neglect by a person responsible for a

lLetter from Anne Heiligenstein, Commissioner, Texas Department of Family and Protective Services, to Honorable GregAbbott, AttorneyGeneral ofTexas at 1(Mar. 15,2011),https:l!www.oag.state.tx.us!opinlindexjq.shtml ("Request Letter'"). 'See Letter fromB. Chase Griffith, Brown & Hofmeister, L.L.P., to Honorable Greg Abbott, Attorney General ofTexas (Jan. 24, 2011) (attached to Request Letter as Exhibit B). This office responded to the City with an Open Records Letter Ruling. See Tex. Att'y Gen. OR2011-04507, https:!!www.oag.state.tx.us!openlindex_orl.php.Ms. Anne Heiligenstein

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child's care, custody, or welfare shall be referred immediately to the department or the designated agency. (b) The department or designated agency shall immediately notify the appropriate state or local law enforcement agency of any report itreceives, other than areport from a law enforcement agency, that concerns the suspected abuse or neglect of a child or death. of a child from abuse or neglect. TEX. FAM.CODEANN. § 261.105 (West Supp. 2010). In chapter261, the word "Department"means "theDepartment ofFamily and Protective Services." Id. § 261.001(2) (West 200S). Independently ofthe requirements ofthe Public Information Act, section 261.105 mandates cooperation between the Department and a local law enforcement agency by specifically requiring that a report alleging abuse or neglect by a person responsible for a child's care, custody, or welfare must be referred immediatelyto the Departmentor adesignated agency afteritis receivedby a local law enforcement agency. Id. § 261.105(a) (West Supp. 2010). Moreover, another statute complements the policy established under section 261.105. Section 261.301(a) provides: (a) With assistance from the appropriate state or local law enforcement agency as provided by this section, the department or designated agency shall make aprompt andthorough investigation of a report of child abuse or neglect allegedly committed by a person responsible for a child's care, custody, or welfare. Id. § 261.301(a) (West 200S). These two statutes, taken together, contemplate a complete and total sharing of information between the Department and a local law enforcement agency so long as the alleged child abuse or neglect is "committedby aperson responsible for a child's care, custody, or welfare." Id. We conclude that a law enforcement agency is therefore required to furnish information about allegedchildabuseorneglectbyapersonresponsibleforthechild'scare, custody, or welfare to the Department ofFamily and Protective Services.Ms. Anne Heiligenstein

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### SUMMARY Pursuantto sections 261.105 and261.301oftheFamilyCode, a law enforcement agency is required to furnish information about alleged child abuse or neglect by aperson responsible for the child's care, custody, or welfare to the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services.

DANIEL T. HODGE First Assistant Attorney General DAVID J. SCHENCK Deputy Attorney General for Legal Counsel JASON BOATRIGHT Chair, Opinion Committee Rick Gilpin Very truly yours,

Attorney General ofTexas

Assistant Attorney General, Opinion Committee