Source: https://docs.dos.ny.gov/coog/ftext/f17097.html
Timestamp: 2017-07-21 02:37:31
Document Index: 791343407

Matched Legal Cases: ['§86', '§87', '§92', '§92', '§92', '§95', '§96', '§95', '§95']

FOIL-AO-17097
Dear I have received your letter concerning a denial of a request by the New York City Transit Authority for a document pertaining to you, a “final evaluation of the separating employee”, on the ground that it is “an interagency document.” You have sought guidance concerning the propriety of the response, and in this regard, I offer the following comments.
First, §86(3) of the Freedom of Information Law defines the term “agency” to mean:
Therefore, entities of state and local government in New York constitute “agencies”. “Inter-agency” documents would be those transmitted between or among agencies; “intra-agency” documents would be those transmitted within an agency.
One of the exceptions to rights of access, §87(2)(g), pertains to inter-agency and intra-agency documents and states that an agency may withhold records that:
Perhaps more significant in consideration of your request is the Personal Privacy Protection Law, which applies to state agencies only. The New York City Transit Authority is a subsidiary of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA), which is a state agency. The Freedom of Information Law deals with rights of access conferred upon the public generally; the Personal Privacy Protection Law deals with rights of access conferred upon an individual, a “data subject”, to records pertaining to him or her. A "data subject" is "any natural person about whom personal information has been collected by an agency" [§92(3)]. "Personal information" is defined to mean "any information concerning a data subject which, because of name, number, symbol, mark or other identifier, can be used to identify that data subject" [§92(7)]. For purposes of the Personal Privacy Protection Law, the term "record" is defined to mean "any item, collection or grouping of personal information about a data subject which is maintained and is retrievable by use of the name or other identifier of the data subject" [§92(9)].
Rights conferred upon individuals by the Personal Privacy Protection Law are separate from those granted under the Freedom of Information Law. Under §95 of the Personal Privacy Protection Law, a data subject has the right to obtain from a state agency records pertaining to herself, unless the records sought fall within the scope of exceptions appearing in subdivisions (5), (6) or (7) of that section or §96, which would deal with the privacy of others. Additionally, §95(2) provides a data subject with the right to attempt to correct or amend records pertaining to him or her “which he or she believes is not accurate, relevant, timely or complete.”
It is suggested that you might either resubmit your request, citing §95 of the Personal Privacy Protection Law as the basis for the request, or that you refer to that provision in an appeal.
The full text of the Personal Privacy Protection Law is available on our website, as is “You Should Know”, a guide to that law.
cc: Records Access Officer, NYC Transit Authority