In the State Of Washington, laws exist to ensure that government is open and that the public has a right to access appropriate records and information possessed by state government. At the same time, there are exceptions to the public's right to access public records that serve various needs including the privacy of individuals. Exceptions are provided by both state and federal laws. In accordance with public disclosure law and the federal Driver Privacy Protection Act of 1994, DOL enters into contracts to provide access to vehicle and vessel registration information. For example, manufacturers of motor vehicles may have access to department records to contact vehicle owners to alert them to certain safety bulletins.
State law restricts the use of personally identifiable information for commercial purposes.
For more information on this issue, please review the recommendations of the Governor's Work Group on Commercial Access to Government Electronic Records , published in 1996. When DOL makes information available to requesters, they must certify that the information will not be misused. DOL provides only the information that is necessary to satisfy their stated purpose. DOL monitors the use of the information provided and take steps to ensure that its use respects personal privacy. All of the information collected at this site becomes public records that may be subject to inspection and copying by members of the public, unless an exemption in law exists.