October 7, 2002; School District 761 (Owatonna)
10/7/2002 10:16:43 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:On August 23, 2002, IPAD received a letter from Gloria Blaine Olsen and Kimberly Hewitt Boyd, on behalf of their client, Independent School District 761, Owatonna. In this letter, Ms. Olsen and Ms. Boyd asked the Commissioner to issue an advisory opinion regarding the District's authority to disseminate certain data to the Minnesota Department of Human Services (DHS). In a letter dated August 30, 2002, the Commissioner wrote to Linda Anderson, Acting Commissioner of DHS, seeking comments. IPAD received Ms. Anderson's comments on September 16, 2002. A summary of the facts of this matter follows. In their request, Ms. Olsen and Ms. Boyd asked whether the District can release private educational data to DHS, without parental consent, as part of a grant application for funds related to the implementation of a children's mental health collaborative. Ms. Olsen and Ms. Boyd stated that, in order to be entitled to greater levels of funding from DHS for the collaborative, the District would need to release to DHS the Minnesota Automated Reporting Student System (MARSS) numbers for all students receiving services through the collaborative. According to Ms. Olsen and Ms. Boyd, [a]ccess to the MARSS number connects to a student's name, age, school, ethnicity, disability and primary language. The Commissioner understands that the MARSS number is a combination of the individual student's Social Security number and an additional number that identifies the school district. Ms. Olsen and Ms. Boyd stated that under Minnesota Statutes, section 245.493, subdivision 3, members of a local children's mental health collaborative may share private data on individuals served by the collaborative if they have written consent and the data sharing is necessary. However, there is no specific statutory language regarding a member of the collaborative sharing data on individuals with a state agency such as [DHS]. In her comments to the Commissioner, Ms. Anderson stated: [a] review of both [Minnesota Statutes] chapters 13 and 245, as well as the federal regulations referenced therein, lead me to the conclusion that the requested private data cannot be released to DHS without parental consent. Ms. Anderson also stated that a copy of her comments was being forwarded to DHS program staff who are responsible for administration of the children's mental health collaboratives. Issue:In their request for an opinion, Ms. Olsen and Ms. Boyd asked the Commissioner to address the following issue:
Discussion:Minnesota Statutes, sections 245.491 to 245.495, provide for the establishment of children's mental health collaboratives. Section 245.493, subdivision 3, permits members of such collaboratives to share private data with other collaborative members if they have the consent of the individual data subject. (According to section 13.02, subdivision 8, individual includes the parent of a minor.) State agencies, such as DHS, are not included in the definition of the members of a local children's mental health collaborative provided at section 245.492, subdivision 12. Provisions of both state and federal law govern access to data generated by school districts about students. Section 13.32 incorporates by reference much of Title 20 of the United States Code, Section 1232g, the federal Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA), and its implementing Rules, Title 34 of the Code of Federal Regulations, Part 99. Subject to limited exceptions, educational data (termed education records under FERPA) are private. Under FERPA, education records may not be disclosed to third parties without written consent, with certain exceptions that do not apply here. Ms. Anderson stated: [i]n the case of the Owatonna School District, the MARSS records are being requested by [DHS] in order to assist Owatonna in applying for grants to establish a children's mental health collaborative. While this is certainly a goal consistent with the state and federal mandate to promote children's mental health, it does not fall under any of the exceptions that permit the non-consensual disclosure of education records. Ms. Anderson provided a detailed analysis of the interplay among the various provisions of state and federal law that are applicable here, and concluded the disclosure of the MARSS data by the [District] without parental consent is not permitted under either Minnesota Statutes Chapter 13 or Chapter 245. The Commissioner concurs with Ms. Anderson's analysis. The District may not release the private data on students contained in the MARSS database to DHS without written consent. Opinion:Based on the facts and information provided, my opinion on the issue raised by Ms. Olsen and Ms. Boyd is as follows:
Signed:
David F. Fisher
Dated: October 7, 2002 |
Data sharing
Educational data
Children's mental health collaborative
Combining data elements may uniquely identify an individual
Children mental health collaborative
MARSS (MN Automated Reporting Student System)
