# THE ATIWRNEY GICSERAL OF TESAS Au-.TE%AIB 78711

February 

### 26, 1974
The Honorable Walde.en D. WilEon, Executive Secretary Opinion No. H- 242 Board of Vocational Nur6e 

### Examiner6 Re: Applicability ofArticle 6252-174 406 Sam Hou6ton State Office Bldg. V. T.C. S., to the record6 of Austin. Texas 78701 licemees maintained by the Board ofVocational Nur6e **Examiner6** Dear MB. Wilron: You have requerted our opinion in answer to 

### a 6erics 

### ofquertionr con

### cerning the applicability ofthe Open Record6 Act, Article 6252-17r, Vernon’6 Texa6 **civil statuter,**  **to V6riOU6**  **liC6nBing** record6 ofyour Board:(1) What item6 on the licen6ee ma6ter file are con6idered confidential? (2) Are namer, addreBre6, birthdates, licen6e number6 and eocial recurity number6 ofparticular licensees con6idered 

### confidential? (3) May the Board refuse to grant a request becau6e of it6 magnitude? (4) What are the obligation6 of the Board in re6pondfng to requert6 from other 6tate and federal agencie6 requesting major information on the master file to beused for research and 6tUdy for **MriOUs** nUr6ing prOjeCtB? Ifthe information is di6clo6abie, how should costs be determined for reproduction ofthis material? (5) Doe6 Section 6(a)(9) make the contents ofthe licensing examination public information, or are the contents excepted from disclosure under Section 3?

p. 1121**1**
**. ”** 

**. .**  **’ ’**  **.1** The Honorable Waldeen D. Wilron, page 2 (H-242)

The Board 

### ofVocational Nurre Exarntnerr i6 

### created andgoverned by Article 4528~. V. T.C.S. We 

### findnothinginthatrtatutewhichwould make the information unavailable to amember 

### ofe public. Section 3(a) ofthe @en Record6 Act provide6:

“(a) All information collected, arsembled, or maintained by governmental bodie6 purruant to law or ordinance or inconnection with the tranraction of official businerr ir public information and available to the public during normal bUBine66 hour6 of any governmental body, with the following exceptions only:” , Since “governmental body” is defined by Sec. 2(l)(A) of the Act to include any board within the executive branch of the rtate government. in our opinion the Board ofVocational Nurse 

### Examiner6 ir 6ubject to the mandate of Sec. 3(a) ofthe Act. The maeter file, referred to inyour firrt quertion.ir comprired of the initial file and theannual renewal card. The 

### former contains the licensee’6 name, addre66, birth date, 6ocial recurity number, age, 6ex. marital statur. license number, date of graduation 

### from nursing school, date 

### ofrtate board examination, examination grades, date 

### oflicense, whether license i66Ued bywaiver or by examination, the school code and whether the license is current or delinquent. The renewal card seeks to bring much ofthi6 information up to date and, additionally, ask6 about employment 

### status andarea, general education, attendance at and

### degrees from college, availability ofin service training, and a6k6 for 

### ayes or no answer 

### a6to whether the licensee ha6 been arrested 

### for a felony or mfrdemeanor, other than a minor traffic violation, since la6t September 1. None ofthe information contained onthese card6 appear6 to be excepted from disclo6ure by any exception contained in Sec. 3(a) ofthe Act. Itis our opinion, therefore. that the information contained in the licensee master file should be made public upon requert. Particularly, we do not believe that any ofit, if di6closed, would violate a constitutionally protected right ofprivacy. See Attorney General Opinion H-90 (1973).

p. 1122:; .

‘. -7 ’ *

.

. The Honorable 

### Waldeen D. Wilron. page 3 (H-242)

Your 6econd quertion refer6 to information inthe ma6ter file and, in our opinion, the 6ame answer rhould apply. Your third quertion ark6 whether the magnitude ofa requert affect6 the irrue of dirclo6ability under the Act. Our answer i6 

### “No”
. Generally rpeaking, neither the rize of the reque6t nor the per6on mating it affect6 consideration of the ba6ic issue of di6ClOtability a6 far a6 the Board ofVocational Nurse 

### Examiners ir concerned. We appreciate the fact that practical problem6 

### ofcompliance may from time totime confront governmental bodier ruch a6 yours. However, the Act doe6 not authorize thi6 office to consider those difficultie6 in deciding the basic que6tion ofwhether information ir public. A request mu6t include rufficient detail to make identifiable 

### the exact type of

### information reque6ted. The governmental body may ask for clarification ifit cannot rea6onably understand a particular request. But when the particular type ofinformation reque6ted is identifiable, the only analysis permi66ible under the Act is whether that type ofinformation is public. Apprehension ha6 been expre66ed by Borneabout relea6ing information topersons with purely commercial motive6,or motive6 that 

### are otherwise characterized a6 euspect. The Act doe6 not permit analysis ofthe requestor’ motive in determining the hric question of disclosability. Section 5(b) specifically provide6 that “Neither the custodian norhi6 agent who control6 the u6e ofpublic record6 &all make any inquiry 

### ofany person who applies 

### for fn6pection or copying ofpublic record6 beyond the purpose of e6tabliBhing proper identification and the public record6 being requested.” See Open Records Decision No. 8 (1973). Question 4 raises separate consideration for state and federal agencies. Our office ha6 previously recognized the need to maintain an unrestricted flow of information between state agencies. See Attorney General Opinion M-713 (1970). The Open Records Act does

p. 1123. . ‘. 1
.

. . The Honorable Waldeen D. Wilson. page 4 (H-242)

notundercut that policy. Information which ir not required to be di6ClOBed tothe public 

### under the Act 

### can rtill be tranrferred between l

tate agencier without 

### violating it6 

### confidentiality or der

### troying it6confidential character. hi regard t0 COBt6Ofproviding information t0 Other

## l genCie6. the open 

### Record6 Act provide6 for a determination ofCOBt6by consultation between the agency from whom the information ir requerted and the State Board of Control, aa provided by Section6 

### 9(a) and 9(b) 

### ofthe Act. Such co6t6 might al60 be governed bythe

### Interagency Cooperation Act, Art. 4413(32). V. T. C. S. While 

### cooperation with federal agencier ir desirable even where information i6being reque6ted 

### thatir not 

### required to be 6upplied by the State 

### ofTexae under federal law, the policy 6upporting interchange ofinformation among rtate agencies i6 ab6ent when 

### afederal agency reque6t6 

### information not required by law to be divulged to it. E6peCially where information, non-di6closable to the public, i6involved, the 6tate cannot effectively a66ure that federal agencier, which function under a different “Open Record6 Law”, (6ee5US C., Sec. 552) will maintain state record6 with the 6ame eye toward6 conffdentiality that &ate agencies would be bound to do under the law6 of Texas. This lack 

### of control by the,6tate doe6 not preclude the right offederal agenciecl to

### haveaccess topublic information ofthe State. It doe6 preclude them from aCce66 to non-dirclorable information, unless Some **Other hW**  **require6 it6**  di6ClOBUre. With regard to cost6 of reproducing information, inthe absence of a particular rtatute or federal requirement. a federal 

### agency 6hould be treated, under the guideline6 of Section 9, a6 any “person” requesting information. 

### Your fifth question aeks whether the content6 ofthelicensing examination is public information. Section 6(a)(9) of the Open Record6 Act specifically make6 public information “instructions as to the scope and contents ofall
. . . examination6.
. . . ”

p. 1124.

L The Honorable Waldeen D. Wilson. page 5 (H-242)

We believe that Section 6(a)(9) contemplate6 publicity onwhat the examination ir tobe about when one i6 required by 6tate law to 

### pa66 ruch an examination a6 a condition to receiving rtate certification in the area examined; it doe6 not contemplate publicizing the quertionr on the examination itrelf. Obviourly, ruch a policy wa6 not intended under the Act, 

### otherwire prior acce66 to examination que6tionr would render 

### all rtate examination6 uBele66. We cannot arcribe tothe Legirlature an intent to achieve an ab6urd re6ult. 

### Your agency ir required to adminieter examination6 to qualified applicant6 for licenrure by Section 4(d) ofArticle 4528~. V. T. C.S. We believe that the rtatutory authority to conduct examinationr nece66arily include6 

### theauthority to maintain the confidentiality of the 6pecific questions with which the applicant’6 knowledge i6to be tested. 

### Thus, the examination u6ed by the Board ir excepted from disclo6ure under the Open Record6 Act under Section 3(a)(l) a6 it i6 information 

### autborired to be held confidential by rtatutory law. SUMMARY File6 of

### aficenlriag agency containing routine information concerning the 

### 6tatu6ofa licenree, including whether 

### or not

### hi6 license is 

### current, are disclorable under the Open Record6 Act. The identity ofthe requeetor and the magnitude ofthe request do notaffect disclosability ofpublic information. Very truly yours,

Attorney General of Texas

DAVID M. KENDALL, Chairman Opinion Committee p. 1125