Opinion ID: 2467190
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 4

Heading: Means and Costs of Providing the Requested Information

Text: One of the grounds alleged by defendants for denying the Foundation the information which it seeks was that, because of the magnitude of the information requested, it would be virtually impossible to furnish the information without hiring additional personnel and disrupting the activities of the Board. In response to the Foundation's suggestion that a direct tie-in to the Board's computerized data processing system might be the most feasible way to provide the information, the Board's dataprocessing manager stated by affidavit that such a procedure would cause a complete breakdown of our already overloaded agency workload; it would also require the complete restructuring of our data processing system and the hiring of personnel to supply the information requested by the Foundation. In response to this problem the Court of Civil Appeals stated, at 526 S.W.2d 220-221: While this is properly a matter for determination of the State Board of Control, under Sec. 9 of the Act, the possibility of abuse of computer privileges is one addressed to the sound discretion of the trial court. In the law review article entitled Privacy and the Computer, V. Countryman, 49 Tex.L.Rev. 837, 863 (1971), the author points to some dire consequences which may flow from the invasion of privacy by entry into a computer system. We are of the opinion that such consequences may be appropriate for consideration by the trial court in the exercise of discretion in the award or denial of the writ of mandamus upon the trial which we have ordered. Section 9(b) of the Act provides: Charges made for access to public records comprised in any form other than up to standard sized pages or in computer record banks, microfilm records, or other similar record keeping systems, shall be set upon consultation between the custodian of the records and the State Board of Control, giving due consideration to the expenses involved in providing the public records making every effort to match the charges with the actual cost of providing the records. It is our opinion that the Act does not allow either the custodian of records or a court to consider the cost or method of supplying requested information in determining whether such information should be disclosed. The least expensive method of supplying the information requested by the Foundation must be determined by the Board of Control and the custodian of the records in accordance with the guidelines set out by Section 9. The means of access to information in government records may be controlled by the determination of what records must be disclosed, insofar as the procedure must adequately protect information deemed confidential from improper disclosure. If a direct computer tie-in could not be effectuated without giving the Foundation access to information to which it is not entitled, then of course the procedure would not be acceptable. The least expensive method of providing the requested information, consonant with the trial court's final determination as to its confidentiality, should be left to the determination of the custodian and the Board of Control. We are aware that the Board may incur substantial costs in its compilation and preparation of the information, especially in light of the case-by-case review and redaction of the files necessitated by Section 3(a)(1). Section 9 of the Act makes clear that all costs incurred in providing access to public records must be borne by the requesting party. Section 11 provides: A bond for payment of costs for the preparation of such public records, or a prepayment in cash of the anticipated costs for the preparation of such records, may be required by the head of the department or agency as a condition precedent to the preparation of such record where the record is unduly costly and its reproduction would cause undue hardship to the department or agency if the costs were not paid. It is evident that the very situation contemplated by the Legislature in enacting Section 11 is before us in this case. After a determination of the anticipated costs of providing the requested information by the chief administrative officer of the Industrial Accident Board and the Board of Control, the Foundation may be required to post a bond, in accordance with Section 11, as a condition precedent to the Board's preparation of the records for the Foundation's inspection. These anticipated costs should of course include the expenses which may be incurred incident to the redaction of the records for the protection of individual claimants' privacy interests. The Court of Civil Appeals' judgment reversed the judgment of the trial court and remanded the cause. Because we agree that the trial court's judgment was erroneous and that the cause must be remanded, we affirm the judgment of the Court of Civil Appeals. The cause is therefore remanded to the trial court for further consideration in accordance with this opinion. DANIEL and SAM D. JOHNSON, JJ., concur with opinions. REAVLEY, J., dissents in opinion joined by STEAKLEY, POPE and DENTON, JJ.