Chapter 915 Oregon Laws 2001

AN ACT

HB 3839

Relating to public records; creating new provisions; and amending ORS 192.501 and 192.502 and section 8, chapter 1059, Oregon Laws 1999.

Be It Enacted by the People of the State of Oregon:

SECTION 1. ORS 192.501 is amended to read:

192.501. The following public records are exempt from disclosure under ORS 192.410 to 192.505 unless the public interest requires disclosure in the particular instance:

(1) Records of a public body pertaining to litigation to which the public body is a party if the complaint has been filed, or if the complaint has not been filed, if the public body shows that such litigation is reasonably likely to occur. This exemption does not apply to litigation which has been concluded, and nothing in this subsection shall limit any right or opportunity granted by discovery or deposition statutes to a party to litigation or potential litigation;

(2) Trade secrets. “Trade secrets,” as used in this section, may include, but are not limited to, any formula, plan, pattern, process, tool, mechanism, compound, procedure, production data, or compilation of information which is not patented, which is known only to certain individuals within an organization and which is used in a business it conducts, having actual or potential commercial value, and which gives its user an opportunity to obtain a business advantage over competitors who do not know or use it;

(3) Investigatory information compiled for criminal law purposes. The record of an arrest or the report of a crime shall be disclosed unless and only for so long as there is a clear need to delay disclosure in the course of a specific investigation, including the need to protect the complaining party or the victim. Nothing in this subsection shall limit any right constitutionally guaranteed, or granted by statute, to disclosure or discovery in criminal cases. For purposes of this subsection, the record of an arrest or the report of a crime includes, but is not limited to:

(a) The arrested person's name, age, residence, employment, marital status and similar biographical information;

(b) The offense with which the arrested person is charged;

(d) The identity of and biographical information concerning both complaining party and victim;

(e) The identity of the investigating and arresting agency and the length of the investigation;

(f) The circumstances of arrest, including time, place, resistance, pursuit and weapons used; and

(g) Such information as may be necessary to enlist public assistance in apprehending fugitives from justice;

(4) Test questions, scoring keys, and other data used to administer a licensing examination, employment, academic or other examination or testing procedure before the examination is given and if the examination is to be used again. Records establishing procedures for and instructing persons administering, grading or evaluating an examination or testing procedure are included in this exemption, to the extent that disclosure would create a risk that the result might be affected;

(5) Information consisting of production records, sale or purchase records or catch records, or similar business records of a private concern or enterprise, required by law to be submitted to or inspected by a governmental body to allow it to determine fees or assessments payable or to establish production quotas, and the amounts of such fees or assessments payable or paid, to the extent that such information is in a form which would permit identification of the individual concern or enterprise. This exemption does not include records submitted by long term care facilities as defined in ORS 442.015 to the state for purposes of reimbursement of expenses or determining fees for patient care. Nothing in this subsection shall limit the use which can be made of such information for regulatory purposes or its admissibility in any enforcement proceeding;

(6) Information relating to the appraisal of real estate prior to its acquisition;

(7) The names and signatures of employees who sign authorization cards or petitions for the purpose of requesting representation or decertification elections;

(8) Investigatory information relating to any complaint filed under ORS 659.040 or 659.045, until such time as the complaint is resolved under ORS 659.050, or a final administrative determination is made under ORS 659.060;

(9) Investigatory information relating to any complaint or charge filed under ORS 243.676 and 663.180;

(10) Records, reports and other information received or compiled by the Director of the Department of Consumer and Business Services under ORS 697.732;

(11) Information concerning the location of archaeological sites or objects as those terms are defined in ORS 358.905, except if the governing body of an Indian tribe requests the information and the need for the information is related to that Indian tribe's cultural or religious activities. This exemption does not include information relating to a site that is all or part of an existing, commonly known and publicized tourist facility or attraction;

(12) A personnel discipline action, or materials or documents supporting that action;

(13) Information developed pursuant to ORS 496.004, 496.172 and 498.026 or ORS 496.192 and 564.100, regarding the habitat, location or population of any threatened species or endangered species;

(14) Writings prepared by or under the direction of faculty of public educational institutions, in connection with research, until publicly released, copyrighted or patented;

(15) Computer programs developed or purchased by or for any public body for its own use. As used in this subsection, “computer program” means a series of instructions or statements which permit the functioning of a computer system in a manner designed to provide storage, retrieval and manipulation of data from such computer system, and any associated documentation and source material that explain how to operate the computer program. “Computer program” does not include:

(a) The original data, including but not limited to numbers, text, voice, graphics and images;

(b) Analyses, compilations and other manipulated forms of the original data produced by use of the program; or

(c) The mathematical and statistical formulas which would be used if the manipulated forms of the original data were to be produced manually;

(16) Data and information provided by participants to mediation under ORS 36.256;

(17) Investigatory information relating to any complaint or charge filed under ORS chapter 654, until a final administrative determination is made or, if a citation is issued, until an employer receives notice of any citation;

(18) Specific operational plans in connection with an anticipated threat to individual or public safety for deployment and use of personnel and equipment, prepared and used by a law enforcement agency, if public disclosure thereof would endanger the life or physical safety of a citizen or law enforcement officer or jeopardize the law enforcement activity involved;

(19)(a) Audits or audit reports required of a telecommunications carrier. As used in this paragraph, “audit or audit report” means any external or internal audit or audit report pertaining to a telecommunications carrier, as defined in ORS 133.721, or pertaining to a corporation having an affiliated interest, as defined in ORS 759.010, with a telecommunications carrier that is intended to make the operations of the entity more efficient, accurate or compliant with applicable rules, procedures or standards, that may include self-criticism and that has been filed by the telecommunications carrier or affiliate under compulsion of state law. “Audit or audit report” does not mean an audit of a cost study that would be discoverable in a contested case proceeding and that is not subject to a protective order; and

(b) Financial statements. As used in this paragraph, “financial statement” means a financial statement of a nonregulated corporation having an affiliated interest, as defined in ORS 759.010, with a telecommunications carrier, as defined in ORS 133.721;

(20) The residence address of an elector if authorized under ORS 247.965 and subject to ORS 247.967;

(21) The following records, communications and information submitted to a housing authority as defined in ORS 456.005 by applicants for and recipients of loans, grants and tax credits:

(a) Personal and corporate financial statements and information, including tax returns;

(b) Credit reports;

(d) Market studies and analyses;

(e) Articles of incorporation, partnership agreements and operating agreements;

(f) Commitment letters;

(g) Project pro forma statements;

(h) Project cost certifications and cost data;

(i) Audits;

(j) Project tenant correspondence requested to be confidential;

(k) Tenant files relating to certification; and

(L) Housing assistance payment requests;

(22) Records or information that, if disclosed, would allow a person to:

(a) Gain unauthorized access to buildings or other property used or owned by a public body;

(b) Identify those areas of structural or operational vulnerability that would permit unlawful disruption to, or interference with, the services provided by a public body; or

(c) Disrupt, interfere with or gain unauthorized access to public funds or to information processing, communication or telecommunication systems, including the information contained [therein] in the systems, that are used or operated by a public body;

(23) Records or information that would reveal the security measures taken or recommended to be taken to protect:

(a) An officer or employee of a public body;

(b) Buildings or other property used or owned by a public body;

(c) Information processing, communication or telecommunication systems, including the information contained therein, that are used or operated by a public body; or

(d) Those operations of the Oregon State Lottery the security of which are subject to study and evaluation under ORS 461.180 (6);

(24) Writings prepared by or under the direction of officials of Oregon Health Sciences University about a person and the person's potential interest in donating money or property to the university or the person's actual donation unless disclosure is authorized by the person; [and]

(25) Records of the name and address of a person who files a report with or pays an assessment to a council, board or commission created or organized under ORS chapter 576, 577, 578 or 579. As used in this subsection, “council, board or commission” does not include the advisory board established under ORS 576.810[.]; and

(26) Information provided to, obtained by or used by a public body to authorize, originate, receive or authenticate a transfer of funds, including but not limited to a credit card number, payment card expiration date, password, financial institution account number and financial institution routing number.

SECTION 2. Section 8, chapter 1059, Oregon Laws 1999, is amended to read:

Sec. 8. (1) In implementing the pesticide use reporting system, the State Department of Agriculture shall, at a minimum:

[(1)] (a) Beginning July 1, 2003, and annually thereafter, publish an annual report summarizing the pesticide use data in Oregon on a watershed basis. The report shall include an analysis of trends in use and an assessment of accuracy of the reporting data and summary of use by regions, watershed, county or other scale as recommended by the pesticide stakeholder group appointed under section 5, chapter 1059, Oregon Laws 1999 [of this 1999 Act].

[(2)] (b) Establish policy and adopt rules relating to the public release of data about pesticide sales or use [information. The policy and rules may not reveal the identity of the owner or lessee of a specific property or the address of the property itself where a pesticide has been applied, and shall maintain the confidentiality of that information. Nothing in] consistent with the limitations provided in this section.

(2)(a) Data about pesticide use obtained under sections 2 to 9, chapter 1059, Oregon Laws 1999, are confidential if the data would reveal the identity of the owner or lessee or the specific location of property where a person has applied a pesticide:

(A) For a private agricultural or forestry operation; or

(B) On private property or public property leased to a private person.

(b) Data about pesticide sales obtained under sections 2 to 9, chapter 1059, Oregon Laws 1999, are confidential if the data would reveal a trade secret, as defined in ORS 646.461, of the retail outlet, multiple-outlet retailer or associated group of retailers that reports the data.

(3) The policy [or] and rules [adopted by] that the department [shall] adopts under this section may not limit access to data for the following purposes:

(a) Information obtained as part of any investigation under any other provision of law;

(b) To release information obtained exclusively under sections 2 to 9, chapter 1059, Oregon Laws 1999, [of this 1999 Act] to any other local, state or federal agency, if the local, state or federal agency has agreed to maintain the confidentiality of any information that is required to be treated as confidential under this [subsection] section, unless the public interest by clear and convincing evidence requires disclosure in the particular instance; and

(c) To release information obtained exclusively under sections 2 to 9, chapter 1059, Oregon Laws 1999, [of this 1999 Act] to a health or environmental researcher acting in an official capacity from an accredited university or accepted research institute who agrees to maintain the confidentiality of any information that is required to be treated as confidential under this [subsection] section.

SECTION 3. ORS 192.502 is amended to read:

192.502. The following public records are exempt from disclosure under ORS 192.410 to 192.505:

(1) Communications within a public body or between public bodies of an advisory nature to the extent that they cover other than purely factual materials and are preliminary to any final agency determination of policy or action. This exemption shall not apply unless the public body shows that in the particular instance the public interest in encouraging frank communication between officials and employees of public bodies clearly outweighs the public interest in disclosure.

(2) Information of a personal nature such as but not limited to that kept in a personal, medical or similar file, if the public disclosure thereof would constitute an unreasonable invasion of privacy, unless the public interest by clear and convincing evidence requires disclosure in the particular instance. The party seeking disclosure shall have the burden of showing that public disclosure would not constitute an unreasonable invasion of privacy.

(3)(a) Public body employee or volunteer addresses, dates of birth and telephone numbers contained in personnel records maintained by the public body that is the employer or the recipient of volunteer services. This exemption does not apply:

(A) To such employees or volunteers if they are elected officials, except that a judge or district attorney subject to election may seek to exempt the judge's or district attorney's address or telephone number, or both, under the terms of ORS 192.445;

(B) To such employees or volunteers to the extent that the party seeking disclosure shows by clear and convincing evidence that the public interest requires disclosure in a particular instance; or

(C) To a substitute teacher as defined in ORS 342.815 when requested by a professional education association of which the substitute teacher may be a member.

(b) Nothing in this subsection exempting employee records from disclosure relieves a public employer of any duty under ORS 243.650 to 243.782.

(4) Information submitted to a public body in confidence and not otherwise required by law to be submitted, where such information should reasonably be considered confidential, the public body has obliged itself in good faith not to disclose the information, and when the public interest would suffer by the disclosure.

(5) Information or records of the Department of Corrections, including the State Board of Parole and Post-Prison Supervision, to the extent that disclosure thereof would interfere with the rehabilitation of a person in custody of the department or substantially prejudice or prevent the carrying out of the functions of the department, if the public interest in confidentiality clearly outweighs the public interest in disclosure.

(6) Records, reports and other information received or compiled by the Director of the Department of Consumer and Business Services in the administration of ORS chapters 723 and 725 not otherwise required by law to be made public, to the extent that the interests of lending institutions, their officers, employees and customers in preserving the confidentiality of such information outweighs the public interest in disclosure.

(7) Reports made to or filed with the court under ORS 137.077 or 137.530.

(8) Any public records or information the disclosure of which is prohibited by federal law or regulations.

(9) Public records or information the disclosure of which is prohibited or restricted or otherwise made confidential or privileged under Oregon law.

(10) Public records or information described in this section, furnished by the public body originally compiling, preparing or receiving them to any other public officer or public body in connection with performance of the duties of the recipient, if the considerations originally giving rise to the confidential or exempt nature of the public records or information remain applicable.

(11) Records of the Energy Facility Siting Council concerning the review or approval of security programs pursuant to ORS 469.530.

(12) Employee and retiree address, telephone number and other nonfinancial membership records and employee financial records maintained by the Public Employees Retirement System pursuant to ORS chapter 238 and ORS 238.410.

(13) Records submitted by private persons or businesses to the State Treasurer or the Oregon Investment Council relating to proposed acquisition, exchange or liquidation of public investments under ORS chapter 293 may be treated as exempt from disclosure when and only to the extent that disclosure of such records reasonably may be expected to substantially limit the ability of the Oregon Investment Council to effectively compete or negotiate for, solicit or conclude such transactions. Records which relate to concluded transactions are not subject to this exemption.

(14) The monthly reports prepared and submitted under ORS 293.761 and 293.766 concerning the Public Employees Retirement Fund and the Industrial Accident Fund may be uniformly treated as exempt from disclosure for a period of up to 90 days after the end of the calendar quarter.

(15) Reports of unclaimed property filed by the holders of such property to the extent permitted by ORS 98.352.

(16) The following records, communications and information submitted to the Oregon Economic and Community Development Commission, the Economic and Community Development Department, the State Department of Agriculture, the Oregon Resource and Technology Development Account or the Oregon Resource and Technology Development Account Board, the Port of Portland or other ports, as defined in ORS 777.005, by applicants for investment funds, loans or services including, but not limited to, those described in ORS 285A.224:

(a) Personal financial statements.

(b) Financial statements of applicants.

(d) Information of an applicant pertaining to litigation to which the applicant is a party if the complaint has been filed, or if the complaint has not been filed, if the applicant shows that such litigation is reasonably likely to occur; this exemption does not apply to litigation which has been concluded, and nothing in this paragraph shall limit any right or opportunity granted by discovery or deposition statutes to a party to litigation or potential litigation.

(e) Production, sales and cost data.

(f) Marketing strategy information that relates to applicant's plan to address specific markets and applicant's strategy regarding specific competitors.

(17) Records, reports or returns submitted by private concerns or enterprises required by law to be submitted to or inspected by a governmental body to allow it to determine the amount of any transient lodging tax payable and the amounts of such tax payable or paid, to the extent that such information is in a form which would permit identification of the individual concern or enterprise. Nothing in this subsection shall limit the use which can be made of such information for regulatory purposes or its admissibility in any enforcement proceedings. The public body shall notify the taxpayer of the delinquency immediately by certified mail. However, in the event that the payment or delivery of transient lodging taxes otherwise due to a public body is delinquent by over 60 days, the public body shall disclose, upon the request of any person, the following information:

(a) The identity of the individual concern or enterprise that is delinquent over 60 days in the payment or delivery of the taxes.

(b) The period for which the taxes are delinquent.

(18) All information supplied by a person under ORS 151.430 to 151.491 for the purpose of requesting court-appointed counsel, and all information supplied to the State Court Administrator from whatever source for the purpose of verifying indigency of a person pursuant to ORS 151.430 to 151.491.

(19) Workers' compensation claim records of the Department of Consumer and Business Services, except in accordance with rules adopted by the Director of the Department of Consumer and Business Services, in any of the following circumstances:

(a) When necessary for insurers, self-insured employers and third party claim administrators to process workers' compensation claims.

(b) When necessary for the director, other governmental agencies of this state or the United States to carry out their duties, functions or powers.

(c) When the disclosure is made in such a manner that the disclosed information cannot be used to identify any worker who is the subject of a claim.

(d) When a worker or the worker's representative requests review of the worker's claim record.

(20) Sensitive business records or financial or commercial information of the Oregon Health Sciences University that is not customarily provided to business competitors.

(21) Records of Oregon Health Sciences University regarding candidates for the position of president of the university.

(22) The records of a library, including circulation records, showing use of specific library material by a named person or consisting of the name of a library patron together with the address or telephone number, or both, of the patron.

(23) The following records, communications and information submitted to the Housing and Community Services Department by applicants for and recipients of loans, grants and tax credits:

(a) Personal and corporate financial statements and information, including tax returns.

(b) Credit reports.

(d) Market studies and analyses.

(e) Articles of incorporation, partnership agreements and operating agreements.

(f) Commitment letters.

(g) Project pro forma statements.

(h) Project cost certifications and cost data.

(i) Audits.

(j) Project tenant correspondence requested to be confidential.

(k) Tenant files relating to certification.

(L) Housing assistance payment requests.

(24) Raster geographic information system (GIS) digital databases, provided by private forestland owners or their representatives, voluntarily and in confidence to the State Forestry Department, that is not otherwise required by law to be submitted.

(25) Sensitive business, commercial or financial information furnished to or developed by a public body engaged in the business of providing electricity or electricity services, if the information is directly related to a transaction described in ORS 261.348, or if the information is directly related to a bid, proposal or negotiations for the sale or purchase of electricity or electricity services, and disclosure of the information would cause a competitive disadvantage for the public body or its retail electricity customers. This subsection does not apply to cost-of-service studies used in the development or review of generally applicable rate schedules.

(26) Sensitive business, commercial or financial information furnished to or developed by the City of Klamath Falls, acting solely in connection with the ownership and operation of the Klamath Cogeneration Project, if the information is directly related to a transaction described in ORS 225.085 and disclosure of the information would cause a competitive disadvantage for the Klamath Cogeneration Project. This subsection does not apply to cost-of-service studies used in the development or review of generally applicable rate schedules.

(27) Personally identifiable information about customers of a municipal electric utility or a people's utility district. The utility or district may, however, release such information to a third party if the customer consents in writing or electronically, if the disclosure is necessary to render utility or district services to the customer, or if the disclosure is required pursuant to a court order. The utility or district may charge as appropriate for the costs of providing such information. The utility or district may make customer records available to third party credit agencies on a regular basis in connection with the establishment and management of customer accounts or in the event such accounts are delinquent.

(28) A record of the street and number of an employee's address submitted to a special district to obtain assistance in promoting an alternative to single occupant motor vehicle transportation.

[(29) Except under the provisions of section 8 (2), chapter 1059, Oregon Laws 1999, pesticide sales or use reporting data obtained by the State Department of Agriculture exclusively under the provisions of sections 2 to 9, chapter 1059, Oregon Laws 1999, that would reveal the identity or specific location of the owner or lessee of a specific property where a pesticide has been applied for a private agriculture or forestry production operation, or other nonpublic facility on private property. Nothing in this subsection shall limit the use that may be made of such information for regulatory purposes or its admissibility in any enforcement proceedings.]

[(30)] (29) Sensitive business records, capital development plans or financial or commercial information of Oregon Corrections Enterprises that is not customarily provided to business competitors.

SECTION 4. The amendments to section 8, chapter 1059, Oregon Laws 1999, by section 2 of this 2001 Act apply to data obtained by the State Department of Agriculture on or after the effective date of this 2001 Act.

Approved by the Governor August 3, 2001

Filed in the office of Secretary of State August 6, 2001

Effective date January 1, 2002

__________