January 16, 2001; Minnesota Department of Public Safety
1/16/2001 10:19:43 AM
This is an opinion of the Commissioner of Administration issued pursuant to section 13.072 of Minnesota Statutes, Chapter 13 - the Minnesota Government Data Practices Act. It is based on the facts and information available to the Commissioner as described below.
Facts and Procedural History:For purposes of simplification, the information presented by the person who requested this opinion and the response from the government entity with which the person disagrees are presented in summary form. Copies of the complete submissions are on file at the offices of IPA and, except for any data classified as not public, are available for public access. On November 2, 2000, the Commissioner received a letter dated November 16, 2000, from X. In his/her letter, X requested that the Commissioner issue an opinion regarding a possible violation of X's rights under Minnesota Statutes, Chapter 13, by the Minnesota Department of Public Safety (DPS). IPA, on behalf of the Commissioner, wrote to Charles Weaver, Commissioner of DPS, in response to X's request. The purposes of this letter, dated November 28, 2000, were to inform him of X's request and to ask him to provide information or support for the Department's position. On December 8, 2000, IPA received comments, dated December 6, 2000, from Commissioner Weaver. A summary of the facts as presented by X is as follows. X wrote that since August 1, 2000, s/he has requested public and private data from DPS. X stated, On three occasions since August, 2000, I have been required to identify myself, state reasons for, and justify my request for public government data by unidentified personnel in some departments within [DPS]. I declined, citing Mn. Statute 13.05, Subd. 12. X further wrote that on November 16, 2000, s/he contacted DPS for some public information and was again asked to identify his/herself and to justify the request. Issue:In his/her request for an opinion, X asked the Commissioner to address the following issue:
Discussion:The 2000 Minnesota Legislature enacted Minnesota Statutes, section 13.05, subdivision 12. It went into effect on August 1, 2000, and provides: Unless specifically authorized by statute, government entities may not require persons to identify themselves, state a reason for, or justify a request to gain access to public government data. A person may be asked to provide certain identifying or clarifying information for the sole purpose of facilitating access to the data. In his comments, Commissioner Weaver wrote that since the August 1, 2000, law change, DPS employees have not required data requestors to identify themselves nor justify their requests for public data. He added, If X can provided [sic] further information naming employees who asked [him/her] to identify [him/herself] and on what dates, we would be better able to respond. In this case, there is a factual dispute that the Commissioner is unable to resolve. X alleges that, on several occasions, s/he was asked to identify him/herself and to justify requests for data. Commissioner Weaver asserts that DPS employees are not requiring data requestors to identify themselves or to justify requests. Section 13.05, subdivision 12, clearly states that a government entity cannot require individuals making requests for public data to identify themselves or to justify their requests, unless the entity requires such information to facilitate a response. If DPS employees requested identifying information and/or justifications for any requests, the Department is in violation of Chapter 13. If DPS employees did not request such information, no violation has occurred. Opinion:Based on the facts and information provided, my opinion on the issue that X raised is as follows:
Signed:
David F. Fisher
Dated: January 16, 2001 |
Requests for data
Reason/justify request and identity not required (13.05, subd. 12)
