.- OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAi OF**TEXAS** AUSTIN

Texas Unemployment Compensation &m~ieslon BrownBuilding Austin, Texae (Pentlemen:

es, 1940, **aubmlte** for following quaetion,

‘Colleotion Dietriot of Texas:

onwith the administration of surance Contributions Act andthe Federal Unemployment TaxAot, (formml. Titles VIII andIX of the Soofal Seaurity ActT wehave in aomsfew casEa fauna it practloall~ imposslble to obtaln suffloient reoorde upon whloh to base our reoonmendatlon 

### forassessments of taxes ageinst the employer. In someinstancea weobtaln Information from the taxpayer that your offloe has previously madecomplete lnvestlgatlon in the sameoase and

### -haabuilt up reoords 

### sufficient to justify the aeaeesment and closing of the case.Texas Unemployment Compensation Comm:selon, Page E

.- mlIn most of such oaeee the taxpayer lnalsts

that hedoes not have in his files the oomplete data covering the audit. In such oases it would be of great assistance to thls offloe If wewere privileged to obtain from you a transorlpt of your audit, or if wewere prlvlleged to review your files in the case and obtain the neoeesary 1nfor:mtIon to serve as abasis for aseesement of the taxee.

“1.t will be appreciated if you will take thle matter upwith the proper authorities and advlee what steps should be taken In caees of thl~ oharscter where wefind It neoeosary to oall upon your office for such assistance. ’ *Weshall appreciate your oplnlon as to whether this Commission maymakeIts records available to Mr. 80&‘&&l&l for the pumoeee lndloated in hls letter.. In thls connection your attetitlon 1s dlreated to &Ib6eOtiOnS 11 (ej and 11 (1) of the Texas Uuzh@ploymentCompensation Act (Artlole 5221b-9 (e) anffQ(l) Vernon’s Re- :,. vleed,,,C~vll %atuteo). *

Article 52Plb-9 (e), Vernon's Annotated Retleea Civil Statutea of Texas, provides aa folk owewith respect to the recordr andreports involved in your Inquiry:

*Records anUReports: Eaoh employing unit shall keep true andaocurate employment reoordr, oontalnlng such information as the Commlsslon mayprescribe andwhich 1s aeeeed necessary to the proper admlnlstratlon of thla Act. Suoh records shall be open to lnspectlon and subjedt

. to being oopled by the ~ommlsslon or Its aaaM$prIced representatives et any reasonable time and ae often as maybe ncessary. The Commission mayrequire from any employing unlt any sworn or unsworn reports, with respect to persons employed by It, whioh the CornmissIon deems necesFary for the effect5.ve administration of this Act. Information thus obtslned shall not be published or be open to public lnepectlon (other veee ln the Dermoe OZ. the emploglng unit’s in anymanner revealing identity, but any ol+.mant- Texas Unemployment Compeneatlon Commlsslon, Page 3

at ahearing before anappeal tribunal or the Commission shall be supplied with lnrormatlon from such records to the extent neoessary for the proper presentation of his claim. Any employee or memberof the Commission whoviolates any provision of this seatlon shall be fined not less than Twenty (Ir20.00) Dollars, nor more than TwoHundred ($~oo.oo) Dollars, or imprisonmentfor not longer than nlnety ~(90) d.ays,or both.” (Undersoorlng ours) Ouropinion Ho. O-2416, directed to you under date of June 14, 1940 held that your wte Health Officer oamewithin the exoeption to the denial of pub110 lnapeotlon of the records andreports aee%rlbea in the abovei quoted statute, beoause suoh records were sought in furtheranoe of the pub110.health and the control of ocoupatlonal health hazards, andhewas therefore apublic employee in the performanoe, 

### of hls pub110 duties. Although, in the opinion referred to, the request to examine the reoorde ic‘- 

## aidnot emanate aireotly from afederal officer or agenor,

as in the lnetanoe caee, it was nevertheless apparent 

### from the factual statement submitted that the lnformat$oa sought andgalne% fr~omAhe reoords and,repoYts OS’the Unemployment Comoeneatlon Commission aotuUly andu&tlmately, and through the medium

### of the State aealth Offloer of Texas, came into the knowledge and possession of afederal board or agency, namely the United States Pzzbllc Health Servloe 

### of Washington, D. C., which wasoooperatlng with the State Department of Health upon aprogram of health promotion and conservation amongthe Industrial groups. Todraw the analogy oloser, the United States Pub110 Health Servloe was or anlzed under the Federal Security Administration under gitle 6of the Social Security Act, while the Callector 

### ofInternal Revenue in the instant oaee is seeking to use the reoorde in question to oolleat the federal unemployment tax under Titles VIII andIX of said Social Seourlty Act.

Therefore upon the Drlnclple established in the opinion mentloneh andupon the bare text of the statute (whloh does not limit the opening of the records to pub110 employees of the State) weare inclined to accord aliberal and enlarged oonstruotlon to this exception to secrecy of the reoorde, andhold that the term *publlo employees in the performance of ~&BP public duties” ln-

.- oludes as well ae proper state officials, sll federal officials, boards andagenoles, whose public or statutoryC Texas Unemployment Compenaatlon CommIesion, Page 4

duties under the Conetltutlon 

### of the United States or Aote of Congress bear somereasonable and proper relatlon to the Soolal 3eourlty Program, as related to Unemployment Compensation Ineurance, as aa to render the records and reports of the Unemployment Compensation GommIsssIon 

## orTexas neoessary andproper for their examination andlnspeotton.

Thea conclusion ia fortified. by the following provisions of the Texas Unemployment Compensation Act:

Article 5221b-9 (I) *State-Federal 

### Cooperation: In the administration of this Act, the CornmIssIon shall cooperate to the fullest extent ooneletent with the rovlslons of this Aot with the Social Seourlty 8aard, created bythe bclal Securfty Aot, approved Auguet 14, 1935, as amended;.

. . .* Article 5221b-9a". ;
. . *TheCommIseIon~may afford reasonable oooperation with every agency of the United States charged with the administration of anyunemployment insurance law.

. . . ,*,, TheFederal government and the various states of the Union, Including the State of Tedas, are engaged ln a program of cooperation andmutual seslstanoe for the permanent solution of the recubrent problems of unemployment commonto both soverel.ntIes. -ii Anexamination 

## orTitlee VIII and If of the Feeera oolal Seourlty Act, under which the taxee Fought to be aeseaee& by the Collector of,Internal Revenue are levied, demhnstrates that aame'were enacted by Congress ae an Inducement to the v::rIous states to enaot similar legislation for the relief of unemployment,-beoause acredit against t&e Federal tax.i.8 allowed'to employing units of the'varlous states for taxes paid to,state agencies under state Unemplpyment Compensation Acts. Moreover, Title III of the Social Security Act prcvides for granteIn-aid to the various states for Unemployment Comrensetion admInistratIve expenses..

Therefore, wesee that the ebove-quoted provisions of the Texas Unemployment Compensltlon Act are but declaratory of the commonpurpose of the State tin8Federal governzents to mutually assist and cooperate onewith the other, in the furtherance cf the Social Security Program. Assistanoe- Texas Unemployment Compensation Commlselon, Page 5

and cooperation to andwith the Collector of Internal Bevenue for the First Collection District of Texas along the lines requested by him, Ie tantamount to oooperatlon with the Social Security Board, In keeping with this declared policy of the State; because said offIoIa1 In seeking 

### reoorde to faollitate the assessment and

### oolhotlo sooial security, taxea, 1s acting for the Soolal 8of theee eourlty Board in the effective administration of the Soolal Seourlty Act.
It Ie therefore our opinion that the Texas Unemployment Compensation Conmlsalon mayproperly and legally flermlt and allow Bon. Frank Soofleld, Colleotor of Internai evenue for the First Colleotion Dletrlot of Texas, his deputies and representatIvea, to lnspeot and review the oomplete flies or audits of the Commleelon uron any or all employing units In this State, or obtain transorlpts thereof, for them of asseeelng taxes against suoh employing unite under the applloable provlelone of the SooIal Seourlty Act. Trusting the foregoing fully answer6 your Inquiry, weare Xourmvery truly
ATWIMEX QEBEBAL OFTEXAS

By(8) PATH. NEFF,JR

Pat W.Neil, Jr. Assistant PMN:LB APPROVEDOCTOBER 25, 1940 a - (R) WflALDC. UANN ATTORNEY

GENERAL

OFTEXAS ATPROVED Opinion Committee ByBWB Chairman